Earlier this month we talked about the possibility of Aroldis Chapman getting a brief suspension from the MLB due to his alleged involvement in a domestic violence incident back in October. Well, now rumors suggest he may not get suspended at all.
While the MLB has the power to discipline players regardless of the outcome of the legal case under the new domestic violence policy, it appears as if commissioner Rob Manfred may not possess enough evidence to sideline Chapman.
"The timing of [manager Joe] Girardi's coronation speaks to the Yankees' confidence that Chapman will escape punishment," writes Bob Klapisch of the Bergen County Record. "Again, club officials have no inside information on this. No one from Manfred's office has said a word, on or off the record.
"But the fact that Florida police have chosen not to press charges against Chapman gives Manfred far less leverage. It's true, the commissioner doesn't require an arrest to punish a player for an off-the-field incident. But the case against Chapman is weaker now than it was a month ago. He broke no laws, not even in firing his handgun eight times in his garage."
Girardi named Chapman the Yankees' closer on Monday, which, for some odd reason, didn't raise many eyebrows throughout the baseball world. First of all, the league has not made a decision on Chapman's fate, so it makes little sense why the Yankees would make an official announcement regarding the closer job when his status is up in the air. Secondly, perhaps to many Yankees fans, the job was Andrew Miller's to lose, despite his team-oriented comments and willingness to undertake any role in the bullpen.
The left-hander spent last season as the Yankees' ninth-inning man and lived up to every dollar of his $9 million salary.
But perhaps the Yankees know more than most. They traded for Chapman in the first place, even after the Red Sox and Dodgers backed off once the domestic abuse allegations were uncovered. Then New York went ahead and made him the team's closer in the midst of the investigations when the MLB won't make a ruling on Chapman's fate for another six weeks.
The Yankees' actions up until this point could be indicative of Chapman's future: he may not be suspended at all because the MLB seemingly has little leverage based on the known details up until this point.
