Aroldis Chapman: In Aaron Boone’s view, he doesn’t deserve an excuse

Aroldis Chapman has been in the news recently. The relief pitcher, whose tenure with the Yankees ended on a sour note, stated that if the team ever wanted to bring him back, Brian Cashman would have to apologize for what happened back then.

As a reminder, in 2022, Chapman was sidelined from the team during the playoffs while recovering from a leg infection caused by a tattoo. At the time, Cashman had questioned whether Chapman was 100% committed to his career.

What's clear is that there's tension. And it's worth noting that Aaron Boone, the Yankees' manager (who was there in 2022), was asked about Chapman's comments.

And in Boone's view, Chapman doesn't deserve an apology from the organization. He says he has a good relationship with the pitcher, but that at the time, he made the best decision for his team by removing him from the lineup.

And Boone points out that at the time, it was Chapman who failed to show up for a mandatory workout, even though the Yankees had asked him to do so to assess his condition.

Boone acknowledges that Chapman, at the time, apologized for not showing up. The manager says, however, that at the time, he felt the best decision was not to include Chapman on the roster.

And the sense is that, according to Boone, this whole episode is a thing of the past. He's moved on.

Obviously, in any case, we shouldn't expect to see Chapman back with the Yankees. It feels like the relationship is fragile, and even though the reliever is dominant, the mere fact of seeing him around the team again could become a distraction and cause headaches.

And we all agree that, in any case, it's pretty rare to see the Red Sox help out the Yankees.

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