Time for Chap to be the boss

Expectations have changed in Yankeeland, which means Aroldis Chapman had better figure it out soon. Maybe it was considered a “transition season” going into the 2017 campaign, but after giving the go-ahead on Brian Cashman’s solid trades for Sonny Gray, Jaime Garcia, Tommy Kahnle, David Robertson and Todd Frazier, Hal Steinbrenner is thinking playoffs.

Anything less would be considered a “failure,” the boss of the Bombers told reporters at the MLB owners’ meetings on Wednesday. “That’s how we look at it every year,” Joe Girardi said before the Yankees beat the Mets 5-3 at Citi Field for their third consecutive victory.

And while Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge (457-foot homer) have been showing signs offensively and CC Sabathia (knee) and Masahiro Tanaka (shoulder) are close to returning to the rotation, the ninth inning has suddenly become a massive concern.

The Yankees made Chapman the highest-paid closer in baseball history during the winter, and that five-year, $86 million contract has looked like an albatross so far. The 29-year-old flamethrower has rarely looked the same since being overused by Joe Maddon during the Cubs World Series title run last fall.

Chapman has already dealt with injury (missing over a month due to rotator cuff inflammation) and inconsistency (four blown saves in 20 chances, 3.89 ERA). His fastball swing-and-miss rate has fallen significantly — from a peak of over 40 percent down to 25 percent, according to ESPN. And his latest blowups have occurred on Sunday and Tuesday — as he’s allowed five earned runs in his last three appearances. Youngsters Rafael Devers and Amed Rosario have both taken Chapman deep over that span.

“As good as he was in that first inning in Boston, I don’t think it’s as much mechanical,” Bombers pitching coach Larry Rothschild said. “I think it can leak into that. It’s just getting back to what he does mentally and getting after it. Being aggressive and getting his confidence back. It’s a little bit of a confidence thing right now.” That’s not what you want in the middle of a playoff race. “It’s somewhat concerning, but confidence can change really quickly,” Girardi said. “One good outing, and you can really get on a roll. And I’m convinced he’s going to get on a roll.”

Chapman’s hamstring tightened as he was covering first base during the final out of Tuesday’s game. He didn’t close on Wednesday. Robertson did, with Dellin Betances unavailable after appearing in the previous three games in a row.

“It may be a couple days,” Girardi said after the game of Chapman. “I may not use him again tomorrow and then we’ll see how he is after that. But nothing’s scheduled for him as far as MRIs or a DL stint.”

Chapman, for the record, has an 8.44 ERA against the Red Sox in six appearances this year. The Yankees are headed to Boston for a weekend series at Fenway Park. Perhaps even more rest could be in order.

Still, the manager has continued to put his trust in Chapman. Now, it appears Chapman needs to put his trust in himself and his electric stuff. Devers homered off a 102.8 mph fastball on Sunday night. And two days later, Rosario hit a slider out of the ballpark.

“I think it impacted him yesterday,” Rothschild said. “He changed what he was doing and threw a lot more sliders and wasn’t the same. He’ll get through this because his stuff is just too good not to. But when you go through it really for the first time other than that at the end of last year, I think it’s impactful, and it takes a little while to work through it.”

Betances (0.51 ERA since July 8) and Robertson (14-for-15 in saves in 2017) might be better options at this point, but neither Girardi nor Rothschild seems inclined to make a change.

“I think for him, closers are usually adrenaline junkies, so that’s an important thing for him (to pitch the ninth),” Rothschild said.

On Wednesday, Chapman posted a long message on his official Instagram page. The gist, according to a team translator: “The best Warrior is not the one that wins all the time, but the one that comes back to the fight all the time.”

The Yankees desperately need Chapman to get his confidence back. Because another key blown save in a huge spot could mean the difference between a successful season and a failure in the eyes of Hal Steinbrenner.