TURN UP THE HEAT
Hard-throwing Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman rehabs with Thunder
TRENTON » Aroldis Chapman reared back and clocked triple digits on the Arm & Hammer Park radar gun.
The Yankees closer still has the velocity even if the location wasn’t there to match in a rehab appearance for the Thunder on Friday night.
Chapman was scheduled to work the first inning, but exited after he reached his pitch limit of 20. He only threw nine of those for strikes and allowed a run without a ball in play thanks to a pair of wild pitches — both thrown well over the catcher’s head.
Chapman finished with two walks and two strikeouts. He touched 102 mph on his fastest pitch.
“The control wasn’t really good, but as time goes on I’m going to get better,” Chapman said through a translator. “I didn’t throw in a while and this was the first game to pitch, so in time it’s going to get better.”
Chapman has been on the disabled list since May 14 with left rotator cuff inflammation, but said he’s ready to return to the Yankees, who are in Oakland finishing up a seven-game road trip. He’s expected to be activated on Sunday.
“It will feel good to get reunited with the team,” said Chapman, who is 7-for-8 in save chances. “I’ll work on my command for down the road. When you’re in the show the emotion is a little different, and I feel like I’m ready to be up there and help my team.”
A four-time National League AllStar, the 29-year-old signed a fiveyear deal with the Yankees in the offseason after helping the Cubs win their first World Series since 1908.
Chapman started the 2016 season with the Yankees, but was traded to the Cubs on July 25 for the package of Gleyber Torres, Rashad Crawford, Billy McKinney and Adam Warren.
He saved 16 games for Chicago in the regular season and four more in the playoffs. He appeared in five of the seven World Series games, pitching to a 1-0 record with 3.52 ERA in 7.2 innings. He saved Game 5 with 2.2 innings of relief.
Chapman said he hopes that experience rubs off the Yankee pitchers as they chase the playoffs.
“It will help a lot, especially with the guys in the bullpen,” he said. “I’ll bring a little bit of experience and talk to them about it. How it is up there when you’re in the playoffs, how to get prepared and how to keep a positive mind.”
The Yankees originally acquired Chapman from Cincinnati in a deal that sent former Thunder players Tony Renda, Eric Jagielo, Rookie Davis and Caleb Cotham the other way.
Jorge Saez and Abiatal Avelino hit sacrifice flies in the seventh inning and the Thunder grabbed a 4-2 victory over Erie to open a fivegame set.
The two teams will play doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. The Thunder are the home team in all four games even though two of those are make-ups from rainouts in Erie. Josh Rogers and Nestor Cortes will start the Saturday contests, while Justus Sheffield and Daniel Camarena are scheduled for Sunday.
Mike Ford belted his seventh home run in the second inning for Trenton (43-22).
Jacoby Ellsbury continued to work out with the Thunder as he recovers from a concussion suffered on May 24 when he crashed into the outfield wall.
Ellsbury participated in batting practice and played catch prior to Friday night’s series opener against Erie. The 33-year-old reported that his concussion symptoms returned on May 30 and was shut down from all baseball activity.
Manager Bobby Mitchell said Ellsbury likely will return to the Bronx when the Yankees return from their west coast trip, although there’s a chance he plays in a rehab game for the Thunder once he is cleared by doctors to return.
“It varies with different people, the severity of it, whether the headache comes back or not,” Mitchell said. “It could happen at any time with a concussion. He’s feeling pretty good. Not up to normal yet. He’s trying to get his legs in shape.”