Why did New York Yankees reliever Aroldis Chapman get placed on the injured list?
The Cuban has been inactive since 19 August with an infection and manager Aaron Boone doesn’t know if he will pitch again this season.
With six wins in their last 10 games, the New York Yankees are beginning to come out of the rut that cost them the top spot in the American League. And with 36 games to go, and a tough battle with the Astros, the Big Apple club won’t be able to deploy Aroldis Chapman.
Costly tattoo for Chapman and Yankees
On Saturday the Bronx team placed the Cuban closer on the 15-day injured list due to a leg infection. Chapman developed the condition following have a tattoo on that part of his body.
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Chapman has not seen any activity since 19 August and part of his absence has been as a result of the infection. In this regard, manager Aaron Boone has assured fans that the Cuban can return to pitch this season, according to Jack Curry, of Yes Network.
“[Chapman’s] got an infection in his leg right now. We’re hoping we’d kind of knock it out and be able to take care of it the last couple days, but it’s still significant enough, from a tattoo he recently got; he’s got a pretty bad infection in there,” Boone said ahead of Saturday’s game against the A’s.
“He was actually at the hotel yesterday, still back at the hotel now. We’re treating him with antibiotics and things like that. So he’s got an infection that he’s dealing with that’s going to force him on the IL.”
“We’re treating him with antibiotics and things like that,” Boone continued. “Hopefully he’s good in several days. We can backdate this a few days, but we have to get our arms around it and get the infection out of there. It’s gotten a little bit worse over the last two days.”
According to Michael Kay of the Yes Network, the infection originated from a tattoo of a portrait of Chapman’s sister.
Complicated year for Chapman
For the ‘Cuban Missile’ this problem is just one more setback to what has been a challenging 2022.
In July he lost the position of nominal closer for the Yankees by having an ERA of 4.70. In addition, he will be a free agent at the end of the campaign and with his current credentials, his value in the market will be somewhat diminished if things don’t turn around.