Cincinnati Reds go for cautious handling of Aroldis Chapman’s downswing – MLB News
The Cincinnati Reds' pitching coach Bryan Price on Wednesday, June 20, came with his explanation on the blips Aroldis Chapman has recently had. Bryan Price barely seemed stirred by the supposedly degenerating pitching performance of Aroldis Chapman.
Chapman who was being tipped as one of the successful relievers in the National League has witnessed unusual slump in his performance lately. The last few games have seen his ERA going to 10.13 when 0-3 record.
When the Reds took on the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday, Cincinnati seemed to be all set to score a resounding victory. However, Chapman blew the chance when he came to pitch, allowing an unanticipated but much dreaded two-run homer to Asdrubal Cabrera that led to the 3-2 defeat of the team in the 10th inning.
That was a blow to the chances of Reds to get a lead in the series. Nonetheless, Bryan Price had a different look at it when it came to the critical analysis of the pitching spell.
"He got out of his delivery yesterday, and pitches that he was trying to throw in were running back out over the plate," Reds' pitching coach Bryan Price said Wednesday. "He wasn't where he needed to be with his fastball command, and the velocity fluctuations we're probably sometimes just going to have to live with."
There are a lot of weapons in Chapman’s arsenal that he can use conveniently and devastatingly against the opponents. The fact that he can throw pitches touching the three-digits sets him apart in the league. But last few games have seen a downward trend in this as well.
But Dusty Baker, the team manager, does not seem very agitated either. He sees it as inevitable.
"I don't care who you are, sometimes you're going to get hit," Baker said. "You knew it was going to come sooner or later. The real test of the life of a reliever is to forget yesterday. Now he'll have to pass another test and forget yesterday."
With all that has gone wrong, Chapman has the capability to reset it to the default position. It will be of enormous interest to see when he succeeds in putting things in order again.
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