It’s official: Aroldis Chapman has been named the closer for the Boston Red Sox.
MassLive reported on March 18 that Chapman emerged as the frontrunner for the position, and manager Alex Cora announced the decision on Tuesday.
Chapman, however, won’t always get the ball in the ninth.
“I think Chappy has been amazing,” Cora told reporters in Monterrey, Mexico, via MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “But if Corey Seager leads off the eighth, he could be used in the eighth. And there’s certain times he’s gonna pitch the eighth, but most (often), he’ll pitch the ninth inning.”
In February when spring training began, Cora said there were several pitchers in the running to be the closer including Chapman, Liam Hendriks, Justin Slaten and even Garrett Whitlock. Hendriks struggled with his command throughout the spring and even admitted he shouldn’t be the one the Red Sox turn to in the ninth inning.
“I think it’s been pretty well proven this spring training who deserves that spot after earning it all spring and that’s definitely not me,“ Hendriks said earlier this month. “Things will shake out however they shake out, but if you want to talk about the guy who’s looked the best in spring training, that’s Chapman.”
Hendriks missed most of the 2023 season due to Stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He then underwent Tommy John surgery on Aug. 2, 2023 and missed all of 2024.
Chapman, who signed a one-year deal with the Red Sox in the offseason, allowed two runs, three hits and five walks with 14 strikeouts in 7⅓ innings over eight Grapefruit League outings.
The Red Sox open their 2025 season on the road on Thursday against the Texas Rangers.
