Aaron Boone says Yankees don’t owe Aroldis Chapman an apology

TORONTO — The New York Yankees could use an upgraded bullpen before the postseason arrives. One of the best relievers who could get dealt before the trade deadline is former Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman, who is currently with the Boston Red Sox. If Chapman were to get traded to the Yankees, though, he said the organization would owe him an apology.

Chapman told ESPN Deportes that if he were to return to New York, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman would need to say sorry for how the reliever’s tenure ended with the organization. Yankees manager Aaron Boone disagreed with Chapman’s belief that the club needs to apologize.

“No,” Boone said bluntly in the visitors’ dugout at the Rogers Centre on Friday.

The Yankees left Chapman off their postseason roster in 2022 after the lefty skipped a mandatory workout before their series against the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Division Series. At the time, Boone said that Chapman questioned whether he would be on the roster. Knowing that it was likely he would not be on the Yankees’ roster, Chapman decided to stay home in Miami instead of reporting to New York, effectively deciding for the club.

The end of Chapman’s tenure with the Yankees was bizarre. He missed time in 2022 after a tattoo of his sister’s face on his leg became infected. He lost his job as the closer to Clay Holmes. When he was healthy, Chapman was mostly ineffective, posting a 4.46 ERA.

Still, the Yankees’ manager said, to this day, that his relationship with Chapman remains positive.

“Chappy apologized,” Boone said. “Really, it’s water under the bridge for me. I love Chappy. I have a really good relationship with him to this day. The ending of the ’22 season is what it was. He wasn’t there, and I made the decision that I didn’t think it was best for him to come back at that point. He maintained that he was throwing and would be ready as the playoffs unfolded that year, but, ultimately, I made that decision.”

Cashman, who did not respond to a request for comment, said in 2022 that he was not surprised that Chapman skipped the Yankees’ workout because there were “questions about whether he’s been all-in or not for a little while, and he’s maintained verbally that he’s in, but at times actions don’t match those words.”

Entering Friday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Yankees’ bullpen had a 3.41 ERA, the seventh-best in MLB. They could use more strikeouts and velocity out of their relievers, who had the 14th-best strikeout rate among all bullpens and the 15th-best average fastball velocity.

With the Red Sox in last place in the American League East, Chapman could become the best reliever who is dealt ahead of the Aug. 3 deadline. Chapman has a 0.46 ERA in 19 2/3 innings pitched with 26 strikeouts.

But even though Boone says that all is well between him and the reliever, it’s Cashman who has the final say on whether or not he would be comfortable adding him back on the roster. With how tumultuous it ended between the Yankees and Chapman, along with the Red Sox residing in New York’s division, it would be a surprise to see him back in pinstripes.