Well, the Pirates did a thing!

It’s a confusing, it’s odd, it’s unexpected, but it’s a thing!

Not long after comments from Pirates owner Bob Nutting made headlines, in which he said he wished the Pirates were farther along in the offseason than they were, general manager Ben Cherington goes out and signs Aroldis Chapman, who instantly becomes the team’s highest paid player in 2024.

Chapman’s deal, worth $10.5 million for one year, in maybe the oddest signing all offseason, considering the team signing the deal. Pittsburgh has had a infuriatingly slow offseason, and have still failed to fully address the most needed group: the starting rotation.

This signing doesn’t do that either, bringing in a bullpen arm to what is already a strength on this Pirates roster.

But while it does fail to address any real need, it does provide a spark to a starved fan base. Chapman, a seven time All Star, is coming off winning a ring with the Texas Rangers last season.

He has always been known for an incredibly strong arm, having the fastest pitch thrown in the last 13 years for all five franchises he has played for.

In his prime, he was one of the league’s best closers, recording 30+ saves eight times over his career, including a 30-save season back in 2021.

He’s a proven winner, having won a World Series with the Rangers last season, as well as the Chicago Cubs in 2016. Ironically, both of his championship wins came after he was traded to the winning team mid-season (something we’ll circle back to in a minute).

But, his signing is not praised by everyone.

There’s the obvious controversy that comes with him. Chapman was involved in an incident back in 2015, in which he was accused of domestic violence and firing eight gun shots.

Though he was never officially charged for that incident by police, he was suspended by Major League Baseball for 30 games, and the league paused a proposed trade that had Chapman going from the Cincinnati Reds to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Chapman admitted to firing a gun in the garage of his South Florida home, but both he and his attorney denied the allegations of violence towards his girlfriend. At the time, police did not pursue charges due to inconsistent reports and insufficient evidence.

Nevertheless, that’s something a sizable amount of this fan base will never to be able to look past, understandably so.

There’s also his history with Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen. Back in 2012, Chapman plunked McCutchen with a 101 mph pitch on the shoulder. McCutchen remained calm but shot Chapman an all-time glare. A few years later, Chapman came close to striking McCutchen again, on his famous 106 mph pitch.

I did see several people bring up that first incident upon first hearing about the news. For what its worth in that department, McCutchen and Chapman teammates on the New York Yankees in 2018. They probably weren’t best friends in the clubhouse, but there were never any rumblings of a rift there.

Then there’s also the distinctly un-Pirates like feel to this. Pittsburgh was probably the last spot anyone would guess for the soon to be 36 year old. It’s also a very rare time that the team has actually spent significant money on a free agent.

Where does he fit in the lineup? Chapman’s longtime role as a closer might make some think that Pittsburgh native David Bednar might be on the outs, but I think it’s far more likely Champan becomes a set up man for Bednar.

Chapman has seen a considerable decline in his closing opportunities over the last few years. After finishing 46 of the 61 games he played in 2021 with the Yankees, that number fell to 19 in 43 with New York, and then even further to 18 in 61 games last year, split between Kansas City and Texas.

His steep decline in the closer spot has me believing that Chapman will be an eighth inning pitcher for the Pirates He may still close games that Bednar doesn’t play in, but Bednar is the closer in town.

Despite his age, Chapman still excelled at striking batters out. His SO/9 last season was the fourth best of his career, at 15.9. However, his BB/9 was also on the higher end in his career, at 5.6. He recorded a 3.09 ERA this season, about half a run higher than his career average.

Ironically, his ERA with the Royals (2.45), who were one of the worst teams in baseball last year, was almost a full run and a half lower than his ERA with the Rangers (3.72, who won the World Series.

And of course, there’s the glaring one year deal. It’s a prime contract to get moved at the trade deadline for more prospects. It’s hard to think that’s not what the Pirates will do come July, given their history especially in recent years.

However, that $10.5 million salary puts just a sliver of doubt in my mind, that maybe he does stay here all year if the Pirates are in any real position to look like a real baseball club.

If the Pirates do plan on having Chapman stay the whole year, it also opens the door for the Pirates to trade someone like Colin Holderman to help out their starting pitching depth. But that would require the Pirates to do another thing that is incredibly rare for them.

Regardless of what the plan is for Chapman as a Pirate, it’s an incredibly odd sight to see. I had to double check every post/report I saw about it, because I was sure it was fake.

(Featured photo by Adam Hunger/AP)