Aroldis Chapman explains why he signed extension with Red Sox

Red Sox

“I wanted to stay here and we started having conversations.”

Even at 37 years old, Aroldis Chapman was seemingly primed to strike it rich this winter.

The soon-to-be free agent had seen his stock soar over the summer. In his first season with the Red Sox, Chapman has rejuvenated his career and re-established himself as one of the top closers in baseball — sporting a 1.00 ERA and recording 28 saves over 59 games.

The flame-throwing southpaw has been on roll for over a month now, as he has not surrendered a hit in his last 16 appearances — dating all the way back to July 26. 

But rather than hit the market this offseason as a free agent, Chapman opted to put pen to paper on a new deal with Boston — with the veteran signing a contract extension through the 2026 season with a guaranteed salary of $13.3 million. Both Chapman and the Red Sox also have a mutual vesting option for the 2027 season.

Even with the promise of commanding a higher salary elsewhere, Chapman was candid on Monday morning when asked why he opted to stay in Boston. 

“Yeah, of course you think about it,” Chapman said on Monday about hitting free agency, as translated by Red Sox staffer Carlos Villoria Benitez. “But I wanted to stay here and we started having conversations.”

“The chemistry that we have here is unique,” Chapman added. “We’re very together on and off the field. Also the coaching staff and the medical staff and the trainers made the decision easier for me wanting to stay here.”

While the Red Sox’ hopes of being a perennial contender largely rests on the play of young franchise fixtures like Roman Anthony, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow acknowledged Monday that an elite closer like Chapman also figures into that equation — even if it’s just for the next season or two.

“I think when you can identify the players that you believe can be cornerstone pieces of a sustained run of success, you have to act aggressively to keep them around,” Breslow said. “And I think watching them mature and develop together is a pretty neat thing. We feel like we’re getting there.

“There’s certainly still work to do, but, it’s exciting to be able to point to this core of guys and say they’re going to be here for a long time.”

Chapman will turn 38 by the time that his extension kicks in for next season. But Breslow said that the Red Sox had no qualms about handing the lefty a new deal — given his physical conditioning, lack of major injury concerns, and the production he’s put forth on the mound so far this season. 

“We can talk about what Chappy has accomplished on the field and he’s certainly having a historic season this year,” Breslow said of Chapman. “While no one has been able to fully outrun aging, when you think about someone that could potentially weather it, you look at someone who keeps themselves in such good physical shape as Chappy does. I showed up this morning at 9 a.m. and he was already in the weight room.

“I think that’s what you would point to when people say, ‘How has this guy been able to throw 100 miles an hour for 15 years now and just continue to have a successful season after a successful season?’ So when you think about making a bet on someone to be successful later in their career, you look at the way that they keep themselves in shape and prepare and feel pretty good about this one.”

 

Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.