What is Aroldis Chapman's Net Worth and Salary?
Aroldis Chapman is a Cuban-American professional baseball pitcher who has a net worth of $50 million. Aroldis Chapman currently plays for the MLB's Texas Rangers. He played for four other MLB teams before joining the Rangers, including the Chicago Cubs, with which he won the 2016 World Series. Known for his blazing fastball, Chapman broke the record for the fastest recorded pitch speed in MLB history, at 105.1 miles per hour.
Contracts & Career Earnings
Aroldis Chapman is one of the highest-paid relief pitchers in baseball history. As of this writing, his career earnings are estimated to be a bit over $130 million. His biggest contract was a five-year, $86 million deal he signed with the New York Yankees in 2016. His biggest single-season salary was $19.5 million, which he earned in 2018 with the Yankees.
Early Life
Aroldis Chapman was born on February 28, 1988 in Holguín, Cuba. He has two sisters, and is of Jamaican descent on his father's side. When he was 15, Chapman was invited by a friend to join a local baseball team. Starting out as a first baseman, he eventually became a pitcher when his coach saw how well he could throw.
Career Beginnings in Cuba
Chapman began his professional baseball career in Cuba in 2006 with the Holguín Sabuesos. During his time with the team, he amassed a 3.74 ERA and 365 strikeouts. Although mainly used as a starting pitcher, he made 11 relief appearances in the 2007 season. Also in 2007, Chapman won the gold medal at the Pan American Games as part of the Cuban national baseball team, and helped his country claim silver at the Baseball World Cup.
Defection
Following a failed defection attempt from Cuba in 2008, Chapman was suspended for the remainder of the Cuban National Series season. In the summer of 2009, he successfully defected while in Rotterdam, Netherlands during the World Port Tournament; fellow Cuban national team player Gerardo Concepción also defected during the tournament. Chapman eventually established residency in Andorra.
Cincinnati Reds
In early 2010, Chapman signed a six-year contract with the Cincinnati Reds. He began the ensuing season with the Triple-A Louisville Bats. At the end of August, Chapman was called up to the Reds in the eighth inning of a game against the Milwaukee Brewers. A month later, in a game at Petco Park in San Diego, he set a new record for the fastest pitch speed in MLB history, at 105.1 miles per hour. The Reds went on to reach the NLDS, where they were swept by the Philadelphia Phillies. In the 2011 season, Chapman served only as a relief pitcher, appearing in 54 regular-season games and finishing with a 3.60 ERA and 71 strikeouts.
In 2012, Chapman was named to his first All-Star Game, and finished the season with a 1.51 ERA and 122 strikeouts. He earned a second consecutive All-Star selection in 2013; that season, he finished with a 2.54 ERA and 112 strikeouts. Due to a skull fracture he suffered during spring training in 2014, Chapman began the 2014 regular season on the disabled list. He was activated on May 10. In late July, Chapman recorded his 100th career save in a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He finished the season with a 2.00 ERA and 106 strikeouts. After signing a one-year contract with the Reds in early 2015, Chapman made 65 relief appearances during the regular season and earned his third All-Star selection.
New York Yankees, 2016
Chapman was traded to the New York Yankees in late 2015. Early the next year, he was named the team's new closer, and a month later signed a one-year contract with the team. However, Chapman was suspended for the first 30 games of the 2016 season due to an offseason incident involving domestic violence. He made his debut with the Yankees on May 9 in a victory over the Kansas City Royals. Later, in a July game against the Baltimore Orioles, Chapman matched his own record for fastest pitch when he threw a 105.1-mph fastball at the top of the ninth inning.
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Chicago Cubs
Midway through the 2016 season, Chapman was traded to the Chicago Cubs. He made his first appearance with the team on July 27. The Cubs went on to advance to the NLDS, where they defeated the San Francisco Giants, and then to the NLCS, where they beat the Los Angeles Dodgers to earn their first pennant in over 70 years. In the World Series, Chapman's pitching helped the Cubs clinch the title, the first of Chapman's career and the first World Series victory for the Cubs since 1908, ending the longest world championship drought in North American professional sports history.
New York Yankees, 2017-2022
In late 2016, Chapman signed a five-year contract to return to the Yankees. During his first season back, he had the fastest pitch in the MLB, at 104.3 miles per hour. Chapman topped that in 2018 with a 104.4-mph pitch, although he was bested that season by Jordan Hicks. He had another solid season in 2019, recording a 2.21 ERA with 85 strikeouts as the Yankees reached the ALCS. After testing positive for COVID-19 during the shortened 2020 season, Chapman pitched in his first game of the season in August. Early the next month, he was suspended for three games for throwing a pitch at the head of the Tampa Bay Rays' Mike Brosseau. Later, in the ALDS, Brosseau hit a game-winning home run off Chapman to give the Rays the series.
In August of 2021, Chapman recorded his 300th career save in a win over the Oakland Athletics. The following month, he recorded his 1,000th career strikeout in a win against the Toronto Blue Jays. Chapman finished the season with a 3.36 ERA and 97 strikeouts. Early in the 2022 season, he was placed on the injured list due to achilles tendinitis; he was placed back on the list in August due to an infection. Chapman's lousy season continued when he missed a mandatory workout ahead of the ALDS, and was subsequently left off the Yankees' postseason roster.
Kansas City Royals
Chapman signed a one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals in early 2023. In 31 appearances with the team, he went 4-2 with a 2.45 ERA.
Texas Rangers
At the end of June in 2023, Chapman was traded by the Royals to the Texas Rangers.
Personal Life
When Chapman defected from Cuba in 2009, he left behind his family, his girlfriend Raidelmis, and his newborn daughter Ashanty. He eventually reunited with them when he secured their transfer to the United States. In the summer of 2014, he had a second child, a son named Atticus. Chapman became an American citizen in 2016.
In late 2015, it was reported that Chapman had allegedly been involved in a domestic violence incident with his girlfriend in Florida. He was accused of pushing and choking her, as well as firing gunshots. Ultimately, no charges were filed by police on account of inconsistent reports and inadequate evidence.
