Following the trade which brought flame-throwing closer Aroldis Chapman to Chicago back in July, Cubs fans have marveled at one thing:
Velocity.
Chapman has been the only closer in baseball to consistently hit triple digits during all of his appearances which makes him seemingly unhittable at times. As a fan, it's hard to fathom exactly what it feels like to step into the box against Chapman, but one baseball analyst put it best...
"Imagine someone throwing a golf ball at you from a ladder 10 feet away."Because a flame-throwing, lefty closer is such a rarity these days, his performances are always under the microscope. When ANY baseball player performs at that high of a level for that amount of time, questions start to loom. "How does he do it?" In a recent interview with ESPN, Chapman reveals his workout secret which he credits for helping him throw that 'straight gas' Cubs fans have grown to love.
[USE ARROW AT TOP TO CONTINUE TO PART 2]
Chapman sat down with ESPN's Marly Rivera to discuss what life is like being the "new guy" in the city of Chicago. Chapman discussed a variety of issues in his life, including his children (Ashanti, 7; Atticus, 2; Angelina, 1), his World Series expectations, and his love for Starbucks. The highlight of the interview was Chapman sharing his thoughts on his workout routine that has helped turn him into the premiere closer in all of baseball."I'm a closer, so [during the season] I only go to the gym once a week. I follow a strict workout of about two hours. What I do is work hard in the offseason and spring training. I don't go to the gym on a daily basis because it makes my muscles tight when I get in the game."The 6'4" 200-pound Chapman credits all of his success to one of his first coaches in Cuba, Rafael Castillo. Chapman acknowledged he was "very lazy" in the beginning of his career, but it was because of Castillo that he's able to throw over 100. Castillo did very little to fix Chapman's unorthodox delivery, but did everything to instill a great work ethic that Chapman still carries with him today.
"He got inside my head, and then everything was like automatic: 'I have to work, run, go to the gym.' Then I came here [to the U.S.], and that's what I did. I was always working hard."So, although we are currently in-season and Chapman is only hitting the gym once a week, don't let Chapman's in-season workout routine fool you from his off-season workout routine where he's going straight beast mode. https://www.instagram.com/p/BD1xXksIzcc/?taken-by=_thecubanmissile54 https://www.instagram.com/p/BBtj8ZJIzTd/?taken-by=_thecubanmissile54 Chapman is proving to be the missing puzzle piece to the Cubs World Series title run thus far. He's already collected three saves in the NLDS, even after giving up the game-winning hit in Game 3. Chapman is the closest thing to a "sure thing" that'll you see at the end of the game and it's because of the hard work that goes in during the off-season that allows Chapman to be the premier closer in all of baseball. Go Cubs. Follow me on Twitter @nissen54.
