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Cubs bullpen coach a fan of Chapman
- Updated: October 2, 2016
CINCINNATI — If you watch closely, when Aroldis Chapman is done warming up, Cubs bullpen coach Lester Strode hands the reliever a bottle of water and a towel. Chapman takes a long drink, wipes himself off, then goes into the game to throw 100-mph fastballs.
“It’s like he was here since Spring Training,” Strode said on Sunday of the Cubs’ closer, who joined the team in late July following a trade with the Yankees.
“His routine, his pregame routine — he comes out and does his running and his throwing,” Strode said. “The guy knows what he’s doing. He knows how to prepare himself, and that’s why you see the results that you do.”
Chapman is 16-for-18 in save situations since joining the Cubs, with a 1.01 ERA. He made his final regular-season appearance on Saturday, striking out two of the five batters he faced. It was his first appearance as a visitor at Great American Ball Park, which was his home from 2010-15 when he pitched for the Reds.
Chapman has been throwing more sliders lately, but Strode said that’s part of the plan.
“I think the third or fourth game, guys were sitting on the …
