4 years agoNew York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman has seen his four-seamer decrease in velocity over the past few years. He averaged 100 miles per hour or better on the pitch for several years before it dropped to 98.7 mph in 2018, then 98 mph in 2019 and finally 97.8 mph last year. While it's likely that the best years of Chapman's career are behind us, there's still a lot of value he can offer in 2021, especially given his role as the no doubt closer for what should be one of the best teams in the majors in 2021. Chapman had a 3.09 ERA and 0.857 WHIP in 2020. He averaged 17.0 K/9, which was a solid increase from 2019, when he averaged a K/9 of 13.4. Chapman also saw his hard-hit rate lower from 30.3% in 2019 to 27.8% in 2020. While his ERA increased from 2.21 in 2019 to 3.09 in 2020, his xERA actually decreased from 2.85 in 2019 to 2.70 in 2020. This year's crop of elite closers looks about as shallow as it has ever looked, which makes someone with Chapman's strong track record even more attractive. If you like having a reliable top-end closer to hold down your bullpen, Chapman is a phenomenal target at the end of the seventh round in rotisserie leagues and head-to-head categories leagues. In points leagues, feel free to wait another round or two before pulling the trigger on him.--Andrew Ericksen - RotoBaller