Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman has always been known for one thing: his heater. The Cuban fireballer took the league by storm in 2010, clocking the fastest pitch ever recorded at 105.1 mph. From 2014-2017, Chapman threw 1,870 fastballs at a speed of 100 mph or greater. That was nearly six times more than Mauricio Cabrera’s 342, and represented 37.5% of all fastballs registered in triple digits in the entire MLB.
Chapman was no circus freak either. He quickly demonstrated that he could be an elite big league reliever, posting a 2.17 ERA and 15.40 K/9 in his nearly six years in Cincinnati.