• Submitted by: manso
• Sports
• 08 / 31 / 2010

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Aroldis Chapman will be a factor in the National League Central pennant race.

The Cincinnati Reds are expected to call up the left-hander who it seems is bent on redefining the phrase "hard-throwing" Chapman, who left Cuba to pursue a dream of playing Major League Baseball, signed with the Reds during the offseason.

Cincinnati was under pressure beginning in spring training to bring him up to the big-league club, but the Reds' pitchers mostly have done fine without him.

Now, however, is the time for the Reds to get Chapman on the roster to ensure that he will be eligible for the postseason, although he probably would have been anyway. He's likely to generate excitement all on his own, given that he hit 105 mph on a radar gun while pitching for Triple-A Louisville Friday.

The Reds have monitored his innings and his pitch counts game by game so as to be ready for this moment. He began the season as a starter, but has blossomed since moving into a relief role.

The 22-year-old's numbers in Louisville have been mixed, to say the least. He was 5-5 with a 5.11 ERA in 13 starts but went 4-1 with a 2.40 ERA in 26 appearances out of the bullpen, with 49 strikeouts in 30 relief innings.

Cincinnati management says Chapman is still viewed as a starter down the road, but the Reds are willing to take a chance that Chapman could be an extra bullet in the bullpen, much the way David Price, now one of the American League's top starters, was for Tampa Bay pitching in relief in the AL pennant race two years ago.

Source: http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2010/08/30/reds-to-summon-aroldis-chapman-from-m...