Aroldis Chapman’s 104-MPH Fastball Just Broke the Internet—Watch the Must-See Clip

Boston — Aroldis Chapman is rewriting late-inning expectations in 2025, and the Boston Red Sox are riding his historic stretch straight into the American League Wild Card race. The 37-year-old flamethrower has rattled off nine consecutive hit-free appearances—his longest such run in a 16-year career—while trimming his ERA to a major-league-best 1.15 and holding opponents to a .130 average. Signed to a one-year, $10.75 million deal last winter, Chapman has already converted 22 saves, vaulting him past the 350-save milestone (357 and counting) and into the top 15 all-time. His rejuvenation has flipped a bullpen that ranked 23rd in win probability added a year ago into a top-five unit this season. Manager Alex Cora has leaned heavily on Chapman’s triple-digit heat—he’s averaged 100.4 mph on the four-seam fastball—and a tighter, later-breaking slider that generates a 46 percent whiff rate, the highest of his career. Why the turnaround? Club insiders point to three tweaks that have unlocked vintage velocity: • Simplified mechanics: Boston coaches shortened Chapman’s arm swing during spring training, cutting stress on his left shoulder and allowing him to stay on top of the baseball deeper into his delivery. • Weighted-ball routine: A customized pre-game program has helped Chapman maintain peak arm speed through the grind of August, a month in which his fastball has actually ticked up to 101 mph on average. • Pitch-calling synergy: Veteran catcher Connor Wong has paired Chapman’s slider more frequently with elevated heaters, creating a north-south tunnel hitters haven’t solved—Chapman owns a 39 percent strike-out rate in two-strike counts since the All-Star break. The timing could not be better for Boston. Entering Friday, the Red Sox, Yankees, and Mariners are locked in a three-team scrum for two Wild Card spots, each separated by a single game. In a stretch where every ninth inning feels like October, Chapman has faced 29 consecutive batters without allowing a base hit and struck out 14 of them. Historical context underscores how special the run is: Mariano Rivera never recorded more than seven straight hitless outings; Billy Wagner’s career best was eight. If Chapman extends the string to 10, he’ll own the longest hit-free streak by any reliever age 35 or older in MLB’s pitch-tracking era (since 2008). Red Sox brass are already discussing an extension, sources say, but Chapman insists the focus is singular. “All that matters is getting this club back to the postseason,” he told reporters after sealing a 6-3 victory over the Yankees with a 101-mph heater. “The numbers are nice, but rings are nicer.” Next up: a weekend set versus the Orioles, whose lineup Chapman has blanked in four meetings this season. Keep an eye on Saturday night—if Boston holds a late lead, Chapman will have a chance to carve his name even deeper into the record books and, perhaps more importantly for the Red Sox, the 2025 playoff bracket.