Yankees sign Aroldis Chapman to five-year, $86 million contract

For the second time within the past year, the Yankees have acquired left-handed relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman. This time, they signed him as a free agent to a massive five-year, $86 million contract. The first time, they got Chapman in a trade with the Reds for a relatively uninspiring package—following the domestic violence incident that got Chapman suspended by Major League Baseball.

Over the course of the 2016 season, Chapman threw 58.0 innings and had a 1.55 ERA and 1.42 FIP with 13.97 strikeouts, 2.79 walks, and 0.31 home runs per nine innings. That was by far the best walk rate of his career, as his total still sits at 4.13 per nine.

As for relevance to the Mets, the Yankees play against them a few times per year. But the Nationals were at least interested in signing Chapman and are still in search of a closer heading into 2017.