Dellin Betances wasn’t alone when he appeared to be surprised by being removed by manager Joe Girardi in the eighth inning Wednesday, with a runner on and a two-run lead.
Aroldis Chapman was, as well.
“A little bit, yeah,” Chapman said through an interpreter after picking up the save in the Yankees’ 3-2 win over the Rays at Citi Field. “Dellin is a really good reliever and he already had two outs.”
When Chapman immediately walked Steven Souza Jr. and then allowed a run-scoring single to Adeiny Hechavarria to make it 3-2, Girardi’s move seemed even more questionable.
But Chapman recovered to strike out Wilson Ramos to get out of the inning and then fanned three straight in the ninth after a leadoff walk to Curt Casali.
First it was Brad Miller, and then he got Kevin Kiermaier and Lucas Duda.
Betances wasn’t around to talk to the media following the game, but Girardi said he didn’t mind the reliever’s apparent frustration at being removed.
“He wants to be out there,” Girardi said. “That’s a good thing. I’m OK with that.”
It was no doubt easier to deal with unhappy pitchers after a win, and the outcome was very much in doubt as Chapman labored to get the final out of the eighth.
But he pitches better in the ninth.
“It seems like he got more comfortable,” Girardi said. “I don’t know why, but he did. That’s really good because he’s in the heart of their order and Kiermaier hurt us all series. Those were big outs that he got.”
All four outs Chapman recorded were by strikeout, and the lefty said he is confident his recent woes remain behind him.
“You go through a rough patch,” Chapman said. “Today I do feel better about my command.”
So did Austin Romine, who was behind the plate and said he believes Chapman is nearly back to his old self.
“I think that last inning right there was pretty close,” Romine said. “He was really getting after it. You were starting to see some 0-2 [counts] and he was able to get behind the ball.”
Romine knows how critical it is for Chapman to be pitching well down the stretch, especially with Girardi leaning so heavily on the bullpen.
“It’s very important,” Romine said. “You can see what he does when he’s good. You saw it that last inning. He was making pitches.”
