Cuban defector generating interest with pitching heat

On Monday, the same day Aroldis Chapman's representatives announced the Cuban defector had established legal residency in Andorra, Henry Rodriguez and his 100 mph fastball made a forgettable major league debut with the Oakland A's.

The next day, San Francisco Giants rookie Waldis Joaquin reached triple digits with his fastball as well but failed to retire any of the four batters he faced.

Chapman's heater, which was clocked at 100 mph during the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in March, became a coveted asset the moment he defected July 1 during a tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Once he's granted free agency by Major League Baseball, which might happen by late October, the 21-year-old left-hander figures to be the subject of a bidding war that could top the $32 million the New York Yankees paid in 2003 for fellow Cuban Jose Contreras.

Whether that proves to be a wise investment won't be known for some time, and it's already the subject of much debate, despite the 100 mph fastball.

Even though Chapman, 6-2 and 185 pounds, went only 24-21 in four years in Cuba's Serie Nacional, his ERA climbing from a low of 2.77 during the 2006-07 season to 4.03 last season, and he posted a 5.68 ERA in 6⅓ innings at the WBC, his potential as a dominant starter has created a stir among baseball people.

"His best number right now is the one that's on that little radar gun," said Eddie Bane, the Los Angeles Angels' director of scouting. "There's more to pitching than that, but you don't see many guys with that number, so you pay attention."

"I went for it"

Escaping the Castro regime turned out to be simple and nerve-wracking at the same time.

Chapman, who had tried and failed to flee Cuba by boat in March 2008, had made arrangements with a contact from Cuba to pick him up by car at the team hotel in Rotterdam on the afternoon of his arrival.

To Chapman's happy surprise, Cuban officials neglected to confiscate the players' passports, their usual policy after passing through customs, so he had a document proving his identity and age. That would eventually expedite his getting new residency.

No one impeded Chapman's escape this time. All he had to do was walk into the waiting car. Still, the thought of turning his back on his teammates and family — his parents, two sisters, girlfriend and baby daughter remain in Cuba — gave him pause.

"I was very nervous when I saw the guy in the hotel, and he told me this was the moment," Chapman said in a telephone interview in Spanish. "I didn't know what to do, but I had decided to take that step and I went for it."

Along with a friend from Cuba who now plays college baseball in the USA — Chapman declined to name him — and Edwin Leonel Mejia, who is now his agent, Chapman drove to Barcelona and began training in July at the baseball facilities used for the 1992 Olympics.

About six weeks ago he moved two hours north to Andorra, a country of 84,000 lodged in the Pyrenees between Spain and France. The European location has mostly kept the news media and potential poachers at bay, but Mejia says Chapman will consider traveling to the USA to showcase himself once he gains free agency.

Mejia won't get into specifics about which teams might bid for Chapman or how much it might take to sign him, saying only, "My sense and common sense dictates that there will be many teams interested in his services."

Cultural changes

In addition to his vaunted fastball, Chapman throws a slider, splitter, curve and changeup. The overpowering repertoire allowed him to strike out 379 in 341⅔ innings in his Cuban league career, but he walked 210 and had a 3.72 overall ERA.

In his WBC start against Japan, Chapman was visibly upset over a strike zone he regarded as smaller than in Cuba.

"He has a great arm, but he has only one pitch, is not very coachable and would not have made the current national team," said author and journalist Peter Bjarkman, who has written extensively about Cuban baseball and travels to the island frequently.

Besides polishing his skills, Chapman will have to adjust to the American culture. He has taken steps in that direction with a fondness for iPhones and the music of rapper 50 Cent. In addition, he has begun a Rosetta Stone English language program.

Chapman believes none of the challenges he encounters will compare with the difficulty of walking away from his previous life.

"It's easier to face a hitter, no matter how good he is, than to deal with the situation I dealt with a few months ago," Chapman said.

"So I wouldn't be scared to face any hitters. It's not like they're going to bite me. All they can do is get a hit off me.

"It was a stressful time when I left the team and my family behind, when I had to worry that Cuban security may come after me. But all that's in the past."