Pitcher Aroldis Chapman says there was no drama in his defection from Cuba

AP Interview: Pitcher Aroldis Chapman says there was no drama in his
defection from Cuba
RONALD BLUM AP Sports Writer
November 13, 2009 | 1:44 a.m.

NEW YORK (AP) — Aroldis Chapman simply left his room at the Domina Hotel
in Rotterdam last July and went down to the lobby.

The Cuban pitcher's defection during a tournament in the Netherlands
lacked any of the drama a movie script writer would want.

"It was pretty straightforward," he recalled. "I just walked out of the
hotel, got in the car and left."

Separated from his parents, sisters, girlfriend and an infant daughter
he's never seen, the 21-year-old left-hander with a 100 mph fastball
embarked for a career in the major leagues.

He is being courted by the New York Yankees and Mets, the Boston Red Sox
and likely other clubs. Team executives say figures of $15 million to
$50 million have been mentioned, but no one really is sure of a possible
price for a pitcher who has never been on a U.S. professional team.

"He's a once-every-40-years player," says Chapman's agent, Edwin Mejia.

Chapman was all blinged out during a 45-minute interview Thursday at the
office of The Associated Press, wearing a large, shiny watch and
gleaming earrings.

He gained attention during the World Baseball Classic in March, when he
pitched well against Australia and badly against Japan.

Then he contacted a friend from Cuba before the World Port Tournament,
an event that included the national teams of Cuba and the Netherlands,
and Japanese and Taiwanese teams that mixed minor leaguers and
industrial players.

Afraid of leaks, he didn't tell any of his family members — not even
pregnant girlfriend Raidelmis Mendosa Santiestelas — that he intended to
defect.

"I only spent one hour at the hotel thinking about what to do. I made
the decision, stepped away from the hotel and got into the car," he
said. "Everything was planned from a few months before the tournament. I
discussed the idea with a friend and made the decision to do it — never
thought about doing it during the Classic. It was something that I was
seeking before the Classic, but I didn't want to do it in the Classic."

He spoke by telephone with his family within a day of his defection, and
he's spoken with them frequently. His daughter, Ashanti Brianna, was
born a few days before he walked out of the Rotterdam hotel and started
a journey that led him through Spain and to tiny Andorra in the
Pyrenees, where Chapman established the residency that allowed him to
become a free agent under baseball's rules. If he had become a U.S.
resident, he would have become subject to the amateur draft.

Cuban pitchers have been successful in the major leagues, although none
have risen to the elite group in recent years. Half-brothers Livan
Hernandez (156-151) and Orlando Hernandez (90-65), and Jose Contreras
(71-63) have achieved the most fame in the past decade.

When asked which pitcher he most resembles, Chapman didn't pick one of
his countrymen but instead said 6-foot-10 left-hander Randy Johnson.

Chapman got a short taste of what the major leagues are like when he sat
in the stands last month for Game 6 of the AL championship series at
Yankee Stadium.

"I would think of what pitch would I throw this batter and things of
that sort," he said. "There were many that were the same as what I was
thinking. There were a few that weren't, but not all pitchers are the
same and some think differently. I can maybe depend on my fastball a
little more than some other pitchers."

He showed a raw talent at the WBC, where he was 0-1 with a 5.68 ERA over
two appearances. He struck out eight but walked four in 6 1-3 innings,
allowing four runs and six hits.

While his stats were mediocre, he fastball impressed. He says he also
throws a curveball, slider, changeup and splitter.

"My best pitch is my fastball," he said confidently. "It's probably the
most difficult pitch to hit. In my case, batters have very little
reaction time."

Yet, he knows there is work to be done.

"I feel that I need to improve a bit my control, but not so in the
execution of the pitches," he said. "I feel that I have sufficient
repertoire to pitch in the major leagues. I don't foresee problems to
play in the major leagues."

Yet, he knows he'll have to prove himself again on the spring training
fields of Florida or Arizona.

"If a team wants me to go to the minors to get ready and prepare, that's
what I'm going to do and I will show that I should be pitching in the
major leagues," he said.

He was a first baseman primarily until he was 15 or 16, when a school
pitching coach suggested he convert. By the 2005 season, he was 18 and
pitching for Holguin in the Cuban national league.

Chapman is expecting one very big difference in the major leagues — one
he's already noticed while in New York the past few weeks.

"I don't like the cold," he said. "But as along as you warm up properly
and you build up a nice sweat and keep your body warm, your arm warm and
loose, you should be fine."

As far as the fans, he says they're pretty much the same, except for the
language.

"They're loud. They yell things at you," he said. "I just don't know
what they're saying here."

AP Interview: Pitcher Aroldis Chapman says there was no drama in his
defection from Cuba -- latimes.com (13 November 2009)
http://www.latimes.com/sports/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-bbo-chapman-interview,0,7502713.story