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It’s Hard To Embrace Chapman Despite His Skill

Aroldis Chapman made his Yankee debut Monday night against the Royals. This comes after he served his 30-game suspension for domestic violence.

Not surprisingly, Chapman received a standing ovation from Yankees fans at Yankee Stadium. The fans were in awe with him throwing 102 mph in getting the Royals out and getting his first save as a Yankee.

He might as well be a true Yankee with the reception he received.

Count me as one of those folks that do not care for the Yankees closer. It’s hard to embrace him when he allegedly choked his girlfriend, Cristina Barnea and followed it up by firing eight shots in the garage of his Davie, Fla home in an attempt to scare her.

Yankees fans do not care what I think. They cited there is no evidence he beat his wife and that charges were dropped. It’s easy to defend him when he is a vital contributor to his team.

Production always will beat moral values nine out of ten times when it comes to fans. It’s about winning.

This isn’t the first time New Yorkers rooted for a professional athlete who was involved in domestic violence. They supported Jason Kidd when he won games with the Nets from 2001 to 2008.

It took awhile for fans to embrace Kidd because they had an issue of him beating his wife, but when Kidd made plays and won games for the Nets, all was forgiven. That gave the meaning of winning’s a great deodorant.

New Yorkers are not the only ones that forgive criminals and wife-beaters. It’s the entire world. It’s the culture we live in.

It’s sad. I admit I was one of those folks that rooted for Kidd during the Nets’ glory years. Looking back, it was idiotic on my part. I was all about winning back then.

I have vowed not to support any player that enter our town with a domestic violence incident. There should be no acceptance once a man beats his wife.

Domestic violence is not a minor issue. Women continue to be beaten by their men. They continue to be treated like an object each and every year. 

Teams can make a stand by not enabling this act. They should dump guys who beat their wives or girlfriends. There has to be zero tolerance.

The Yankees should have known better than to acquire Chapman. They didn’t need him. They have a great closer as it is with Andrew Miller. Getting the Reds closer was a luxury, not a necessity.

They should have taken a stand that they won’t get guys who have a criminal record.

Instead, it’s about winning first. The Yankees are no different than any other sports teams.

It’s clear the Yankees did not think about their female fanbase. Why would they care? They don’t make moves based on what the fans want, so it’s no different when it comes to hearing women’s pleas.

This is something the Yankees need to take seriously. This is not an isolated incident. This is something that should not be tolerated. In the real world, employers fire employees that has a history of domestic violence.

Sports is the exception, and that’s wrong.

I get it. Sports is a business. Sports is about winning. At what cost, though.

Teams need to focus on guys who will conduct themselves as professionals on and off the job. They need to get guys who can be good role models for youth.

Fair or not, athletes are role models despite what Charles Barkley thinks. Kids idolized them. They want to be like them. They want to have the same success like them.

It’s time for athletes to behave the right way and accept their role model status such as knowing how to act like a professional.

The Yankees have a responsibility for the fans just like any other sports team.

There was no point acquiring Chapman. This team is not even a championship team. Not when the offense features old guys on the wrong side of 30. Not when the starting rotation is awful. It was pointless to acquire him based on those factors. He wasn’t going to be the missing piece to the Yankees’ elusive 28th championship.

Chapman should have been another team’s problem.

Let’s hope he is here for this year. He is a free agent after this season. The Yankees don’t need the trouble.

What they need is to start finding young everyday players they can develop.

Chapman can entertain fans by throwing 102 mph per strike every time. It may be the only thing enjoyable for Yankees fans this year considering how bad they are.

This begs this question.

Is it really worth it?

Leslie Monteiro
I'm the author of 10 books. If you're looking for autographed copies just go to my Twitter @Sportsology and DM me.

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