Inflammation Sidelines Aroldis Chapman from Reds Roster

Aroldis Chapman's services were lost to the Cincinnati Reds as he was placed on the 15-day disabled list Monday. Chapman had undergone an MRI exam that found inflammation in his pitching shoulder, leading the franchise to decide it was time to give the star pitcher some rest. The hope seems to be that some rest will get him back to throwing that 100 mph fastball in about two weeks time.

According to the Associated Press, the Reds think this shoulder problem was the reason Chapman has been wild in his past few appearances. He walked 12 batters in his last four games, while at the same time just getting four outs. Two of those games resulted in Chapman not retiring a single hitter.

This year has not been a good one for the prized Cuban prospect, and it's a far cry from what he was able to accomplish during his short stint in 2010. In the 2011 season, Chapman had appeared in 16 games, pitching just 13 innings and posting an ERA of 6.92. He also walked 20 batters, but somehow picked up two wins in his relief appearances.

Last year, Chapman was dominant on the mound, pitching in 15 games during the final month of the season and posting a 2.03 ERA for the Reds. In that time, he struck out 19 hitters while just walking five, and immediately showed the skills that brought him such a huge contract in the first place.

Chapman had been a pitcher in Cuba before he defected, and there was a battle to bid for his services when he became available. The Reds won the right to contract him, and offered up a six-year, $30.25 million deal. This is the second year of that deal, but he was supposed to be in the starting rotation by this time. The Reds decided to keep him in the bullpen for the time being, though, and he had been projected to be one of the best set-up pitchers in baseball. When he is healthy, Chapman can reach as fast as 105 mph on the radar guns.

Losing Chapman is definitely a blow to the Reds bullpen, but if they can get him back healthy and in control of his pitches again, this will look like a great move by the organization. Both the fans and the franchise will have to hope that the "injury" doesn't turn out to be worse than the original prognosis, and Chapman is ready to return by the time June rolls around.

The Reds are going to be contenders for the National League Central this year, and Chapman could be a very important piece to their postseason puzzle. They need him to come back quickly, and for the arm problems to be a thing of the past.

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