It is already known that Major League Baseball could suspend Aroldis Chapman for any amount of regular season games for his alleged domestic violence incident. Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News reports that part (or all) of the punishment could involve being banned from spring games. Chapman could also be banned from all team facilities, including minor league camp.
Major League Baseball does not need to wait for Chapman to be charged with a crime to levy a punishment. Chapman has previously stated that he plans to appeal any punishment handed down by commissioner Rob Manfred.
Should Chapman be banned from spring exhibition games and/or team facilities in Tampa, Florida, it would be ideal if it had no effect on his punishment for the regular season. For instance, if Manfred is thinking about suspending Chapman for 20 games during the regular season and reduces that to 10 games plus a spring training ban, then it’s effectively a lighter punishment for Chapman. He is assured of a spot on the Yankees’ 25-man roster, so spring training for him is just about getting into pitching shape, which he doesn’t necessarily need to do with his teammates in Tampa. If he were a prospect or a fringe major leaguer, then the punishment might have more gravity. If Manfred simply tacks on a spring training ban, then that would make sense.
Chapman allegedly choked his girlfriend and fired a gun in his garage during a party back in October. The Yankees, aware of the potential for a suspension to push back his 2016 season debut, still acquired him from the Reds in December in exchange for four minor leaguers.
