Craig Kimbrel or Aroldis Chapman

[rsuriyop]

With Mariano Rivera being out with an injury and possibly out of baseball for good, some other player's eventually going to supplant him as the next great reliever. With that being said, I have my eyes sights set on either Craig Kimbrel or Aroldis Chapman as being his successor. Both of these guys are the same age and have made their MLB debuts at the same age, making them easily comparable. So far, they've performed brilliantly. My question is, who do you predict will have the better career?

[chicagowhitesox1173]

From what I hear on here Chapman will end up being a starter. There both very good but i would choose Chapman as of right now.

[GiambiJuice]

With Rivera, his greatness goes way beyond his dominant regular season numbers. He steps up his game even further when the pressure is at it's highest. That's what separates Mariano from the Trevor Hoffmans of the world.

Kimbrel's had one postseason save opportunity in his young career and he blew it.

Chapman gave up 3 runs in his 1.2 innings of postseason work.

Obviously these are tiny samples - and they should both have many more opportunities ahead of them; I'm just pointing out that they will need to raise their games when it counts to even be mentioned in the same breath as Mariano Rivera.

[rsuriyop]

From what I hear on here Chapman will end up being a starter. There both very good but i would choose Chapman as of right now.

Considering how skinny he is and how hard he throws, I'd be a little concerned if that were true.

[rsuriyop]

With Rivera, his greatness goes way beyond his dominant regular season numbers. He steps up his game even further when the pressure is at it's highest. That's what separates Mariano from the Trevor Hoffmans of the world.

Kimbrel's had one postseason save opportunity in his young career and he blew it.

Chapman gave up 3 runs in his 1.2 innings of postseason work.

Obviously these are tiny samples - and they should both have many more opportunities ahead of them; I'm just pointing out that they will need to raise their games when it counts to even be mentioned in the same breath as Mariano Rivera.

I get that Rivera was truly great, especially during the postseason. But this thread isn't about comparing Rivera to Kimbrel and Chapman; it's about comparing Kimbrel and Chapman with each other.

[3and2Fastball]

I think Chapman has the talent and potential to be an all-time great but who knows how the transition to starter would work for him. If I was the Reds GM I would strongly consider just leaving him as the closer instead of trying to make him a starter. I recognize that starters are more valuable than closers, but Chapman has been mostly lights out in the 9th inning.

I think Chapman will be better than Kimbrel

[chicagowhitesox1173]

I think the way the Reds are going i would leave him as a closer too. It's basically a guaranteed win with him in there. Kimbrell is pretty much the same way but I think Chapman edges him out.

[rsuriyop]

So it appears that everyone so far thinks that Chapman will have the better career. Yet no one can explain why. Personally, I don't see anything that Chapman has that Kimbrel doesn't have, aside from the fact that he throws harder. Although of course if Chapman does convert to a starting pitcher (and a successful one at that) that could all change dramatically. But for now at least, it seems to me that they're both so equally skilled at what they do that predicting how well their careers will pan out is still a guessing game.

[chicagowhitesox1173]

Kimbrel is very good but Chapman is just unstoppable out there. I don't know the answer but I doubt even Mariano has had a season like Chapmans this year. I would say Kimbrel is right there with him but if I had to choose I would probably take Chapman.

Although I have to wonder how long Chapman will last because of how hard he throws and because he seems like somewhat of a headcase.

[Captain Cold Nose]

Kimbrel is very good but Chapman is just unstoppable out there. I don't know the answer but I doubt even Mariano has had a season like Chapmans this year. I would say Kimbrel is right there with him but if I had to choose I would probably take Chapman.

Although I have to wonder how long Chapman will last because of how hard he throws and because he seems like somewhat of a headcase.

Outside of the somersault, what other issues have there been?

Chapman has vastly improved in such a short time. It wasn't too long ago a lot of Reds fans had written him off because he wasn't setting the world on fire. If the Reds were smart, and Walt Jocketty is the best baseball mind the organization has had in years, they would get it out of their minds to get Chapman in the starting lineup. I'd pick him to be the next one as long as they keep him as a closer.

[3and2Fastball]

I think Chapman is getting way more media hype this season than Kimbrel. I was surprised when I looked at the stats that Kimbrel is actually having a statistically superior season to Chapman's this year (!), especially looking at ERA+. I may need to rethink this one

[3and2Fastball]

Thought it would be interesting to look at this again a few years later. Chapman has been great but Kimbrel's numbers just obliterate's Chapman's. Chapman has a 169 ERA+ (his top season being 274 in 2012). Kimbrel's career ERA+ is 267!

[Yankillaz]

Kimbrel is on the path to the HOF. So this is as lopsided as it could be.