With Chapman back, what happens to closer role?

CLEVELAND -- The ninth inning has been Aroldis Chapman’s territory for nearly his entire career with the Yankees, the better part of 6 1/2 seasons seeing the hard-throwing left-hander’s entry accompanied by audio of wailing fire engines and flaming imagery across Yankee Stadium’s ribbon boards.

That program will likely continue on the Yankees’ next homestand, though it may be aired in a different time slot. Chapman was reinstated to the Yankees’ bullpen on Friday, and though he likely has not seen his final save opportunity, Clay Holmes is expected to continue as the team’s closer.

“The most important thing is to have the opportunity to help the team in any way possible,” Chapman said through an interpreter. “We’re all pushing to get victories. That’s the focus. We’re all trying in different ways to accomplish that; each of us has a task and a job to do, and that’s what I need to do.”

To create roster space for Chapman, right-hander Miguel Castro was placed on the paternity list; he is expected to rejoin the team on Tuesday in Pittsburgh. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that he envisions Chapman picking up assignments in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings -- some in high-leverage situations, some not.

“The biggest thing for me and Chappy right now is, I want to get him in a really good place to where he’s pitching somewhat regularly,” Boone said. “I just want to get him in situations where he’s going out there with the best opportunity to be successful and hopefully get in that good rhythm where he’s pounding the strike zone. If we can do that, we’ll be in a good spot.”

There was a recent conversation between Boone and Chapman to outline the plan, an acknowledgment of the 34-year-old’s career accomplishments. Chapman’s 315 saves rank third among active big leaguers, behind Craig Kimbrel (386) and Kenley Jansen (370).

“He deserves that. He’s earned that kind of respect,” Boone said. “As we go, we’ll try and be as forthright as we can, heading into a game and where we see him. For right now, it’s just getting him back in. He’s ready for anything.”

Said Chapman: “To me, it’s being ready to pitch, right? It doesn’t matter what the inning is. You prepare yourself for the game and be ready for any possible situation.”

Chapman was 9-for-9 in save opportunities before landing on the injured list with left Achilles tendinitis in late May, missing 35 team games. He pitched three Minor League innings while on rehab with Double-A Somerset and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, striking out four without a walk.

That’s an encouraging sign for Chapman, who permitted at least one run in a career-high five consecutive appearances before being shelved, swelling his ERA from a perfect 0.00 on May 9 to its current 3.86. Even before the issue affected his performance, Chapman hardly enjoyed the breezy dominance that Holmes has showcased.

With an 0.49 ERA across 36 2/3 innings that, entering Friday, is the lowest this season among big league relievers, Holmes has unlocked elite performance with his devastating sinker and an improving slider.

Holmes ran off a string of 31 1/3 scoreless innings from April 9 to June 18, during which time even Chapman had to acknowledge that Holmes “deserves to be the closer right now.”

“We’re fortunate enough to have a lot of really good, talented arms,” Holmes said. “With Chappy coming back, we need him to come back and be Chappy. It’s going to make everybody better, make the team better. As long as I’m in the game and we have a chance to win, no matter where it is or what part of the lineup, I’m all for it.”