Shutdown? Chapman's arms missed the memo

TAMPA, Fla. -- Beware, American League batters: Aroldis Chapman is taking advantage of this additional downtime to take the old Spring Training stand-by -- “best shape of my life” -- to another level.

In a workout video recently posted to Instagram, the Yankees' closer demonstrated how he pumps iron in the gym of his Miami-area home, then he put his legs to work by logging steps on a StairMaster and pedaling on a stationary bicycle.

If fans at home are looking for a way to spice up their exercise routines, they could do far worse than to replicate the battle-tested maneuvers that have helped Chapman regularly light up radar guns in the triple digits, awing fans and teammates alike.

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“I see this guy every day and there's still days he comes in and I’m like, ‘He looks especially jacked today,’” Yankees reliever Zack Britton said recently on SiriusXM’s MLB Network Radio channel. “He's huge. He is a physical specimen. I've been playing with him for a while now and I'm still blown away with some pictures and stuff like that.

“We always give him a hard time, but he's the only guy I know that can be that jacked and still maintain range of motion in his shoulder. He's so flexible and his arm is a whip. I mean, it's unbelievable. He's just one of those guys. That's a freak of nature physical specimen. It's that rare breed and obviously that's why he throws 105 [mph].”