Aroldis Chapman of the New York Yankees and Josh Hader of the Milwaukee Brewers were named the American League and National League Relievers of the Year on Saturday.
Chapman, the closer for the Yankees, earned the award after posting a spectacular season. The Cuba native put up a 2.21 ERA in his pressure-packed job, recording 37 saves and striking out 85 batters in 57 innings pitched.
He was New York’s go-to man in close games in the final innings, and it’s safe to say that his five-year, $86 million contract is working out nicely.
He was named an All-Star for the second consecutive season.
Hader was also fantastic in 2019, posting a 2.62 ERA in 61 appearances for the Brewers, recording 37 saves. He posted mind-boggling strikeout numbers, managing to make 138 batters whiff in only 75.2 innings.
He, too, was named an All-Star for the second season in a row. It’s also the second consecutive year that the lefty has won the NL Reliever of the Year Award after an equally impressive 2018 campaign.
The only real blemish in Hader’s 2019 season was blowing a save to lose the game for the Brewers in the ninth inning of the NL Wild Card Game, but it was an impressive season for the Florida native nonetheless.
