Sep 7, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Aroldis Chapman in the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
The Boston Red Sox squeaked into the playoffs this season, and they absolutely could not have done so without Aroldis Chapman closing out games.
Not only was Chapman 32 of 34 in save opportunities, but he was unhittable at times, going 50 straight at-bats without allowing a hit at one point. He finished the season with a 1.17 ERA and should be a lock for the Mariano Rivera Reliever of the Year Award.
One might think having Chapman back for next season to pair with the likes of Garrett Whitlock and Justin Slaten would mean the Red Sox’s bullpen is fairly set in stone. But a Thursday report certainly brought that notion into question.
According to Ken Rosenhal, Katie Woo, and Will Sammon of The Athletic, the Red Sox are mulling the possibility of adding another high-leverage arm to pair with Chapman and create the kind of “super bullpen” that clubs such as the San Diego Padres, New York Mets, and New York Yankees have tried to create of late.
“Though the idea is further down their list of priorities, the Boston Red Sox are considering the addition of a high-leverage reliever to create a version of a super bullpen, people familiar with the club’s thinking said,” wrote Rosenthal, Woo, and Sammon.
“To be clear, the Red Sox do not intend to unseat lefty closer Aroldis Chapman from his role after his dominant season. Also, right-hander Garrett Whitlock is a viable late-inning option. But adding another reliever similar to that pair would obviously enhance their bullpen.”
The timing here coincides with Sammon’s separate report that the Red Sox have some level of interest in New York Yankees closer Devin Williams in free agency. And what a treat it would be for Boston if two former Yankees, both of whom were essentially run out of town by the fan base, formed an unstoppable tandem late in games. Heck, even Whitlock was a Yankees farmhand before the Red Sox took him in the Rule 5 Draft.
The Athletic also mentioned Robert Suárez, Pete Fairbanks, Ryan Helsley, Raisel Iglesias, Luke Weaver as names that could be in the mix for the Red Sox. Notably, the insiders guessed that Edwin Díaz would be out of Boston’s preferred price range.
All of that said, Boston has lots of agenda items this winter, so while this idea might be tantalizing, it shouldn’t be the No. 1 priority in terms of money spent.
FLOWERY BRANCH, GA – The Atlanta Falcons are fighting desperately to get their season back on track after dropping their fourth-straight game in Week 10. One major reason for that is their inability to get wide receiver Darnell Mooney going, and Falcons head coach Raheem Morris had an eye-opening admission about why that may be the case.
After a breakout 2024 season where he caught 64 passes for 992 yards and five touchdowns, Mooney has struggled to recapture that form in 2025.
Through 10 weeks and six full games played, the veteran has struggled, notching just 13 receptions (35 targets) for 190 yards. Of the players who have run at least 200 routes, no one in the NFL has a lower catch rate than Mooney (37.1%).
Injuries, drops, and a general lack of cohesion with second-year quarterback Michael Penix Jr. have derailed his season. The Falcons’ deep threat has not been able to fill that role in 2025
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Morris has been asked several times about what has slowed the progression of their connection, dating back to the initial injury he picked up during training camp. No clear injury update was provided, aside from Mooney missing a “few weeks,” but the head coach gave some insight into why the injury has seemed to linger over this season.
During his weekly interview with Dukes & Bell on the Falcons’ flagship station, 92.9 The Game, Morris finally provided the answer to why Mooney missed the time he did over the summer.
“He’s been coming up to speed, which I love,” Morris said during this interview. To which Carl Dukes pressed the Falcons’ head coach on what can be expected of the wideout moving forward.
“You don’t make excuses, you never talk about these things, but we knew how this would work,” Morris said before making the shocking admission that had not been known before.
“Mooney broke his collarbone on the first play of training camp,” the Falcons head coach said. “He missed all that time and came back the second week of the season. That was the first time they [Mooney and Penix] actually practiced together. You start working those practices, you knew the four weeks of the season would almost be like training camp for him.
“So you’re working those things in, you’re getting him going, you’re getting his legs back, and running fast, all those things. Then he had the small setback with the hamstring, and he misses the two weeks.”
Injuries have piled up – first the collarbone in July, then the hamstring setback that cost him more time in the fall.
Despite the ailments that have slowed his season, the Falcons’ staff is still confident he can get going in the season’s second half.
“I anticipate Mooney kind of taking off from here,” offensive coordinator Zac Robinson said on October 29th. “He’s finally getting his legs back. Obviously, we know what he can do at a high level. Had a great season last year. Just the training camp, missing that, and then kind of getting back into the flow, getting his legs back, getting the hammy back, all those things. So, I anticipate Mooney taking a big jump from this point forward.”
The Falcons’ play-caller doubled down on that statement on Wednesday, saying he’s “so close to breaking out.”
Whether or not he can show some improvement down the stretch of the season remains to be seen. His next opportunity will be this Sunday in Week 11 against the Carolina Panthers.
However, what doesn’t make sense is why the Falcons didn’t push to acquire more players to prevent the situation the team now finds itself in. This injury takes several weeks to months to recover from. Morris then acknowledged there would be an additional ramp-up period.
Veteran D.J. Chark Jr. was the only significant addition after the injury, but he was cut just a few weeks later. The Falcons have since leaned on a now-released Ray-Ray McCloud, David Sills V, and Casey Washington to be the secondary option for Drake London in the wide receiver room.
And their production has not been nearly enough to support a young quarterback who is in the early phases of his development. London has 53 receptions for 691 yards and six touchdowns this season, while the other wideouts (including McCloud) on this roster have
The Falcons took a risk, and it burned them.
With eight games left, Mooney is finally healthy. Now, the Falcons need that long-awaited connection with Penix to materialize before the season is lost entirely.