Cubs Acquire Aroldis Chapman from Yankees

For weeks now, speculation has run rampant that the Chicago Cubs would make a deal for New York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman, he of the 100+ miles per hour fastball, before the August 1st non-waiver trade deadline. On July 25th, it finally happened.

The Cubs sent four minor leaguers, including their top prospect, shortstop Gleyber Torres, to the Yankees in exchange for the 28 year old left hander. Torres was hitting .275 with 9 homers, 23 doubles, and 47 RBIs at Myrtle Beach of the Class A (Advanced) Carolina League. The Cubs, of course, are already set with a young All-Star shortstop in Addison Russell. They also sent pitcher Adam Warren back to the Yankees; he had been acquired in the off season in a previous trade involving Starlin Castro. Warren, playing at Triple A Iowa at the time of the trade, was 3-2 with a 5.91 ERA for the Cubs before being sent down. The other players involved were outfielder Billy McKinney (1 homer, 31 RBIs, .252 at Double A Tennessee of the Southern League), and outfielder Rashad Crawford (3 homers , 30 RBIs, .255, 22 stolen bases at Myrtle Beach).

Chapman was traded to the Yankees last winter after six years with the Cincinnati Reds. In 31 games, he was 3-0 with a 2.01 ERA and 20 saves. He missed the first 30 games of the season, suspended by Major League Baseball for a domestic violence incident in the off season. (No charges were filed, and Chapman says he’s learned his lesson. Let’s hope so.) The Cubs don’t have too many weaknesses, but the bullpen has been shaky at times. Current closer Hector Rondon has 18 saves and a 1.95 ERA, and will move to a setup role but can still close if needed. The Cubs also have veteran closer Joe Nathan on the roster, who has returned from his second Tommy John surgery and picked up a relief win last week. Nathan has 377 career saves. But Chapman makes the bullpen a much more solid group, and can be of great value in the post season. Here he is getting his 20th save for the Yankees last week:

We saw Chapman in action last year when he was with the Reds, and he is something to see in person. He’d throw a fastball, and everyone would look at the scoreboard for the pitch speed and there would be oohs and ahs when the board listed the pitch at 100 or 101 miles per hour. His “off speed” pitches were in the low 90s.

The Cubs celebrated the new acquisition by losing to the White Sox 5-4 in extra innings. Chapman (who wasn’t with the team yet) was acquired to put a stop to that sort of thing.