The Cincinnati Reds are in full rebuild mode, and rumor has it all their stars are available for the right price. ESPN’s Peter Gammons tweeted that they’re moving especially quickly on left-handed closer Aroldis Chapman, who may be gone by the end of the week.
That's four people insisting this morning that Aroldys Chapman will be moved by the end of the weekend.
— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) November 12, 2015
Chapman, who was 4-4 with a 1.91 ERA and 33 saves, is an elite closer of the highest order. He has never blown more than five saves in a season, and averaged 99.4 miles per hour on his fastball. That devastating heater is complemented by an 86 miles per hour slider, and 88 miles per hour changeup. These five teams make the most sense.
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New York Yankees
The Yankees don’t seem like they need him, since they have Andrew Miller already, and Dellin Betances in the eighth. But the Yankees were making calls on Chapman at the trade deadline last season, and were also attempting to trade for Padres closer Craig Kimbrel. The Royals proved the value of an elite bullpen by winning the World Series (and making it in 2014), so adding Chapman would give the Yankees arguably the best bullpen of all-time on paper.
Boston Red Sox
The Sox don’t have a great rotation, and that will be the case even if they’re able to land a top-line starter in free agency. They can, however, mimic the Yankees’ back-end by trading for Chapman, and shifting Koji Uehara into an eighth-inning role. The Red Sox also have a number of prospects they can move to acquire Chapman, or even include their upper-echelon prospects like Yoan Moncada, Mookie Betts or Xander Bogaerts if they want to try and acquire Chapman and Todd Frazier or Joey Votto.
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Minnesota Twins
The Twins were shockingly good last season, and could make an Astros-esque push behind young studs Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano in 2016. The rotation is no great shakes, and like the Red Sox, one big-name won’t fix it. The bullpen includes Glen Perkins, however, and the success of these dominant back-ends has to have MLB front offices paying attention.
Perkins and Chapman are both left-handed, so it’s not quite the punch Miller and Betances were, but both relievers are essentially matchup-proof.
Detroit Tigers
Detroit’s a bit of a hodgepodge following their deadline purge of David Price and Yoenis Cespedes, but they still have a lineup that can really hit, and a pitching staff that’s young and talented. Detroit has consistently been undone by shoddy relief pitching in the playoffs, and going into next season with Bruce Rondon shutting the door does not inspire confidence.
Chapman is a lockdown option at the end of games, and this offense should provide the pitching staff with ample leads.
Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have an impressive, youthful lineup, and are rumored to be fishing in the expensive pitching pond. While they have eyes for the likes of Zack Greinke and Price, they could trade for Chapman and shore up the bullpen, while Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester anchor the rotation again.
The Cubs’ farm system is an embarrassment of riches that should be able to net Chapman, especially with Cincy so eager to re-load. With Chapman slamming the door, Hector Rondon and Pedro Strop go from iffy closers to high-end middle relief.
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