Aroldis Chapman is headed to Wrigleyville, providing the Cubs a superior bullpen weapon as they aim for their first world championship since Teddy Roosevelt was president.
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“Obviously, we are aware of the circumstances surrounding Aroldis Chapman’s suspension earlier this season”, Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts said. Chapman also provides security against a division rival.
Chapman is a huge addition for the Cubs and will completely transform the bullpen. All-Stars Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances are still at the back of the bullpen, allowing the Yankees to trade Chapman now and still consider trying for the postseason depending on how they fare ahead of the August 1 non-waiver trade deadline.
Against potential playoff opponents, Chapman has struck out 28 in 17 innings against the Washington Nationals while limiting them to a.125 batting average to go with a 1.04 ERA. Dodgers sluggers Justin Turner, Chase Utley and Adrian Gonzalez are a combined 0-for-14 with eight strikeouts. With this move, the Yankees are looking to the future, adding several promising young pieces.
Torres is just 19 years old but already turned enough heads to be at the top of Cubs prospect rankings and was No. 27 overall in Baseball America’s 2016 midseason prospect rankings.
Torres, 19, also has nine home runs and 23 doubles in 94 games with the High-A Myrtle Beach Pelicans. The Cubs signed him to a $1.8 million bonus in the 2013 global draft.
Nova, 29, has posted a 7-5 record and 4.65 ERA in 20 starts for the Yankees in his third straight rough season. That trade looks even better for the Yankees now, as they essentially traded Brendan Ryan for Castro, a trade that would even be tough to execute in a video game. Among the other three players is outfielder Billy McKinney, a former first-round pick of the Oakland A’s who was rated Chicago’s seventh-best prospect by BA.
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And it could be a larger deal than simply a two-for-one. Crawford was also on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans with Torres and hit.255/.327/.386 with three homers and 30 RBI’s in 83 games. McKinney hasn’t hit as well as planned at AA Tennessee, but he was still ranked a top 100 prospect before this season by Baseball Prospectus and MLB.com, and becomes one of the Yankees’ top five or six prospects.
