Aroldis Chapman Traded to the Cubs for Four Player Package

The New York Yankees have sent closer Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs for a package of four players, highlighted by top prospect Gleyber Torres.

After hours of rumors, the trade sending Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs has been completed. The New York Yankees will receive four players in return for their 28-year-old flame-throwing closer: 19-year-old shortstop Gleyber Torres, former Yanks swingman Adam Warren, outfield prospect Billy McKinney, and High-A outfielder Rashad Crawford.

The first sign of the deal came when Kenny Ducey of Sports Illustrated tweeted that Torres had been scratched from his start with High-A Myrtle Beach. Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball later confirmed that the Yankees and Cubs were discussing a trade centered around Chapman for Torres.

Yanks Go Yard took a look at Gleyber Torres as a potential trade target here. Although he has yet to play above A-Ball, Torres is an elite talent who instantly gives the Yankees one of the best farm systems in baseball. It will definitely be fun seeing him develop alongside top Yankees prospect Jorge Mateo over the next few years. 

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Joel Sherman of the New York Post first reported Warren’s inclusion of the deal. The 28-year-old pitcher has struggled in his brief time in Chicago (5.91 ERA in 35 IP), but is remembered fondly by Yankees fans for his career 3.39 ERA in 289.1 innings wearing pinstripes from 2012-2015.

Billy McKinney was the Cubs first round pick in the 2013 amateur draft. Sahadev Sharma of TheAthletic.com was first to report he was included in the deal. The 21-year-old was ranked the 88th overall prospect in baseball by MLB.com prior to the season, and is hitting .252/.355./322 (101 wRC+) in 349 PA with the Cubs’ Double-A affiliate.

A knee injury ended McKinney’s 2015 season and may be the explanation for his sub-par start to 2016. Still, he has an excellent pedigree for a secondary piece in this trade and could end up being a real steal for the Yankees if he bounces back.

The final piece of the puzzle is Rashad Crawford, who has very little prospect cred. He’s hitting .255/.327/.386 (99 wRC+) alongside Torres in High-A. He’s got plus speed and is a good defender in centerfield, but doesn’t offer a whole lot else. Could be an OK fourth outfield type down the road.

The Yankees moved on from longtime frontrunners for Aroldis Chapman, the Washington Nationals, Sunday evening after they refused to budge from their offer of 2014 first round pick Erick Fedde plus secondary pieces. New York reportedly wanted MLB starter Joe Ross included in the deal.

It was clear that Aroldis Chapman talks were reaching a head Sunday morning when Ken Davidoff of the New York Post reported that the Yankees had asked the Nationals, Cubs, Indians, and at least one other team to submit their best offers for Chapman. The Cubs willingness to include Torres in their package seems to be what pushed them over the edge. 

The decision to trade Aroldis Chapman with the Yankees still so close to the second Wild Card is a painful, but necessary one. Chapman would almost certainly leave as a free agent after the season given the Yankees recent unwillingness to make major financial commitments, and the club has both Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances under control the next few seasons.

Aroldis Chapman was an undeniable success in pinstripes, with a 2.43 ERA and 12.64 K/9 in 31.1 innings pitched. He also recently tied his own MLB record for the fastest recorded velocity in history with with a 105.1 mph heater.

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Still, many fans won’t mind seeing the controversial Chapman leave the Bronx. His tenure in New York began with a 30 game suspension for violating the league’s domestic abuse policy, and he was only really available to the Yankees because his involvement in that incident, which left many fans with a bad taste in their mouth.