This is typically the quiet part of the MLB offseason, but the New York Yankees and Cincinnati Reds made one of the biggest trades thus far on Monday when Aroldis Chapman was sent to the Bronx Bombers for four prospects. Who are all of the players involved and who won the trade?
New York acquired Chapman to bolster the back end of their bullpen that already consisted of Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances. In return, Cincinnati received prospects Rookie Davis (RHP), Caleb Cotham (RHP), Eric Jagielo (3B) and Tony Renda (2B).
Many of us are already familiar with Chapman, so let's start with the unknown.
Davis, 22, is arguably the highlight of these four prospects. The right-hander reached Double-A Trenton in 2015 and owns a career 3.90 ERA in 72 minor league games (63 starts) since beginning his professional career in 2012. After the deal went down yesterday, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports spoke to a scout who said Davis "has good stuff" and is a "power arm and strike thrower."
Baseball America had the right-hander as the No. 6 overall prospect in the Yankees organization before the trade.
2015 stats: 8-7 with a 3.86 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 129 strikeouts in 25 games (24 starts), totaling 130 2/3 innings, between High Class A Tampa and Double-A Trenton
Cotham, 28, spent most of his minor league career as a starter, but the Yankees officially converted him to a reliever during the Arizona Fall League last year. The right-hander struggled in the upper levels of the minors as a starter, but really found his groove in relief last season and made his MLB debut. He appeared in 12 games and had a 6.52 ERA, but the rest of his minor league season was excellent, which provides some hope for the Reds.
2015 stats: 6-4 with a 2.21 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 61 strikeouts in 35 games (57 innings) between Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Jagielo, 23, is a former first-round pick from the 2013 MLB Draft, but he's been unable to stay healthy. He's played in just 204 games since making his professional debut in 2013 due to a strained rib cage muscle, a fractured bone in his face, and knee surgery. However, despite his injury shortened seasons, Jagielo has put up decent numbers over the past two years.
With that being said, scouts say the biggest concern surrounding the youngster is his defense. Baseball America's scouting report on him following the 2014 season said he's a "slow-twitch player with limited athletic ability" and scouts believe he may end up as a first baseman in the long run.
2015 stats: In 58 games at Double-A Trenton, Jagielo hit .284/.347/.495 with 36 runs scored, 9 home runs and 35 RBI before he dealing with a knee injury and undergoing surgery.
And finally, Renda, 24, was acquired by New York during the season in the deal that sent reliever David Carpenter to the Washington Nationals. The former second-round pick in the 2012 MLB Draft had a solid season at both Double-A Trenton and Double-A Harrisburg after spending the previous three seasons in Single A.
Here's what Baseball America wrote about him following the 2014 season:
"Renda's magnetic personality and dirtbag mentality make him exceptionally likable, and he has backed up his intangibles with performance. He won the high Class A Carolina League batting title at .307 in 2014 and helped lead Potomac to the league championship. The undersized Renda will never dazzle with his tools, but he does have a carrying tool in his bat, which has a chance to be above-average. He has a compact, line-drive stroke and uncommon hand-eye coordination. He excels at executing the hit-and-run and controlling the strike zone. He is tough to strike out, and he has a patient approach."
2015 stats: In 127 games in the Nationals and Yankees farms systems, Renda hit .269/.330/.358 with 73 runs scored, 3 home runs, 44 RBI and 23 stolen bases. He struck out just 39 times in 480 at-bats.
And here's what the Reds think of the overall haul:
#Reds view Jagielo and Davis as legitimate prospects. Think Jagielo can hit when healthy. See Davis as starter - 92-96 mph with big curve.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 28, 2015
Now, why did the Yankees trade for a pitcher currently under investigation for a domestic violence incident? Well, because the price was low and there's a chance New York can keep Chapman for the 2017 season as well if he gets suspended.
Chapman needs 138 days of service time to qualify for free agency after 2016, meaning he needs to be on an active roster or on the disabled list for that amount of time this upcoming season. The left-hander is in his final year of arbitration eligibility and is set to earn between $12-$13 million. If he doesn't accrue the necessary service time requirements, the Yankees will control him for the 2017 season.
"The Yankees traded for Chapman on Monday for one quite logical reason: Because it was too good a deal to pass up, even if he winds up starting his Yankees career on a suspension of anywhere from 30 to 60 days.
"In fact, it could be the longer the suspension for Chapman, the better it is for the Yankees," writes Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork.com.
Additionally, Joel Sherman of the New York Post noted that the Yankees could not get the young starting pitcher they were hoping to acquire, so adding Chapman is "a way to protect the fragile starting rotation by making end game powerhouse."
With Chapman, Miller and Betances anchoring the team's bullpen, the Yankees will probably have the best unit in the MLB.
So who won the trade?
Honestly, it's a good deal for both sides. The Yankees did not surrender any of their top coveted prospects and the Reds managed to get four young players with solid potential for an expensive closer they didn't need in the midst of their rebuild. However, with that being said, the Reds can be considered the losers here because they waited much too long to deal Chapman. The left-hander should have been moved prior to the non-waiver trade deadline so the team could have maximized his value. Cincinnati was originally asking teams for top prospects in exchange for Chapman, but they held onto him for too long and his alleged involvement in the domestic violence incident caused his value to plummet.
All in all, the Reds could have gotten a lot more for Chapman if they didn't wait longer than they needed to, but they still managed to get a decent haul after their questionable trade that sent Todd Frazier to the White Sox.
As for the Yankees, they traded some decent talent, but GM Brian Cashman got creative and helped stabilize the starting rotation without actually acquiring a starter.
We'll just have to wait and see how the MLB rules on Chapman's case to see how his stint with New York will go.
