Aroldis Chapman

[Guest attgig]

So, this name hasn't come up yet, but he's hitting the news now, since he just gained citizenship to Andorra. He's 21. throws a 102 mph heater. and he's a lefty.


With the need for a better starting pitcher, is it worth dropping on contract on this guy and hoping he becomes our #2 behind johan?

I can't imagine with all the 'financial ruin' talk that's been around, that we can afford a big contract on him as well as a bonafide #2. But is it worth maybe giving this kid a contract and starting him off at #5?

obviously, the yankees are interested as are the other big market teams: sox, angels, dodgers.

thoughts?

[metirish]

Never heard of him but his Wikipedia opens with a startling declaration

Albertin Aroldis Chapman de la Cruz (born February 28, 1988) is a Cuban baseball pitcher. Chapman has been called one of the "three great pitchers in the world right now who are not in the majors,"[1] along with Yu Darvish and Stephen Strasburg, who was drafted first in the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft.

As noted elsewhere if it's on the web then it must be true.....

[metirish]

From SI

Chapman's career record is 24-21 and he twice led the Serie Nacional, Cuba's professional league, in strikeouts. Despite the mediocre record, the money Chapman will command is expected to exceed the $32 million signing bonus the New York Yankees paid Cuban right-hander Jose Contreras, who was 31 when he joined the Yankees in 2002. Andorra's lack of income tax means Chapman will save money in his new homeland, Mejia says.

I think I would be mildly surprised if he got that kind of money

the same article has a scout projecting Chapman as a middle reliever rather than a starter , article also notes that with a weak FA pool that will drive up the price.

[Frayed Knot]

"Aroldis Chapman ... just gained citizenship to Andorra"

Thus increasing Andorra's population to 13




He was in the news when he defected some months ago.
As usual for Cuban players - and perhaps especially so for pitchers - the estimates of his value fluctuate wildly.

[ashie62]

Chapman will get HUGE money...Cuba's best and his is a young flamethrower.

I don't think the MFY's or Red Sox will lose out on this one.

I've been aware of him..His Rookie Autograph is in the 2009 Bowman WBC set and is trading at about $175..

[Centerfield]

Hmm, young lefty pitcher named Chapman? I think I've seen that kid before.



From what I can tell, the kid throws hard, but $32 million might be a little much.

[Guest themetfairy]

It's not nearly enough

[ashie62]

It's not nearly enough [/quote:2960728b]

If the Kid can play SS sign him now!!

Great photo

[Guest themetfairy]

He's a lefty. But he can replace Murph at 1st

[Frayed Knot]

BA: Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman has been "granted provisional passive residency in the country of Andorra pending the finalization of the process," according to a statement from his agency.
Chapman, a 21-year-old lefthander, defected from Cuba while traveling with the Cuban national team in the Netherlands at the World Port Tournament in July ... has sent Major League Baseball his residency materials, which MLB must still investigate before declaring him a free agent.






Buster Olney:
- Chapman will throw for various teams and "the usual suspects will be involved" (read: big market clubs)
- There are some questions about his 'makeup and command'
- How much he gets will depend on the results/look of those side sessions he'll throw. Olney opined that he could get as much as Matsuzaka's $50mil or so - but of course that was the talk concerning Strasburg too, who wound up getting, what ... $18?. Sometimes I think these writers/analysts like throwing out big numbers just because it sounds so cool plus, if he ever does get that much, they can say they told us so way back when.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

BA: Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman has been "granted provisional passive residency in the country of Andorra pending the finalization of the process," according to a statement from his agency.
Chapman, a 21-year-old lefthander, defected from Cuba while traveling with the Cuban national team in the Netherlands at the World Port Tournament in July ... has sent Major League Baseball his residency materials, which MLB must still investigate before declaring him a free agent.

[ashie62]

Aroldis Chapman is being guarded by Ugueth Urbina

[Farmer Ted]

Andorra?

[Frayed Knot]

Andorra?[/quote:hk4ns6un]

Well, he defected while in the Netherlands so he was kind of already in the neighborhood anyway.
The fact that Andorra has a rep as a tax haven couldn't hurt in the decision making process.
They also speak Spanish there although it's Catalan Spanish which is probably quite a ways from Cuban Spanish ... not that I suspect he'll be spending a lot of time there.

[Guest attgig]

landlocked between france and spain. only rich people live there.

and yeah, cuba was in the netherlands when he left, so, it does kinda make sense that he went there. smart agent.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

They also speak Spanish there although it's Catalan Spanish which is probably quite a ways from Cuban Spanish ... not that I suspect he'll be spending a lot of time there.[/quote:ia9v0yt0]

Between his skin color and the "low" Spanish, he'll be getting some looks.

[seawolf17]

landlocked between france and spain. only rich people live there.[/quote:2srck7af]
Well, then he's going to need a big free-agent contract so he can keep up with his neighbors.

[Frayed Knot]

Officially a free agent as of this past weekend.

Jim Callis; Baseball America:
I won't be surprised if Chapman gets [a contract worth] three times as much as Stephen Strasburg's draft-record $15.1 million contract. He's a 22-year-old lefthander with a fastball clocked at 100 mph at the World Baseball Classic, and he's on the open market�a potent combination. As one scout who saw him at the WBC said, "If you are looking for more than that in a pitcher, you'll be searching your whole life."

But here's the kicker: Chapman never has dominated Cuba's Serie Nacional. He's much more of a thrower than a pitcher. Most of Cuban defectors haven't lived up to their hype, and the last Cuban pitcher to attract this kind of fanfare was Jose Contreras. Contreras has three good seasons and a solid 71-63, 4.63 career, but expectations were that he'd deliver a lot more after signing a $32 million contract with the Yankees.

For me, Chapman would rank in the upper quarter of our 2010 Top 100 Prospects list, but I wouldn't put him ahead of [NYY catching prospect Jesus] Montero and he wouldn't be the No. 1 prospect for several other clubs. I'd take Jason Heyward (Braves), Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner (Giants), Dustin Ackley (Mariners), Mike Stanton (Marlins), Strasburg (Nationals), Brian Matusz (Orioles), Pedro Alvarez (Pirates) and Neftali Feliz, Justin Smoak or Martin Perez (Rangers) ahead of Chapman without a moment's hesitation. A case also could be made that Chapman shouldn't be No. 1 over a healthy Jarrod Parker (Diamondbacks), Domonic Brown (Phillies), Desmond Jennings (Rays), Christian Friedrich or Tyler Matzek (Rockies) and Jacob Turner (Tigers).

[ashie62]

look ma, no Mets!! Chapman is pictured in my avatar

[Frayed Knot]

Adam Rubin:

The Mets are expected to have face-to-face dialogue with 21-year-old lefthander Aroldis Chapman and agent Edwin Mejia today [Friday]. Chapman, who defected from Cuba and established residency in Andorra to avoid the draft, arrived in New York this week. He reportedly throws 100 mph.
A Mets scout already has watched Chapman work out when the pitcher was in Barcelona, Spain. It was not a private workout for them, but the scout managed to find out where he was working out and when he would be there and showed up.

Still, the buzz is that the Mets have not been one of the more aggressive teams in pursuing Chapman.

Here's the detailed bio Chapman's reps prepared about him ...

Albertin Aroldis Chapman de la Cruz
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Height: 6' 4"
Weight: 185 lb.
Born: February, 28, 1988 in Cayo Mamb�, Frank Pa�s, Holgu�n, Cuba

* Has a wife and young daughter as well as parents and two sisters still living in Cuba
* Holds the Cuban National Series record for fastest pitch thrown in a game at 102 mph.
* Has a fastball (two seam or four seam), sinking fastball, curveball, slider, changeup and a forkball
* Led the Cuban National Series twice in strikeouts in 2006-2007 and 2008-2009.
* Was recognized as the top left handed pitcher in Baseball World Cup in 2007.
* Defected from the Cuban National Team on July 1, 2009 while participating in the World Port Tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands
* Signed a representation agreement with Athletes Premier International (API) for contract negotiation and marketing on July 13, 2009
* Obtained provisional passive residency status in the country of Andorra on September 21, 2009
* On September 25, 2009 was declared a free agent by Major League Baseball following their investigation and the United States Department of the Treasury licensed Chapman as an unblocked National of Cuba



Last two seasons:

[table:34knff23][tr:34knff23][td:34knff23]G[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]GS[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]W[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]L[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]SHO[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]IP[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]H[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]AVG[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]R[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]ER[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]ERA[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]SO[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]BB[/td:34knff23][/tr:34knff23]
[tr:34knff23][td:34knff23]16[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]16[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]6[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]7[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]1[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]74[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]55[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23].200[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]36[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]32[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]3.89[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]79[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]37[/td:34knff23][/tr:34knff23][tr:34knff23][td:34knff23]22[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]20[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]11[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]4[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]0[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]118.1[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]109[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23].252[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]56[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]53[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]4.03[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]130[/td:34knff23][td:34knff23]62[/td:34knff23][/tr:34knff23][/table:34knff23]

[Benjamin Grimm]

* Has a wife and young daughter as well as parents and two sisters still living in Cuba
[/quote:19cvrh9t]

I can't imagine how anyone can leave a family behind like that.

[MFS62]

* Has a wife and young daughter as well as parents and two sisters still living in Cuba
[/quote:1tuwijrq]

I can't imagine how anyone can leave a family behind like that.[/quote:1tuwijrq]
Neither can I. Maybe they feel that if they make enough money, they'll be able to figure/fund a way to get the rest of the family out, too.

Later

[Guest Edgy DC]

Florida opens the bidding at five years, $13.5 million, reportedly.

[Valadius]

Wow, what a joke.

[Frayed Knot]

Not sure I get the joke.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Strasburg got 15.1 guaranteed over 4, and he's widely considered to be a more polished pitcher.

[Valadius]

My guess is his agent is at least looking for Contreras money, which if I recall was something like $8 million a year.

[Frayed Knot]

Strasburg got 15.1 guaranteed over 4, and he's widely considered to be a more polished pitcher.

'He' - meaning Chapman - is considered more polished?
I'm not so sure about that. Young pitchers are notoriously tough to project. Cuban players are notoriously tough to project. Put the two of those together to get a young, Cuban pitcher and it's going to be hard for anyone to get a handle on this one.
Strasburg & Chapman are about the same age and, while Chapman pitched (at least theoretically) in a more advanced environment, virtually no reliable eyes saw him do so. A handful of WBC innings and this side throwing session is about all peeps have to go on.

My guess is his agent is at least looking for Contreras money, which if I recall was something like $8 million a year.

He can ask all he wants but it doesn't mean he's getting it. Contreras was a considerably older, more seasoned pitcher at the time of his defection and contract. Besides, it's not like that deal worked out all that well to the point where teams are going to be rushing to match it.
I suspect he'll eventually get more than that Marlins offer but I don't think there'll be GMs lined up to blow it out of the water.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Strasburg got 15.1 guaranteed over 4, and he's widely considered to be a more polished pitcher.

'He' - meaning Chapman - is considered more polished?

[ashie62]

* Has a wife and young daughter as well as parents and two sisters still living in Cuba
[/quote:1u03xyqh]

I can't imagine how anyone can leave a family behind like that.[/quote:1u03xyqh]
Neither can I. Maybe they feel that if they make enough money, they'll be able to figure/fund a way to get the rest of the family out, too.

Later[/quote:1u03xyqh]

I believe that would also be the strategy of Hispanic day laborers