Aroldis Chapman's showcase with the Royals appears to have paid off for him and the club ahead of the MLB trade deadline.
The left-handed reliever was traded from the last-place Royals to the first-place Rangers on Friday, about a month ahead of the Aug. 1 deadline.
In return, the Royals received left-hander Cole Ragans and minor league outfielder Roni Cabrera.
Chapman, who has had an excellent bounce-back year with Kansas City — he posted a 2.45 ERA in 29 1/3 innings and averaged 16.3 strikeouts per nine innings for the club — joins a bullpen that has been a weak spot for one of the best teams in baseball.
For the Royals, it's an example of selling high. Chapman has exceeded expectations; if they had waited until the trade deadline, a July swoon would have hurt his value. For the Rangers, they get in before the bidding war can begin. Chapman was a nearly inevitable trade piece, so this deal works for both sides.
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Aroldis Chapman trade details
- Rangers get: LHP Aroldis Chapman
- Royals get: LHP Cole Ragans, OF Roni Cabrera
The Rangers are shoring up their bullpen, which entered Friday 24th in MLB with a 4.37 ERA. The Royals used the deal to help bolster their farm system.
Ragans was optioned to Triple-A Omaha after the trade. Cabrera, who is years away from seeing the Show, was assigned to Kansas City's Dominican Summer League team.
We have traded LHP Aroldis Chapman to the Texas Rangers in exchange for LHP Cole Ragans and OF Roni Cabrera.
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) June 30, 2023
Ragans, a 40-man roster player, has been optioned to Omaha (AAA) and Cabrera has been assigned to the Royals Dominican Summer League team.
The Rangers are hoping to make a World Series run, and relievers will be at a premium leading up to the trade deadline.
Aroldis Chapman contract
After his dramatic exit from the Yankees last offseason (he was left off the team's postseason roster for missing a mandatory workout), the veteran signed a one-year, $3.75 million contract with the Royals.
He can become a free agent again after this season. Chapman has been in this spot before. He was traded to the Cubs in 2016 by the Yankees and became an integral part of Chicago's World Series championship. He left the Cubs in the offseason and re-signed with the Yankees.
Aroldis Chapman stats
Despite being 35, Chapman is still bringing serious heat.
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His fastball averages 99.4 mph and his slider is at 88.2 mph, per Baseball Savant, and his strikeouts percentage is 43.4 percent.
If Chapman is able to keep it up throughout the year, he could be a major cog in the Rangers' pen in the second half of the season, although he presumably won't have the same durability he showed seven years ago with the Cubs,
| Year | IP | ERA | K | BB | WHIP | ERA+ |
| 2023 | 29 1/3 | 2.45 | 53 | 20 | 1.227 | 178 |
The biggest knock against Chapman is that he walks more batters than what is ideal. The Rangers are clearly prioritizing someone who can miss bats. Chapman has been among the best in baseball at that this year.
