Aroldis Chapman Defects

Chapman is a 21 year old LHP from Cuba who throws in high 90s. Forget Wagner Mateo spend your dollars on this kid, Sabean

4 months ago wilriv21 24 comments 0 recs |

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wow, great to see this kid defect

fuck you Castro!

by FluLikeSymptoms on Jul 2, 2009 12:46 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I think the time is very close where Cuban baseball players will freely go to the US to play baseball. I think if they are allowed to go to play in MLB, they would send a lot of their money back home. Fidel has to die first, though.

by SFGuy on Jul 2, 2009 2:02 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

GINATZ BARSS

Seriously though, this guy threw cheese during the WBC. I’d love to get him.

Merkin Valdez? Manuel Mateo? A rose by any other name...

by rotorueter on Jul 2, 2009 6:47 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

A good PFX article from the WBC.

http://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2009/3/15/798267/cuba-pitchf-x

Mentions Chapman some.

Bay City Ball

by xanthan on Jul 2, 2009 7:17 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Also, is Osvaldo Fernandez the only Cuban to ever play on the Giants?

Bay City Ball

by xanthan on Jul 2, 2009 7:20 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

How could you forget Livan and his extreme girth ?

My adopted son Matt Downs . Ranked as the 24th best prospect in the Giants farm system by Baseball America !!

by nvsfg on Jul 2, 2009 8:13 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Whoops!

Bay City Ball

by xanthan on Jul 2, 2009 8:24 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Tito Fuentes

Minor White > Ansel Adams

by say hey nation on Jul 2, 2009 1:02 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Chapman is such a typical Cuban name.

Fairley odd parent to Wendell
converting tools into skills since 2008...

by WTF on Jul 2, 2009 10:27 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I'd rather spend that money on an extension for timmeh

just sayin’

waiting for 2011....

by Osama91w9 on Jul 2, 2009 10:47 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Oh, I was under the impression that you weren’t just saying. Thanks for clearing that up.

Merkin Valdez? Manuel Mateo? A rose by any other name...

by rotorueter on Jul 2, 2009 11:04 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Rick Parker (Lewis) Can't Lose said 25 minutes ago

Anyone else see this kid pitch in the WBC this year? He’s in his early 20s and throws 97-100 from the left side, and he can do it repeatedly over several innings. My memory is that he had sort of a big crossover step and that he had kind of a whiplike arm action, which I found a little disconcerting from an injury perspective, but that was from seeing him once several months ago so I might be totally off-base. Anyway, the stuff is filthy, even if the mental makeup may not be there yet (Chapman fell apart because of defensive lapses and close pitches going against him in the game I watched), and I’d love to see the Giants pursue him.

Anyone know what the status of a Cuban defector is in the eyes of the MLB? Does Chapman now become eligible like any other international player?

Judgment Day is coming
comics | art | Nattowear

by Natto on Jul 2, 2009 1:54 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

A player must set up residency outside Cuba and USA then he becomes eligible like other international players. Most Cuban defectors set up in DR or Costa Rica. This kid is going to sign for megabucks – $30M or more

by wilriv21 on Jul 2, 2009 2:13 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Thanks, wilriv21

I guess Contreras is just about the only player I can think of who touched off anything near what the frenzy will probably be for Chapman. He was a little different in that he was a little more seasoned and ready to step into rotation, and in that his upside may not have been quite what Chapman’s is; but in any case, it quickly became a Red Sox / Yankees bidding war, with everyone else left out in the cold financially.

by Rick Parker (Lewis) Can't Lose on Jul 2, 2009 3:00 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

my uneducated guess at where he winds up: the Angels

They need pitching desperately, have a lot of money to spend, and like signing Latin players.

by FluLikeSymptoms on Jul 2, 2009 3:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Probably a good guess — they already have another Cuban in Kendry Morales.

"I'm not sure what the hell charisma is, but I have the feeling it's Willie Mays." --Ted Kluszewski

by Rick Parker (Lewis) Can't Lose on Jul 2, 2009 3:55 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don't forget the White Sox

they have Contreras, Ramirez and Viciedo

by wilriv21 on Jul 2, 2009 4:12 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

they will probably also be one of the leading contenders

by FluLikeSymptoms on Jul 2, 2009 4:51 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not just them. This is going to be crazy.

Most teams would probably be willing to go somewhere between 20-30, and this might well get pushed up into 40 something, depending on how hot the bidding gets.

I’d love it if the giants could get in to it, but its hard to see it, considering there is the going to be a lot of money earmarked for pitching already (in the near future, at least).

Prospective parent of new pick, Zack Wheeler. Projectable Righty stolen from the braves. Of course, I stalk my son's myspace: http://www.myspace.com/zackwheelerbaseball

"Obviously I’m not doing things like going toe-to-toe with a ninja. Find me a ninja, for one."--Brian Wilson

by haverecords on Jul 2, 2009 10:08 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

as much as I would love to see him in a Giants uniform, there are probably better uses for their $30 million at this point

by FluLikeSymptoms on Jul 2, 2009 11:19 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m not sure the bidding is going to be as high as all that. At the time of his defection, Contreras was viewed pretty much unanimously as the best pitcher in Cuba, and also as a safe bet to step right into a Major League rotation successfully. While Chapman is certainly good at this point, he’s definitely more of a work-in-progress (albeit with limitless upside). He would almost certainly have to spend some time on the farm before he was ready for a major-league assignment. So while he’s unquestionably a top prospect, he’s still a prospect — he’s not a Contreras, or a Matsuzaka, or a Hideki Matsui.

I think 20-30 million is definitely the high side — I think it could well be in the 10-20 range.

"I'm not sure what the hell charisma is, but I have the feeling it's Willie Mays." --Ted Kluszewski

by Rick Parker (Lewis) Can't Lose on Jul 3, 2009 9:04 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

There will be a bidding war

It has been stated that if Chapman was available in this year’s draft he went of went #2 only behind Stephen Strasburg. It is also has been stated that Chapman is considered the best LHP prospect in the world. The kid is going to get a sweet deal. Especially if Yankees are involved in bidding,

by wilriv21 on Jul 3, 2009 1:01 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You're right

The more I’ve thought about this today, the more my prediction sounds totally insane to me. Since everyone is theoretically able to get in on the action here, the price will skyrocket. Contreras got 4 years and $32 million five or six years ago — that’s probably the baseline here.

"I'm not sure what the hell charisma is, but I have the feeling it's Willie Mays." --Ted Kluszewski

by Rick Parker (Lewis) Can't Lose on Jul 3, 2009 6:57 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs