The Boston Red Sox were viewed by many as the best team in the American League coming into the season after a wave of big moves over the winter. Months later, clubs have turned their focus to the Red Sox roster as a source of talent to try and acquire this summer.
USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale spoke to multiple MLB scouts who highlighted relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman as a ‘hot commodity’ this summer if Boston falls out of the AL East race.
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- Aroldis Chapman stats (ESPN): 1.96 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 31-8 K-BB, .179 batting average allowed, .524 OPS allowed in 23 innings pitched
Entering MLB games today, Boston has the fifth-worst record in the American League. It’s coming off a stretch that saw the club post an 11-17 record in May despite receiving a 3.88 ERA from the pitching staff. In the division, the Red Sox are now closer to the Baltimore Orioles for last place than they are to the first-place New York Yankees.
If Boston can’t turn things around, Chapman is an enticing rental for contenders in need of bullpen help. Among relievers, he ranks 16th in strikeout rate (33.7 percent), 19th in K-BB rate (25 percent) and he ranks in the 90th percentile for Baseball Savant‘s expected ERA (2.66) while placing in the 96th percentile for Whiff rate (35.8 percent).
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Unlike the Orioles, the Red Sox have not given any signal to teams that they are ready to be sellers. However, it faces the Yankees six times in June and draws matchups against the Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants. If the slide continues, Boston could easily be six-plus games back of a crowded battle for the final AL Wild Card spot when July arrives.
Any team that acquired Chapman near the MLB trade deadline in July would be on the hook for just under half of his $10.75 million salary this season. Given he’s a half-season rental, the return would be diminished for the 37-year-old pitcher.