Aroldis Chapman Is the Top Reliever on the Trade Market. The Red Sox Are Ready to Move.
Aroldis Chapman is the best reliever available on this year’s trade market. The Red Sox know it. The contenders trying to land him know it. Boston is reportedly ready to deal.
Chapman has converted 28 consecutive save opportunities. He has been the best version of himself since signing with Boston before last season. The 38-year-old left-hander is still throwing 99 mph. The slider remains a wipeout pitch. He has been the most dependable closer in the American League.
The Red Sox are not contending. They are 32-39 and in last place in the AL East. Their season has been a disappointment after Boston’s busy offseason. Trading Chapman is the obvious move.
Every contender wants him. The Phillies need a closer after their bullpen has melted down in big games for two straight years. The Dodgers always want bullpen depth. The Yankees would love to bring him back to New York. The Braves are exploring it. The Brewers under Pat Murphy are aggressive.
Chapman’s contract is the cleanest part of this. He signed a one-year, $10.75 million deal with Boston last offseason. He is a pure rental. Acquiring teams are paying for three months of an elite closer, and the cost in prospects will reflect that.
The Red Sox will probably get one top-15 organizational prospect, maybe a second piece. That is the going rate for a top-tier rental reliever. The number could climb if the Yankees and Phillies both get serious.
Boston’s front office under Craig Breslow has been clear. The team is not rebuilding. They are reshaping. They want to add young talent, keep their core in place, and try again in 2027 with Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, and Kristian Campbell forming the next core. Trading Chapman fits that plan perfectly.
Chapman has expressed willingness to be moved. He wants to win another World Series. He has two rings already. He knows his window is short. The 38-year-old is not chasing one more contract. He is chasing one more title.
For the Yankees, the reunion makes sense even if it is awkward. Chapman pitched for them from 2016 to 2022. He had ups and downs there. He blew the 2019 ALCS for them. But he also helped them win the 2017 wild card and was a force at his peak in pinstripes.
The Phillies are the front-runners as of this week. Dave Dombrowski has been aggressive at every deadline. He has a contending team without a true late-inning weapon. Chapman fits the bill. The Phillies have the prospect depth to land him.
The Dodgers are always lurking. Andrew Friedman does not rest. The LA bullpen has been solid but not great. Chapman would be an upgrade.
The Red Sox have other potential trade candidates. Garrett Whitlock has been mentioned. Walker Buehler’s rebound year makes him an option. Lucas Sims could move. But Chapman is the headliner.
August 3 is the deadline. The Red Sox will move him before then. The question is which contender gets him, and what kind of prospect package they have to give up.
The bidding war is starting. Boston is open for business.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
