Spring Training is underway for a few teams, yet a handful of free agency’s top players remain unsigned. Matt Chapman has been the clear #1 option for clubs looking to address third base all winter.
Chapman started the 2023 campaign on a blistering offensive pace that once looked as if it could vault him towards the $200MM mark. He tailed off as the calendar flipped to May, however, most often finding himself in the bottom third of the Toronto batting order by year’s end. A finger injury may have sapped some of his power, but the bigger problem is that Chapman’s swing-and-miss issues returned in full force. While he carried a league average 22.8% strikeout rate through the end of April, he fanned at a 29.8% clip from May 1 on. The end result was a characteristic Chapman season: a .240/.330/.424 batting line with a strong 10.7% walk rate but a strikeout percentage north of 28%.
Five years removed from a career-best campaign in which he hit .249/.342/.506 with 36 homers, it’s difficult to sell Chapman as a significant upside play at the dish. He’s a slightly better than average hitter whose value is heavily tied into his glove. A four-time Gold Glove winner, he rated as 12 runs better than an third baseman by DRS last season. Statcast graded him three runs above par. By both measures, he has been an a solid to elite defender in every year of his career.
A long-term bet on a player who soon turns 31 and derives much of his value from his defense has probably scared off a few teams, particularly since Chapman would require draft pick forfeiture after declining a qualifying offer. Yet there’s little doubt he’d be an upgrade in the next couple years over the third base situations that at least half of teams are set to deploy. Which ones have the spottiest in-house options to handle the hot corner, and could therefore benefit most from Chapman’s services?
Clear Need
- Angels
Anthony Rendon hasn’t made 60 starts at third base in a season since 2019. Brandon Drury and Luis Rengifo can see some time at the hot corner but are better served as bat-first options rotating throughout the infield. This would be a clear weakness if the Angels were one piece away from contention.
Unfortunately for the Halos, they have a handful of potentially bigger concerns. They’re still looking for rotation help. The overall depth on both the position player and pitching sides is lacking. They’re on the hook for $38MM to Rendon for another three seasons. Ownership and the front office probably don’t want to compound the issue with another significant free agent splash at third base.
- Blue Jays
Chapman’s old team hasn’t done much to replace him. They added Justin Turner on a one-year free agent deal. He can handle a few starts at third base but is more of a part-time option heading into his age-39 season. Turner only started seven games at the hot corner with the Red Sox a year ago. While that’s primarily on account of Rafael Devers’ presence, it also points to the risk the team would face in banking on him for 100+ starts on the infield dirt.
Assuming Turner plays mostly designated hitter, the Jays have a collection of infielders (Cavan Biggio, Santiago Espinal, Davis Schneider, Ernie Clement and prospects Addison Barger and Orelvis Martinez) to handle second and third base. Schneider has 35 games of MLB experience. Espinal and Biggio once looked like viable regulars but have tailed off in recent years. Clement is a utility player.
- Cubs
The Cubs might have the clearest need for third base help of any expected contender. Nick Madrigal, the top in-house option, hit .263/.311/.352 a year ago. There was also some concern about whether his arm plays well on the left side of the infield, although Madrigal posted excellent defensive grades in his first 560 1/3 innings at third base. There’s still a legitimate question as to whether the former #4 overall pick makes enough an offensive impact to start on a win-now team.
Chicago’s other short-term possibilities also have notable drawbacks. Patrick Wisdom has power but strikes out nearly as often as any regular in MLB. He’s a below-average defender who’s probably better served as a bench bat. Christopher Morel has never found a defensive home and only started four games at third base last year. Miles Mastrobuoni is coming off a .241/.308/.301 showing. It’s too early to bank on last year’s first-round draftee, Matt Shaw, making an MLB impact in 2024.
Viable Starter, Could Upgrade
- Giants: San Francisco doesn’t truly need a third baseman. J.D. Davis hit .248/.325/.413 with 18 homers a year ago. That was Davis’ worst full offensive season but still not far off what Chapman has provided in recent years. At the plate, they’re fairly comparable. Chapman has a marked edge over Davis with the glove, although Statcast felt the Giants’ incumbent third baseman took a step forward in that regard a season ago. While it’s fair to question whether Chapman is a marked enough improvement for San Francisco to make a run, they’ve been linked throughout the offseason. New skipper Bob Melvin managed Chapman for years across the Bay Area. The Giants could pursue him with an eye towards flipping Davis for help in another area of the roster.
- Mariners: Seattle is going into 2024 with a projected platoon at third base. They shipped off Eugenio Suárez and acquired Luis Urías. The righty-swinging Urías can pair with left-handed hitting Josh Rojas at the hot corner. Chapman would be a fairly straightforward upgrade, but president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto has expressed a desire to skew away from hitters with significant swing-and-miss rates (although their actual offseason on that front has been more mixed). More meaningfully, the M’s might just be up against ownership’s spending limit.
- Mets: President of baseball operations David Stearns said at the Winter Meetings that the Mets were happy with their internal options at third base. Ronny Mauricio tore his ACL in winter ball a few days later, but New York still has 24-year-old Brett Baty on hand. Baty had a dismal ’23 campaign, hitting .212/.275/.323 in 389 plate appearances. If the Mets were all-in on the upcoming season, Chapman would make a lot of sense. The organizational goal is instead to hang on the fringe of contention while giving opportunities to young players to see what they have for 2025. If Chapman’s asking price craters and he’s open to a short-term deal with an opt-out, perhaps the Mets could jump in. Otherwise, it seems the job will go to Baty.
- Phillies: Philadelphia seems content with Alec Bohm. He’s a subpar defender who has done the vast majority of his offensive damage against left-handed pitching in his career. There’s an argument the Phillies should make a run at Chapman and push Bohm to the bench, but the team doesn’t seem to consider third base a pressing issue. Bohm is a former #3 overall pick who had a decent .274/.327/.437 slash a year ago, so the Phils could hope there’s a little untapped potential at the dish.
- Yankees: The Yankees are planning to turn third base back to DJ LeMahieu. The 35-year-old was a league average hitter a season ago, running a .243/.327/.390 line with 15 homers. The longtime second baseman receives slightly above-average marks for his glovework at third base. LeMahieu hasn’t maintained the star-level production he showed from 2019-20, yet he’s still a solid everyday player. He had a strong finish to 2023, hitting .273/.377/.432 with a robust 14% walk rate after the All-Star Break. Chapman would likely be an upgrade, but it’s not a massive boost on what LeMahieu has provided. The Yankees have tried to move away from right-handed hitters with strikeout issues after overloading their lineup with that type of player in previous years.
Competitive Timeline Question
- Nationals
- Tigers
- White Sox
The Nationals took a flier on former top prospect Nick Senzel to start at third base. Senzel hasn’t contributed much at the MLB level, so this is still a clear area of weakness. Washington hasn’t fully pivoted from rebuilding to making a competitive push, though, meaning it’s probably a year or two early to pursue a player like Chapman. Chicago might be going in the opposite direction, as they may soon find themselves at the beginning of a rebuild. Yoán Moncada is under guaranteed contract for one more year with a club option for 2025. The Sox will likely give him a rebound opportunity and hope to offload some of the money he’s owed at the trade deadline.
Detroit admittedly didn’t fit particularly well within any of these five categories. They’re at the beginning of what they hope to be their contention window. The Tigers don’t have a clear starting third baseman right now but are hopeful that top prospect Jace Jung could push for the job by next season. Manager A.J. Hinch has suggested they’re comfortable rotating the likes of Andy Ibáñez, Matt Vierling and Zach McKinstry through the position as a stopgap platoon.
Payroll Issues
- Athletics
- Brewers
- Marlins
- Royals
None of these low-payroll franchises are going to spend the kind of money it’d take to land Chapman. Each of Milwaukee (Joey Ortiz), Miami (Jake Burger) and Kansas City (Maikel García) could turn the position to a controllable player they hope will be part of the long-term core.
Already Set At Third Base
- Astros
- Braves
- Cardinals
- Diamondbacks
- Dodgers
- Guardians
- Orioles
- Padres
- Pirates
- Rangers
- Rays
- Red Sox
- Reds
- Rockies
- Twins
These 15 teams all have either a clearly above-average starting third baseman (e.g. José Ramírez, Austin Riley), have addressed the position already this winter (Eugenio Suárez), or possess enough infield talent that can capably cover the position. In either case, it’s hard to envision any of these clubs considering Chapman a notable upgrade on their in-house options to bring him in. That’s true regardless of whether he pivots to a short-term deal.
Angels really need him more than any other team. He will be on the field a lot more than Rendon.
But then what will they do if/when Rendon is actually healthy? I guess without Ohtani they could make Rendon their full-time DH?
What are the odds in Vegas on Rendon playing 100 games? I bet not very good.
Angels might need Chapman over Rendon but Chapman is another over-priced FA not worth half of what he’ll get either.
Might be another Rendon 2.0
I’d say Chapman is kind of an anomaly. He had only missed significant time in 1 of 6 seasons prior to free agency. And the yrs leading upto it were great.
In Chapman’s 6 full seasons aside from call up year, he’s never missed much. I don’t see him being a Rendon type risk. I don’t see his glove regressing all that much either. Trust in how his bat ages would be my main concern.
Was Rendon a risk when the Angels signed him?
In 2020 Chapmen had surgery on his labrum and femur.
His stats since then are 226/322/429.
This is a great example of the grass is always greener on the the other side of the fence.
Definitely not. Rendon had averaged 146 games per season in the 4 years prior to signing with the Angels.
The only concern was he was heading towards his 30th birthday at a pretty demanding defensive position.
We expected a slight decline, not falling off a cliff.
So replace him with someone who might be good. The Angels already have someone who might be good.
Chapman is not going to take them where they need to go and it gets exponentially easier to cut someone the closer they are to the end of their contract.
It would just be stupid.
Chapman’s KOs and batting average have been trending downward. I saw an article (with a short video) from a doctor who put his injury in a clearer context (Sept. ’20)
Mark Canha in 2016 and Sean Manea in 2013 had similar procedures (but not exact) It is possible the procedure wasn’t perfect and he can still feel pain and sometimes arthritis can aggravate even at his age. He probably can still be a productive 3B/DH if given regular rest – platoon maybe; about 400 ABs and no synthetic turf, only the fields cows like. The Roger Centre turf probably didn’t help and it’s hurting other Blue Jays (knees etc.)
I think he has to accept a shorter term (2 year) contract with incentives and options included
The entire Rogers Center infield has been dirt for a few years now.
The compensatory pick is killing his demand. I’d love for Boston to sign him and push Devers into a DH role but truthfully I. all my prior posts, I forgot he would cost a pick. My bad. He may be better off waiting until May 15th.
True, but he might play more games next year than Rendon has played the last 3 years combined.
He might. But what’s the point?
Mariners? On paper for sure. Chapman would cost more than what they got tied up in Urias and Rojas.
Stuff like this kills me.
TheAngels don’t have a top 15 firstbaseman, second baseman, shortstop,.
They may or may not have a top 15 catcher.
They have 1 top 45 outfielder. If he plays.
At third they could have a top ten 3rd baseman or a bottom 5 five third baseman. SO WHATS THE POINT?
The Angels have to play everyone just to see what they have. Otherwise the Angels should be replacing everyone but Trout and O’Hoppe. They can’t replace everyone, so they should see who they can live with in 2025.
Rendon has just as good a chance to be playable as anyone else.
For sure… they have enough holes that you kind of have to gamble on Rendon playing, and playing well at that, if they want to be successful this year. Rendon missing 3/4 of the season again won’t be the reason they miss the playoffs. I don’t think insurance here is a good use of resources.
The Angels would lose their 2nd-round pick and $500,000 of their international pool. After trading so many of their prospects at the deadline last year, they need to rebuild, not forfeit draft picks.
BHam, that’s a great point.
My point was the Angels don’t know who to replace and it’s unlikely to do them any good.
But your point is an excellent one.
@Halo: It wasn’t indicated in my post, but I agree with you. I was just adding another reason why Chapman would be a mistake for the Angels.
I have the Angels having a top 15 2b in Drury. Since he played the most game there last year. Unlike these writers who missed that fact, and pencil him in as a DH.
As far as SS, I’m a betting man so, by seasons end, I’d bet big money on Neto being a top 15 SS.
As for Catcher, I’d bet HUGE money on O’Hoppe being in the top 10.
So they say you start building a good team up the middle. Well, I have them with all 4 spots being in the top 15. I bet on this for sure, and the only way I lose this bet is Health.
I don’t think you know the shortstop pool. But if you think he’s top 15. Let’s find out.
Let’s find out who these guys are.
As far as Drury, he was 13th last year. But as a team, they were well below the middle of the pack last year.
Angels should be rebuilding and be nowhere near Chapman.
An infield of Chapman, Lindor, McNeil, and Alonso would be kind of insane.
Is that you Scott Boras posting under one of your many aliases? jk
I am a NYM fan hopefully McNeil can provide some more RBIs this year (he can play some OF also but you want to keep that to no more than 25 games) his defense and range is just average just like Alonso.
Alonsos defensive limitations are probably one of the biggest reasons the Mets are reluctant to give him anything close to Freeman or Olson $ IMHO
His BA in ’23 was down also and if his bat speed starts to slow his RBIs go down 25%+
15 win infield? St. Louis’s IF in 2022 racked up 24 WAR.
That, now THAT was insane.
Don’t do it, Yankees. Josh Donaldson Part II. Chapman is better than Donaldson, but he’s not the best place to spend money.
Agree, another high priced Rizzo who wants multiple years and $big money to offensively will rock in April and May, but by June the swoon will begin and his contact rate and power will be infrequent at best…..the NY press will then eat him alive because of his decline….
With Chapman you at least get an elite glove at a premium position. I’d say Yankees are a really bad fit tho. They need consistent bats to add to the power threats in that lineup.
Some type of majestic healing fountain for Stanton wouldn’t hurt either.
Be ready to be dissapointed with Chapman. 60/4 is the max anyone should pay for him
I’m not even a Philies fan, but I don’t get the hate on this site for Alec Bohm. There is nothing wrong with Bohm as a third baseman. He’s a better offensive player than Chapman is. His defense can & I think will improve by just playing third base. His growth there has been hindered by the Phillies playing him also at first base. He had 97 RBI’s last season. I’d take him as my 3rd baseman on my team
From an offensive standpoint I’d say PHI would be ideal. Nearly entire lineup is 20+HR potential, with alot of 30+.
Defensively I’m not sure if he’s a good fit at all. His glove would be a clear plus. But keeping Harper healthy seems a priority so 1B seems his. Bohm DHing leaves the 2 defensive liabilities playing OF if bats will be in lineup.
Did he have 97 RBI??!!? That was sneaky good. I had no idea. You’re right. He’s better than Chapman overall, at the price, at least. They hate on him because Bohm isn’t a well known name……yet.
The issue with Bohm is his glove. The problem is Schwarber and Castellanos both liabilities with their gloves as well.
RBIs? That’s a team stat. Hit Wilmer Flores in that slot he knocks in 100.
Unless you think ‘clutch’ exists, in which case since you can predict it you’ll make a million in no time.
Red Sox are set at third base? We haven’t had a third baseman in years. We have a guy that stands there, but I wouldn’t score a play to third 5 to 3. More like DH to 3.
I think the Mets and Phillies are the most interesting teams here. Both could push for improvement at the position and have been willing to spend the money.
An issue is a lot of these teams that have need don’t want to spend money (Cubs, Mariners) or May be hesitant to (Jays have young pieces to lock up, Angels may be afraid he’s Renton 2.0).
The Giants make sense but Davis is almost a 1:1 offensively with Chapman. And if Chapman is hurt, he can’t defend. So it may be smarter for them to keep Davis there.
Maybe the Mets or Phils sign Chapman and then push either Baty or Bohm in a package for one of the starters on the market?
Both Chapman and Davis have played in 7 MLB seasons. Chapman has played in 868 games to Davis’s 594. I’d be more concerned with Davis missing time opposed to Chapman.
Some of that is due to the Mets having him as a bench bat for a few seasons. He only got 1 year in NY where he received consistent playing time until the year he was traded to SF.
Also, Davis would be making A LOT less money than Chapman. And Chapman had a down year last year and some may be wondering if he’s losing a step given his low offensive production in Toronto. Especially if you compare how much more difficult it would be to put up numbers in SF.
Lastly, while not directly related, SF may want to spend more next winter and pass on Chapman. Arizona made the WS, San Diego is still trying to win, the Rockies are the Rockies, and worst of all, the Dodgers are going for broke. And they signed 2 elite Japanese talents. San Francisco I imagine is probably intimated by that and will want to push back against LA signing asian free agents. Especially since Seattle doesn’t seem to want to spend.
Kim is a free agent this winter if he leaves San Diego. And with LA having Ohtani & Yamamoto, if Roki Sasaki gets his wish and gets posted next winter. I would imagine the Giants, more than any other team, would feel the need to throw a blank check at him. These clubs have big money but only so much can go around. Especially when you’re dealing with a Boras client, like Chapman.
Ok, what does any of that have to do with your point about getting hurt?? Neither of them cam defend or contribute hurt. Chapman has the far better glove and he is more proven at the plate.
You re taking a lot of guesses and assumptions here. Yet you don’t mention that many wonder if Davis just had an uncharacteristically good year.
What I’m saying is that FZ has been more calculated in spending money in free agency. I also think the Correa deal falling through was a wake up call when evaluating guys. Especially gold glove defenders whose bats are coming off down years.
Last year, Chapman played his fewest games during a full season since he debuted. His bat was also slower than it’s been. His strikeout numbers were actually higher on average than the year prior. And he had a higher than average BA with balls in play.
He produced far lower last year than you’d think a 30 yo gold glover in a contract year would produce playing 81 games in Rogers Centre. I’m just speculating that it could’ve been a down year for Chapman, maybe he’s losing a step, or he could’ve been hiding an injury. Or a combination of all 3. Wouldn’t be the first time a Boras client hid an injury after a down year entering free agency.
It’s just very curious that there’s been next to zero traction from any team with regards to Chapman.
Correa was offered contracts by three different teams. He did not fall through by any means. Teams were scared of his medical records and whatever they saw in regards to his leg.
You are also speculating that there has been no traction. Boras Agency has top 3 free agents still on the market. Their clients going late into process is nothing new, you are using correlation not causation.
Falling through in regards to the injury. When they took a look at medical stuff, it was a risk to give Correa that much money. That’s why Correa got a smaller deal with Minnesota. It’s what I mean that FZ may be more prudent with big money because he nearly gave a ton to Correa who is a possible ticking time bomb in terms of his knees.
And yes, I am speculating on his health. What I’m trying to do is draw any possible causality to Chapman’s down numbers. He had a very underwhelming walk year for one of the better FA’s this winter, especially for one of Boras’ guys. I think it’s normal to suspect a lack of traction with Chapman. How dry the beat has been since Yamamoto signed, I imagine if there’s anything cooking anywhere by any team. Someone would’ve reported it. Even if it was just exploratory talks. Not every team operates like someone like DD in Philly or AA in Atlanta where leaks don’t happen much. Even Heyman hasn’t reported much this winter (compared to Snell, Montgomery, & Bellinger).
Teams were concerned with Correa’s lower right leg not his knees. Chapman has been relatively healthy while career. The 2 are in no way comparable. You are comparing a guy who had surgery after breaking fibula and tearing a ligament to a glove first guy who saw a slight dip in HRs. Other than that he hit for exactly his career BA last season. He also had his 2nd best season for doubles with 39. So his #s aren’t exactly down as you are speculating.
Boras is not doing any of his clients any favors, these players won’t be ready to roll opening day if they miss Spring Trainig
Why is money so important to him and his players
It is insulting
Teams are getting smarter. At some point Boras schtick is going to stop working. He does right by most of his clients, but at some point, it just might come tumbling down.
Maybe this is the year.
Money is important to everybody. I’m a real estate broker and I’ll probably only get one chance to sell your house. Two if I’m lucky. We’re both going to want to shoot for to dollar each time.
Boras screwed up this year, though, by not factoring in the TV situation. Half the league is operating on a one year TV deal. Not conducive to long term deals.
Which only reminds me that Freakonomics found “when real estate agents sell their own homes, they tend to keep them on the market longer (about 10 days) and get a higher sale price (by about 3%) than when they sell homes for their clients.”
That’s because when they sell your house, they’re happy just to nail down the commission. Real estate agents look out for themselves, not us.
Cheers!
Yep. Basic math
Your realtor usually makes about 2-3%. Getting an extra $10,000 for you equals $200 to $300. Probably better to move on to another deal.
Getting an extra $10,000 on their house is an extra $10,000.
Boras is dealing with both a larger cut and bigger numbers. So he’s more incentivized. But at some point he’ll need to cut a deal or make nothing.
It’s unclear if you’re lying, or just misreading this so fortuitously you merely happened to luck into a lie favorable to your profession.
In any case, realtors know full well that, on average, they can make the seller 3% more if the realtor waits a few more weeks for a higher offer from an additional buyer. They don’t because cheating the seller of that additional 3% ($15,000 on a $500k house) means the REALTOR locks in his commission—the seller be damned.
You would right ? Even if you weren’t going to be ready and dealt with all that uncertainty- wouldn’t you wait around a couple weeks longer even if it was just for a few 100 grand ?? Come on now ! Keep it real….
Well a hundred grand buys a lot of Kielbasa but Kielbasa isn’t everything
The Red Sox are NOT set at third base. They should sign Chapman and move Raffy immediately.
The Devers contract is absurd, you don’t build a team around this type of player (i.e. horrible defensively and overrated at the plate–he’s a pretty good hitter, but not like a Juan Soto or a Frank Thomas where you can totally disregard the defense since they’re such great hitters).
@JimEdmondsHOF Yes, it was an awful signing. Devers is a 3-4 win 3Bman in his prime, so it doesn’t look like there’ll be any sudden jump in performance.
Dealing Betts then losing Bogaerts, they boxed themselves in and presumably felt they had to sign their last ‘star’ (he’s not a star, really) or be torn apart.
6.7 bWAR in 2019 was his last year warranting anything like his new contract.
Waiting for KD’s response on this one it ought to be good.
They should sign Chapman and move Raffy immediately.
=========================
No. When Rafaela, Duran, Anthony, and Bleis maybe at some point, are all viable options, Yoshida will be forced to DH.
He should have re-signed with Toronto last season when they made him an offer.
Giants over paid Lee, might as well over pay for chapman too ! He’s the guy that can put em back in playoff contention. They are oh so close
Since we don’t know how well Lee will do in MLB, no one knows if they overpaid for him or not. But even if they did overpay for him, that’s a poor excuse to overpay for anyone else.
Yankees need a 3B that can hit. Maybe they have interest.
Rendon is collecting a huge check to not play and that isn’t likely to improve.
However, Chapman is carrying a .226/.322/.420 line since Opening Day 2021 and turns 31 in April. His best days are clearly behind him.
Luis Rengifo is carrying a .264/.315/.436 line over the last two years and turns 27 next week. It is reasonable to expect his best years now.
Gio Urshela .281/.323/.415
Chapman is much better with the glove, but the Angels have payroll contraints and much cheaper options.
It’s very likely to improve. Why people want to add medium floor low ceiling guys astounds me.
Luis Rengifo’s defense at 3B, SS, RF and LF is worse than terrible. And he is not a good defender at 2B. It is best to trade him when his offense is up hitting ahead of Ohtani.
I don’t like Rengifo at third for that reason.
Pretty confident the Angels announce an Urshela signing later this week when they can move Quijada to the 60 day IL and open a roster spot.
All the other teams in MLB that don’t sign him will benefit most.
For all you fans hoping your team signs Chapman be wary of what you wish for!! The defence is super! Top of the heap!! The bat not so much. He was great in April last year but couldn’t hit his weight for the rest of the season. If you are looking at Chapman for more than just a glove look elsewhere.
The Mets would be an absurd landing spot for Chapman. They have a huge number of holes but at least at 3B can spend all of 2024, a lost season, trying Baty there, then 2025 (when they’ll get under the luxury tax threshold) trying Mauricio if Baty fails at 3B. Another plus is that Baty might fail at 3B but succeed at the plate, giving the Mets a DH for 2025 and after. 3B plus DH gives the Mets two slots to let Baty and Vientos audition for DH.
The Mets have acted nothing like a possible contender this offseason. They’ll end up spending more than $100m on one year deals for replacement level and one win players while adding zero good players.
Let me repeat that in context. With just 5 players returning from 2023 who racked up 2 bWAR or more, the Mets have added no one who projects to 2 bWAR in 2024.
In fact, Harrison Bader who has beaten 1.4 WAR all of once since the end of 2019, projects to more WAR in 2024 than anyone else the Mets added.
Meanwhile the Red Sox won 78 games in 2023 with 10 players worth 2 WAR and more. The Mets simply don’t have enough good players. They added no pitchers who project to as much as a league average ERA. Not starters, not relievers. They’ve added no hitters who rate to post league average hitting numbers.
The 2024 Mets are not built to contend. They are built to not embarrass Cohen.
Not a good clubhouse influence , diminishing skills , teams are weary of this guy.
“Not a good clubhouse influence”
First time I hear this, but I’m curious–what has been said about it?
He disputed the value of postgame kielbasa.
Showed up the manager. Bad decision
Chapman’s attitude in Toronto was palpably bad. He clearly thinks his name is Matt… Olson. But he ain’t.
Perhaps you know something about this… I read somewhere during the 2023 season that Jays fans were upset with Chapman in April because he stated publicly how excited he was about his approaching free agency (fans thought it was highly inappropriate at the time). Perhaps someone here can confirm it.
I don’t have a good impression of Chapman in general. That, plus his declining offense, cause me to hope very strongly that the Cubs stay far, far away.
Jays fan here and I watch most if not all of their games. Chapman’s glove is unbelievably good. You see rockets come off of bats and think there’s a double down the line and bam there’s Chapman smoothly picking the ball and making the out at first like it was just another walk in the park. But his bat will frustrate to no end. In April he raked because he hit the other way. Consistently crushed the ball the to the opposite field. When the calendar flipped to May it was as if boras had told him to forget the doubles and concentrate on pulling the ball for HR’s. And his bat died. As for the comments about his looking forward to free agency I don’t remember him ever making any comments about it. Perhaps reporters pushed him to make comments as always happens but I don’t remember them.
With the amount of money he wants, NONE!
I can’t believe that him and all these other big names are still not signed anywhere. Certainly big names have signed late in the winter but I don’t recall seeing this many top of the FA class all go this long. There doesn’t seem to be any imminent action on any of them either
I gotta think the Ohtani and Yamamoto sweepstakes put teams into realms of discomfort at the level of spending being discussed – even if they weren’t seriously engaged. Which has then translated to a lot of gun-shy GMs not wanting to commit anything near what Snell, Belli, et al are asking for – unless they’re slam dunks, sure things. And none of them are. Chap, Monty, Soler, Ryu… all these guys have bald spots on their record in the recent past, and aren’t getting younger.
I’ve been saying from the beginning that the Cubs should pass on Chapman and I’m not going to change now. They should also pass on on Snell and Montgomery. I’m still sitting on the fence about Bellinger . Anything over 2 years and I say pass on him also and go with what you have or make a trade if they feel they need something. The FA game at this point is a lose-lose proposition.
Right with you uncle!!!
Generally speaking, I’m with you Mike. But Chapman on a one- or two-year deal seems like a worthy gamble for the Cubs. Nick Madrigal isn’t worth passing up the chance over. That infield defense would be ELITE!
Cubs are going to sign both.
I think so too. I hope they understand that they ARE the market. No reason to compete against yourself.
I’m leaning more towards none than both. If either of them wanted to sign for 2 years they’d be signed already. Why I say it’s a losing proposition. I don’t want either of them long term. I’d rather see Shaw play 3rd and PCA play CF and Busch give it a go at 1st. I at least want to see what it looks like in the Spring first.
If they could get Chapman for 2 years without a NTC, I would be ok with it to ease Matt Shaw to Chicago in 2025… except that they will lose a draft pick. I just can’t get over that hurdle.
I’d rather they go out and sign JD Martinez (unless he signed somewhere recently, I haven’t been paying attention) and take my chances with Morel at 3B with Madrigal and Mastrobuoni coming in for defense late in games they lead.
I’d really have to see Morel play third before rolling that particular set of dice. Maybe if JD is still a free agent for a couple weeks during spring training and Morel (and Busch) look capable of being on the field at the same time.
I just think Belli and Chapmans price tag both drop to levels the Cubs are comfortable with and they will pounce on the “too good to pass up” contracts.
Detroit will sign him if he takes 1 year. He won’t, but Jung, Baez (eventually McGonigal or Santana), Keith and Torkelson is our near future INF.
A one year deal makes a LOT of sense for Detroit as well.
A one year deal makes sense. If him and the team find they are a fit maybe it leads to more later. Doubtful they will sign him though. Sounds like they are focused on Jung eventually playing 3B.
Sure. But with all the pitchers coming back from injury, it would sure be nice to have that glove making their return to action a little easier. He might even have enough presence to keep Baez accountable.
I can’t see Baez being as terrible as last year. Any upgrade will be a plus. If he can’t get it together maybe they should bench him and try Eddys Leonard or go grab a young shortstop to replace him. It would hurt but his defense would be a plus on the bench and his lack of offense wouldn’t hurt the team as much from the bench.
Chapman scares me a bit on offense. Reminds me of Baez a couple years ago.
The $150-mil over 6 years for Chapman crowd has left the vicinity.
2020/2021 was the time to push two new expansion franchises to begin play in 2024 which could have helped the current situation for free agents. Enough time has passed since the last expansion.
I wasn’t going to say “I told you so”, but when MLBR first ran its article about Chapman getting a “massive contract”, I pointed out his ridiculous BABIP, and that most of his other supporting numbers were in line with his career.
All that made him was a decent bat and a great glove, but also 31 years old. That still has value, but nothing like MLBR was predicting.
Poor man’s Arenado. Pitchers go after Chapman and aren’t tentative like they are toward Guerrero. Something the numbers can’t see.
Great glove, great arm, hole in the swing.
Pirates
Big Jay fan here to clarify original post- Jays have also signed a former(2021)gold glove 3B.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Having said that I would welcome back Chapman on a “prove it”contract.
Yeah….it’s just dizzying how proactive the Detroit FO is…..
He’s just too expensive imo like him in the 15-18 mil a year range over 20 i’m out
With…”a league average 22.8% strikeout rate through the end of April, he fanned at a 29.8% clip from May 1 on. The end result was a characteristic Chapman season: a .240/.330/.424 batting line with a strong 10.7% walk rate but a strikeout percentage north of 28%.” He would be a prime signing pick for the Phillies. They love to acquire players who can crush the ball, but has terrible strikeout rates. And now since his market has gone down because spring training started. He would make even more sense for their bargain basement signings.
But I would rather keep Bohm. He’s been working hard and making improvements.
And keep any additional moves for a closer or bench help. I don’t think Bohm would make a good transition to a bench player.
Yankees. 3 years 66
I hope Mastrobuoni gets a fair shake.
Tigers just signed Maeda and Flaherty for $26 mil (12 and 14). They should have used that money on Chapman and gone with a combination of Mize, Olson, Gipson-Long instead.
Maeda and Flaherty remind me of when they signed Boyd last year. Don’t expect a dozen starts between them.
The Tigers have no 3B close to being major league ready. They gave up on Keith and moved him to 2B. Jung was a bad 2B, now they expect him to be a 3B? LOL
Mariners need a 3rd baseman. They won’t sign one, though.
Hear me out… Astros trade Bregman to SF then sign Chapman. Bregman will want >$300MM at end of season and it’s looking more likely Chapman would take less money and years as spring training approaches.