link Cuban left-handed pitcher Aroldis Chapman, whose defection sparked a bidding war among major league teams that coveted his 100-mph fastball, agreed Sunday morning to sign for $30 million with a National League team, according to a source close the negotiations.
The Cincinnati Reds were “going after him like crazy,” according to one source, and an agent who does not represent Chapman said he had signed with the Reds.
The 22-year-old Chapman’s value has steadily climbed since a Dec. 15 workout in Houston in which he wasn’t throwing at full speed and still hit 97 mph. His potential as a front-of-the-line starter intrigued teams from coast to coast, as the Los Angeles Angels, Florida Marlins and Toronto Blue Jays were reportedly strong suitors.
The bidding increased from an initial $15.5 million offer from the Boston Red Sox in early December to the highest reported proposal of $23 million from Toronto.
Few NL teams beyond the Reds and Marlins have been linked to Chapman. The Houston Astros and Washington Nationals sent their general managers to the workout. The New York Mets are an intriguing possibility as well, fulfilling Chapman’s desire to play in a big city.
The increased interest around baseball coincided with Chapman firing Edwin Mejia, a fledgling agent who helped him establish residency in Andorra after he defected from the Cuban national team over the summer. His new agents, Randy and Alan Hendricks, are well-respected around baseball, and officials said they appreciated the transparency the Hendrickses applied to Chapman.
Because he spent his formative years in Cuba, Chapman was something of an unknown. His fastball was legendary, his slider dangerous and his changeup a potential plus pitch, but scouts had seen him a limited number of times – including during the World Baseball Classic last March – and were reluctant to engage in a blind bidding.
After the workout in Houston, many were convinced. The 6-foot-4 Chapman, not throwing at maximum effort, flashed good command of his breaking pitches in two short bullpen sessions. And his fastball led one front-office man to say, very simply, “It’s awesome.”
