Chapman To Miami? The Reds Could Do It.

The craziest rumor about this past week has been the Aroldis Chapman to Miami in exchange for Ginacarlo “Dont Call Me

Jul 16, 2013; Flushing, NY, USA; National League pitcher Aroldis Chapman (54) of the Cincinnati Reds throws against the American League during the seventh inning during the 2013 All Star Game at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports

Michael” Stanton.

First glance at that most Reds fans would laugh that off, say “yeah right” and just carry on with your day. You shouldn’t look past this rumor though, while it may just be a fabricated twitter rumor it does actually make some sense.

Aroldis Chapman is great, the city loves him, and little kids adore him and his 102+ mph pitches. The problem is how long will this last, his arm that is. Also he wants to be a starter and the Reds have made it abundantly clear he will never be a starter for the club.

Now Stanton would be a huge grab for the club. He is young only 23 with a huge arm and a good bat. The young right hander is batting .250 on the season with 10 home runs. He has only played 51 games this season.

Stanton is one of the few bright spots on the struggling Marlins team, a player the club could build around. But he will require a big contract soon, one that is larger than his $537,000 that he is being paid this year. It would seem like the club would want to trade him then.

Chapman signed a 6 year contract with the Reds worth a reported $30.25 million. He will also be paid $16.25 million in bonuses over 11 years until 2021. This is a contract that the Marlins could definitely pick up.

Another major positive for this trade to happen is the large Cuban population in Miami. With Chapman being a Cuban defector he would certainly be a huge draw for the Marlins. Not to mention his arm and those incredibly high pitch speeds always draw people to the park.

This trade could happen. Will it? Likely not. The Reds always play trades close to the chest so we likely won’t know anything until it happens. Until then everyone can keep speculating.