Buyers Warned To 'Beware' Impressive Red Sox All-Star
Article excerpt
It's not surprising that some of the Boston Red Sox's stars will garner trade interest, though it's unclear what the team will do at the deadline.
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It's still unclear whether the Boston Red Sox will wind up being buyers or sellers at the trade deadline.
Despite sitting at the bottom of their division with a 31-44 record, the Red Sox still realistically have a chance to return to the playoffs again this season by earning a wild-card playoff spot.
Boston has already made it known that the team is interested in adding a right-handed bat at the trade deadline, and with multiple stars like Trevor Story, Garrett Crochet and Roman Anthony set to come back from injury at some point down the stretch, it will be interesting to see what the team does before the trade deadline.
Though it's unclear how the Red Sox will handle the trade deadline, some of their top players still are drawing interest from teams across the league. Surprisingly, Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller warned that buyers should "beware" Red Sox star closer Aroldis Chapman.
"Chapman's 0.83 ERA looks fantastic. Better than Mason Miller's 0.90 ERA even," Miller wrote on Sunday. "The 2.61 xERA and 3.05 xFIP beside it, though? Not so fantastic, and a big indicator of impending regression. Moreover, Chapman's average four-seamer velocity (96.8 MPH) isn't what it used to be. He'll touch 100 on occasion once he's good and revved up, but he's generally hovering at about two MPH below where he was last season, which was already a good 2-3 MPH below the flamethrowers he used to unleash on the regular a decade ago.
"Could he still be a top 10 closer down the stretch and into the postseason, even if he posts a 3.00 ERA while throwing 96-97 MPH? Yeah, probably. At any rate, there are only eight pitchers at the moment with at least 10 saves and a sub-3.00 ERA. But if a contender thinks it is trading for Mason Miller Lite or the 2016 version Aroldis Chapman, it may be sorely mistaken."
Chapman was amazing for the Red Sox last season and has somehow performed even better this season. The 38-year-old is arguably the best closer in all of baseball, despite his age, and is an eight-time All-Star. Across 22 appearances this season, Chapman has posted an absurd 0.83 ERA with 14 saves in 21 2/3 innings pitched, fanning 29 batters.
Surprisingly, Miller believes teams should beware of Chapman even though the star closer is playing some of the best baseball in his career. Miller mentioned impending regression and a higher ERA for the 38-year-old, but he has shown no signs of playing worse, allowing only two earned runs this whole season.
If Chapman keeps up his insanely high level of play, it would be great for the Red Sox down the stretch as the team eyes a return to the postseason.
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