Report: Dodgers to make 'dedicated pursuit' of Chapman
In December of 2015, it appeared left-hander Aroldis Chapman was going to be wearing the blue and white of the Los Angeles Dodgers, until his involvement in a domestic dispute caused the trade to get nixed. However, the club may be interested in his services yet again.
The Dodgers are expected to make a dedicated pursuit of the flame-throwing closer, reports the Los Angeles Times' Andy McCullough.
Chapman is the top closer available on the free-agent market, followed by the Dodgers' closer of the past five seasons, Kenley Jansen, as well as Mark Melancon and a recovering Greg Holland.
The Dodgers would presumably need to spend a pretty penny to land Chapman, and face a potential bidding war with other interested parties, which already reportedly include the Cuban's former team, the New York Yankees.
Chapman appeared in 59 games for both the Yankees and the World Series champion Chicago Cubs in 2016, saving 36 games in 39 chances, while posting a 1.55 ERA to go along with a strikeout rate of 14 per nine innings.
The 28-year-old earned $11.325 million last season.