The A’s unloaded another big name Wednesday morning, trading All-Star third baseman Matt Chapman to the Blue Jays for four minor-leaguers including 2021 first-round pick Gunnar Hoglund. Chapman’s departure comes 48 hours after shipping Matt Olson to Atlanta in a five-player blockbuster. The Braves would later sign Olson to an eight-year extension worth a reported $168 million, positioning him as Freddie Freeman’s long-term successor at first base.
Chapman joins a loaded Toronto lineup headlined by MVP runner-up Vladimir Guerrero Jr., whose 48 round-trippers last season were the most by a Blue Jay since Jose Bautista’s franchise-record 54 in 2010. It’s unclear how Chapman, a three-time Gold Glove recipient, affects Toronto’s pursuit of Freeman, who is also being courted by the Red Sox, Dodgers and Rays, among other interested parties (the Yankees bowed out of the Freeman sweepstakes late Tuesday night, instead signing Anthony Rizzo to a two-year deal).
Though Olson and Chapman’s departures won’t help the A’s this year or perhaps anytime soon, the prospect haul helps replenish a depleted farm system that, before this week’s trades, had ranked among the league’s worst (28th out of 30 teams, according to ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel).
Chapman regressed offensively last year (.210/.314/.403 with 27 homers in 529 at-bats), finishing with MLB’s fourth-highest strikeout rate among qualified hitters (32.5 percent). However, Chapman remained dominant as ever at the hot corner, pacing all MLB third basemen in UZR (ultimate zone rating) while also accounting for 10 defensive runs saved. Chapman, who debuted in 2017 (three years after the A’s drafted him 25th overall following a standout college career at Cal State Fullerton), has one year left of arbitration eligibility before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2024.
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