Major League Baseball’s annual Winter Meetings concluded with the Los Angeles Dodgers failing to duplicate the same splash they made at last year’s gathering.
It was not for lack of effort, however.
In the morning hours of the first day of the 2015 meetings, the Dodgers reportedly reached an agreement to trade for Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman.
By Monday night the trade was on hold amid a report of Chapman’s involvement in an alleged domestic violence incident at his Florida home on Oct. 30.
With MLB set to investigate Chapman, the Reds told clubs they were going to step back from trade talks for the closer. The Dodgers were thought to still be mulling over revisiting their deal at some point.
That no longer appears to be the case, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports:
Dodgers have moved on from chapman and are weighing Andrew miller among other pitchers and also hitters
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 10, 2015
Chapman recorded 33 saves with a 1.63 ERA, 1.94 FIP, 1.15 WHIP and 116 strikeouts over 66.1 innings (65 appearances) last season. It was the fourth year he’s had at least that many saves, and Chapman has been named to the National League All-Star team each season over the same stretch.
So long as Chapman isn’t suspended for a minimum of 46 games, which would cause him to fall short in required service time, he will be eligible for free agency after the 2016 season.
Prior to news of the alleged domestic violence dispute surfacing, the Houston Astros were also believed to be in pursuit of the electric closer. Houston reportedly has since traded for Philadelphia Phillies closer Ken Giles.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers are said to have discussed a trade with the New York Yankees for Andrew Miller. Los Angeles had interest when the left-handed closer was a free agent last offseason.
Miller elected to remain on the East Coast, signing a four-year, $36 million contract with the Yankees. At 30 years old, he’s three years older than Chapman. Miller had 36 saves last season with a 2.04 ERA, 2.16 FIP and 0.86 WHIP.
