Update: The trade was never finalized with Chapman facing some off-field issues.
Cuban fireballer and four-time All-Star Aroldis Chapman is likely on his way to Los Angeles after the Dodgers traded a pair of prospects for him on Monday.
What does it mean for Chapman’s baseball cards?
Well, it should mean good things with the Los Angeles spotlight shining bright — no matter how rough things might get for the seemingly always under-achieving team that has won its division the last three years only to be prematurely bounced from the postseason.
On the field, Chapman has 546 strikeouts in 319 career innings and 146 saves in 324 games with an ERA of 2.17. Those are strong numbers — stronger than his cards probably indicate — but perhaps even more impressive when you consider he’s spent his entire six-year career in Cincinnati.
On cardboard, Chapman has been a steady but not overworked signer in recent years. He has nearly 200 certified autographs — not a massive number — since his MLB cardboard arrival in 2010 Bowman brands. His Rookie Cards appear in 2011 sets.
One perhaps overlooked chapter of his cardboard story is that his first cards can actually be found in 2009 Bowman brands when he was a member of Cuba’s team in the World Baseball Classic. (A team that lost to eventual-champ Japan.)
Of his 1,500-plus cards, 75 of them are from that year. He also has his first certified autographs that year in Elite Extra Edition from what is now Panini America.
Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.
>> Click here to buy baseball cards on BlowoutCards.com
BlowoutBuzz.com 