The Dodgers Want To Trade For Aroldis Chapman But Now A Domestic Violence Dispute In October Is Holding It All Up
(Source) The Cincinnati Reds have been looking to trade flamethrowing closer Aroldis Chapman for quite some time. However, with Chapman under team control through 2016, they have waited patiently for the best possible deal to come along. On Monday, it looked like they’d finally found that deal. Various sources reported that the Reds had agreed to a trade that would send Chapman to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for a pair of prospects. But then, all of a sudden, the Reds issued a statement saying the deal had not been finalized.
At first it seemed as though the Reds had received a last-minute offer and were waiting to see if the Dodgers wanted to make a counter-offer. However, it wasn’t long before the truth came out. The Dodgers found out that Aroldis Chapman was involved in a domestic incident at the end of October in which he fired eight shots from a handgun and allegedly choked his girlfriend.
Around 11 p.m. on October 30, over a dozen police officers were dispatched to Chapman’s home in Davie, Florida, which is just outside Miami. His girlfriend had called 911 after fleeing the house and hiding in the bushes. She had gotten into a fight with Chapman during a party with their friends and family.
According to the official police report, the girlfriend said she “found something in his phone that she did not like” and confronted him about it. He then took his phone from her, they started arguing, and went into his home theater room. She alleges that, at that point, Chapman pushed her up against the wall and “choked” her by placing his hands around her neck. However, she apparently admitted that he did not prevent her from breathing, and police observed no redness on her neck or chest. The girlfriend says her brother then came into the theater room and separated the two, and she ran outside to call the police.
Chapman had a different story. He admitted fighting over the phone, but said he had only “poked” her on the shoulder with his index and middle finger, at which point she fell down screaming. Then her brother rushed in, and other family and friends separated the two so they would stop fighting.
Chapman’s driver initially told police that the girlfriend ran back into the theater after the fight was broken up and “tackled” Chapman. But when police went to speak to the driver again, he wouldn’t talk.
In any event, when Chapman and his girlfriend left the theater, that was the end of their interaction. She went outside and hid in the bushes on the other side of the house, leaving their four-month-old infant inside. He tried to get in his car and drive away, but his friends and family wouldn’t let him.
It was at that point, Chapman admitted, that he locked himself in his garage by himself, got a pistol out of the glovebox of his Range Rover, and fired eight shots—seven into the concrete wall, one through a window and into an open field.
According to assistant state attorney Marcie Zaccor, Chapman could not be charged with simple battery because there were no physical injuries and witnesses were uncooperative. And while one would think that Chapman could be charged with some weapons-related offense for firing his gun through a window in his garage, this is Florida we’re talking about.
That said, MLB has now opened their own investigation into the incident under its new domestic violence policy. And they don’t need a conviction in a court of law to fine or suspend Chapman. So now it looks like any trade is going to be put on hold until the league reaches its own conclusions. No organization wants to be known as the team that traded for the guy who (might have) choked his girlfriend.
Did anyone know about this alleged domestic violence incident back in October? I feel like this is all new news. So strange that it basically went under the radar until a trade was to take place and then it came out. Do the Dodgers not do due diligence, how did it get all the way to ink on paper before they figured this out? And about the allegations, who knows what happened, but Aroldis Chapman admitting that he stood in his garage and fired his gun into a concrete wall because he was angry is WILD. Like what happened to breathing into a paper bag or counting backwards from 100 or taking a long walk? Going from argument over your girlfriend finding out about your sidepiece to target practice inside of your own home seems like an A to Z situation. Strange strange stuff.
As for the baseball side of things, I can not wait for Aroldis Chapman to be out of the NL Central. The Reds suck and will suck for a while but there was nothing worse then a bad Reds team getting a late lead only to bring in Chapman and shut everyone down. Guy is a beast in the 9th inning, no two ways about it.
Oh and while on the topic of the NL Central. Best news ever. Jon Jay was the worst and he always got the big hit or defensive play. Fuck that guy. No Aroldis and no Jon Jay, my baseball life just got about 20% less aggravating.
