MLB Trade Deadline: Top 25 midseason deals of all-time

2. Cubs acquire Aroldis Chapman, July 25, 2016

Curse killer Theo Epstein isn’t afraid to make a controversial trade, especially when a World Series title is on the line. In 2016, while the Chicago Cubs were staring down a 108-year title drought, Epstein and the club’s front office had an opportunity to add one of the most physically gifted relief pitchers in memory.

Aroldis Chapman, the lefty closer with the 100-plus miles per hour fastball, had been lighting up major league radar guns for seven seasons when the Yankees acquired him in a five-player deal with the Cincinnati Reds over the winter. Expected to begin the season as the closer in the Bronx, Chapman was instead suspended for the first 30 games of the season after a domestic violence violation over the offseason.

While many fans across baseball were appalled, Epstein and the Cubs were willing to overlook Chapman’s off-field trouble, and sent four players, including top prospect Gleyber Torres, to the Yankees in late July to acquire the flamethrower.

Chapman was practically unhittable in a Cubs uniform. In 28 appearances during the regular season, the 28-year-old posted a 1.01 ERA and 0.82 FIP with 46 strikeouts and 10 walks in 26.2 innings. He allowed just 12 hits and zero home runs and earned 16 saves.

Though Chapman was more vulnerable in the postseason, he was credited with two wins and saved four games in 13 appearances for the Cubs during the postseason. Often stretched out to work multiple innings in the playoffs, Chapman pitched 7.2 innings in five games in the World Series. He allowed three runs on five hits, including a dramatic home run by Rajai Davis in the eighth inning of Game 7, and struck out 11 for the eventual World Series champions.