Chicago Cubs: Former prospect Gleyber Torres knocking on door in NY

A trip down memory lane

If you remember, the Cubs started off the 2016 season with a 24-6 run, the best 30-game start to a season since the 1907 also-World-Series-winning version of the Northsiders.

But then, things took a turn, and the Cubs hit a bit of a bump which was capped off by going 6-15 upon entering the All-Star break. Not long after the break, the Cubs made the trade that sent Gleyber Torres, Billy McKinney, Adam Warren and Rashad Crawford to the New York Yankees in exchange for half of a season for Chapman.

It was then that the Cubs took off. Just two days later Addison hit his first career grand slam to lift the Cubs past the Chicago White Sox. A few days after that was the “Brian Matusz game.”

The Cubs turned it around and won their first World Series since 1908. Chapman was just about as good as you can get, despite giving up the gut-wrenching home run off the bat of Rajai Davis.

Without Chapman, who knows what would have happened. Good thing we don’t have to find out.