TBNL #304 — Aroldis Chapman sets the all-time strikeout mark by a relief pitcher; July trade season begins; and let’s revisit the 13 players the Braves lost as a result of their 2017 international scouting scandal.

July is trade season across Major League Baseball, so, naturally, I intend to say something about every deal agreed to between now and the trade deadline (which was pushed back to Aug. 3 this year).

Washington already added one reliever via trade on Wednesday (RHP Kyle Nicolas), before acquiring LHP Tom Cosgrove from the Astros on Friday for cash considerations. Cosgrove was not on Houston’s 40-man roster and has spent the season with Triple-A Sugar Land, with a 4.30 ERA, 21 BB, and 29 SO in 29.1 IP.

The 30-year-old was a 12th-round pick by the Padres in 2017. He has made 74 MLB appearances between 2023-25 with the Padres and Cubs (54 of them coming in 2023), with a 3.86 ERA (110 ERA+), 26 BB, and 62 SO in 70.0 IP.

Philadelphia has been among the more aggressive teams in the international market this year. The Phillies added more to their international bonus pool on Sunday, sending RHP Ryan Degges to the Guardians for $250,000 in pool space (which can only be traded in $250K increments).

Degges, 23, was Philadelphia’s 17th-round pick in the 2024 Draft out of UNC Charlotte. Over two seasons as a pro, mostly with Class-A Clearwater, he’s posted a 4.26 ERA, 65 BB, and 101 SO in 105.2 IP (31 G, 25 GS).

The Phillies used the added pool space to sign 17-year-old Ho Hua from Taiwan, per multiple reports. The right-hander will receive a bonus “in the neighborhood” of $500,000.

Aroldis Chapman made history on Friday night in Los Angeles. The Red Sox closer struck out Angels infielder Denzer Guzman in the ninth inning of a 5-2 Boston win. The strikeout was the 1,364th of Chapman’s career, moving him past right-hander Hoyt Wilhelm for the most strikeouts by a reliever all-time.

Chapman and Wilhelm couldn’t have been more different as players, as many have noted.

Wilhelm spent three years pitching in the minor league North Carolina State League and another three serving with the U.S. Army during World War II — he received a Purple Heart after being wounded in the Battle of the Bulge — before his contract was purchased by the New York Giants in 1947. Wilhelm didn’t make his MLB debut until 1952 at the age of 29.

Wilhelm spent the next 21 seasons in the big leagues, pitching for nine franchises, while posting a 2.52 ERA (147 ERA+) over 2254.1 IP and saving 228 games. The soft-tossing right-hander relied heavily on a knuckleball throughout a career spent almost exclusively in relief (1070 career appearances, all but 52 out of the bullpen). An eight-time All-Star and two-time ERA leader, Wilhelm was the first pitcher to spend his career primarily as a reliever to be inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985.

The Cuban-born Chapman spent four years pitching in the Cuban National Series before defecting from the country in 2009. After MLB declared him a free agent, he eventually signed a six-year, $30.25M deal to join the Cincinnati Reds in Jan. 2010. Chapman threw just 95.2 IP for the Reds’ Triple-A affiliate before making his debut that August.

Now in his 17th season in the big leagues and with his seventh franchise, Chapman has posted a 2.51 ERA (165 ERA+) over 847.0 IP and has eight All-Star appearances. All 890 of his career appearances have come out of the bullpen, and the hard-throwing southpaw — he threw a pitch clocked at 105.8 mph in 2010, the fastest on record since pitch tracking began in 2008 — collected his 384th save on Friday. He is 10th on the all-time list and quickly approaching Dennis Eckersley (390) for ninth place.

Following a months-long investigation, Major League Baseball announced a series of sanctions against the Atlanta Braves organization in Nov. 2017 after it was found that the club had violated several rules during the international amateur free-agent signing period and in the lead-up to the 2017 Draft. Former GM John Coppolella was placed on the league’s permanently ineligible list, while special assistant Gordon Blakeley received a one-year suspension. The club also forfeited a 2018 Draft pick (3rd round) and faced severe restrictions in signing players during the following two international signing periods.

Perhaps the most damning sanction, however, was being forced to lose 13 players the team had signed. Each of them was sent back into free agency and allowed to sign with any other team.

Nearly 10 years later, let’s see where each landed:

(All stats are entering play on Friday, July 3)

INF/OF Ji-hwan Bae was already a unique case, as he was just the second Korean player to skip the KBO Draft in favor of signing directly with an MLB team (after Kwang-min Kwon signed with the Cubs in 2015). Bae officially received a $300,000 signing bonus from the Braves, but the Braves reportedly planned to pay him another $600,000 “off the books” by reallocating money that had been promised to other signees. In March 2018, he signed with the Pirates for a $1.75M bonus.

Bae made his MLB debut in Sept. 2022, and over the last four seasons he’s played in 163 games in the majors, all with the Pirates, hitting .223/.294/.293 (62 OPS+) in 514 PA with 22 2B, 2 HR, and 37 SB. The 26-year-old has spent the 2026 season with the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate.

RHP Juan Contreras initially received a $1.2M signing bonus from the Braves, but interest was minimal once he re-entered the free-agent market before landing with the Angels. Contreras made just six appearances in Los Angeles’ system before being released. His pro career totaled 26.2 IP in 16 appearances with an 8.44 ERA, 33 BB, and 15 SO.

RHP Yefri del Rosario received a $1M bonus from the Braves and then added another $650,000 from the Royals just weeks after re-entering the open market, reportedly turning down more lucrative offers to join Kansas City because he idolized Yordan Ventura. del Rosario remained with KC’s system through the 2023 season, topping out at Double-A, with a 4.16 ERA, 133 BB, and 304 SO in 311.1 IP over his five seasons in the minors.

C/INF Abrahan Gutierrez received one of the larger bonuses during the 2016-17 signing period, receiving $3.53M from the Braves. He’d add another $550,000 to that total just weeks after re-entering free agency, signing with the Phillies. He’s since been traded to the Pirates and then acquired by the Yankees in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft. He’s spent 2026 between Double-A and Triple-A. Over parts of nine seasons in the minors, Gutierrez has slashed .260/.343/.368 in 2019 PA (499 G) with 93 2B, 40 HR, and 12 SB.

INF Kevin Maitan was viewed across the industry as the top prospect in the 2016-17 international signing period (until OF Luis Robert Jr. defected from Cuba in March 2017). The switch-hitting Venezuelan shortstop was being compared to Chipper Jones and Miguel Cabrera by some before receiving a $4.25M signing bonus from the Braves. The Angels gave him another $2.2M once he re-entered free agency. Despite the high expectations, Maitan never played above Double-A in his eight minor league seasons, hitting a combined .233/.299/.348 in 2193 PA (533 G).

OF Brandol Mezquita originally received a $300,000 signing bonus from the Braves and, despite being declared a free agent, decided to remain with the club, re-signing just days later. The Dominican outfielder spent five seasons in the Braves’ minor league system, batting .247/.344/.343 in 1093 PA (272 G).

OF Juan Carlos Negret double-dipped in the bonus pool, receiving $1M from the Braves and the same amount from the Royals upon re-entering the open market. The Cuban outfielder showed plenty of power potential, mashing 90 home runs over six seasons in the minors, but hit just .212/.308/.410 in 2145 PA (513 G) with 613 SO.

INF Yenci Pena received $1.05M from the Braves, then signed with the Rangers for another $650,000. Across six seasons in the minors, topping out at High-A, he hit .227/.326/.335 in 834 PA (223 G).

INF Angel Rojas spent five years in the minor leagues but never advanced beyond rookie ball, hitting .257/.338/.415 in 497 PA (135 G). Rojas received $300,000 from the Braves and another $350,000 from the Yankees.

INF Yunior Severino certainly benefited from the decision that sent him back into the open market. Severino received $1.9M from the Braves and then added another $2.5M from the Twins. The Dominican infielder hit .263/.349/.460 in 2572 PA (597 G) across eight seasons in the minors. He spent the first half of 2026 in Mexico before signing with the KBO’s Doosan Bears in July¹.

SS Livan Soto received a $1M bonus from the Braves and added another $850,000 when he signed with the Angels. Soto saw some brief MLB time each season from 2022-24, hitting .351/.407/.494 in 87 PA (35 G). The Orioles released him after the 2025 season.

OF Antonio Sucre received $300,000 from the Braves and hit .237/.333/.333 in 231 PA (57 G) during the 2017 season at their Dominican Summer League affiliate. He never signed with another club after becoming a free agent that November.

RHP Guillo Zuñiga landed with the Dodgers for $205,000 on top of the $350,000 he’d received from the Braves. The right-hander reliever made a handful of MLB appearances in 2023 with the Cardinals and in 2024 with the Angels, combining for a 5.03 ERA, 8 BB, and 16 SO in 19.2 IP. He’s spent the 2026 season with the Mets between Double-A and Triple-A.

Restrictions on the Braves’ international amateur free-agent signings in the two years that followed forced the club to lose one additional player, as they already had a pre-existing agreement with a then-14-year-old Robert Puason. The shortstop from the Dominican Republic signed with the Athletics during the 2019-20 international signing period, receiving a $5.1M bonus. Puason slashed .204/.270/.266 in 1086 PA (304 G) over five seasons before the A’s shifted him from shortstop to the mound early in the 2025 season. He’s posted a 6.04 ERA with 19 BB and 37 SO in 47.2 IP since that transition. Puason has yet to play above Class-A Stockton.