Per, the Kansas City Royals twitter account:
#Royals acquire C Humberto Quintero and OF Jason Bourgeois from Astros for minor league lefty Kevin Chapman and a player to be named.
Kevin Chapman (FanGraphs page) was a fourth round selection by the Royals in 2010. He's a 24 year old left handed reliever who made his way to AA last year posting a 4.99 ERA in 39.2 innings. His overall numbers include a 5.06 ERA in 80 innings with 110 strikeouts to 36 walks; that's a 3.06 SO/BB.
According to Baseball America Chapman had the best slider in the Royals organization.
A friend of the blog Rany On The Royals had this to say about Chapman last summer:
On Kevin Chapman: "Like Herrera, the report I filed is that he’s a future bullpen piece in the majors. Good fastball, and a really tight downer curveball. [Note: the report on Chapman when he was drafted was that he was fastball/slider; I don’t know if the curveball is new.] I saw Tim Collins in spring training and put a "50" on him [a 50 on the 20-80 scouting scale means he’s an average major-league player], and I just put a "55" on Chapman."
The blog Royal Revival did a profile on Chapman earlier this year:
Chapman does get his fair share of ground balls. But when his opponents' line drive percentage is 17% and his opponents' BABIP is .460 this cries a bit foul. Chapman possesses a mid-90s fastball, with a knockout slider, for a reliever he also throws a solid change. Like I said, the guy's arm is electric.
UPDATE: 5:25 p.m. ET
Astros GM Jeff Luhnow said PTBNL will be "key component" of trade
For a Royals fans perspective check out Royals Review our Royals counterpart.
More reaction and news to come.