The Cubs weren’t done after landing Jameson Taillon. Hours later, Chicago struck again with Toronto, this time adding veteran right-hander Kevin Gausman in another trade deadline move that gives Craig Counsell a proven starter for the stretch run.
The price for Gausman was Brett Bateman and Ty Southisene, two prospects headed to the Blue Jays. For the Cubs, the priority was clear: leave the deadline with a starter who can take the ball in October, and Gausman fits that assignment.
Gausman brings real postseason experience with him. He started two World Series games against the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, and even though his ERA has climbed to 4.38 this season, the numbers underneath point to a pitcher who may be due for better results in Chicago.
His FIP sits at 3.51, a sign that some of this season’s damage may have been tied to bad luck. He has struck out more than 23% of the hitters he’s faced while walking fewer than 7%. On Baseball Savant, the profile lines up closely with where he was last season, when he posted a 3.59 ERA over 193 innings.
Durability is part of the appeal, too. Gausman has long been a workhorse, and the Cubs now have someone who can help push into the sixth inning on a regular basis.
Even with Gausman in the fold, Chicago may not be finished. The Cubs are still expected to stay in the hunt for a controllable starting pitcher before Monday evening’s deadline, and the fact that they didn’t have to part with any of their top prospects keeps more options open. That could leave room for a deal with the Los Angeles Angels or Seattle Mariners.
Bullpen help also remains on the board. And because the Cubs got Gausman without dipping into the upper tier of their system, they still have flexibility with less than 24 hours left to address the pitching staff more broadly.
In Other News...
Cubs Skubal Pursuit Exposed One Problem Chicago Couldnt Escape
Tarik Skubals move to the Dodgers on Saturday night offered another reminder of how thin the margin can be when a star pitcher comes available. Los Angeles got the deal done with a package that sent former Cubs prospect Zyhir Hope, along with pitching prospects River Ryan and Brady Smith, to the Tigers, and it quickly became clear why the market pushed this into a different tier than a typical deadline-style chase.
For Chicago, the bigger story is what it says about the limits of a pursuit that never quite had enough room to grow. Matching that kind of offer would have required the Cubs to part with significant major league talent and add more from a system that already had to be carefully protected, which helps explain why they stayed out of the final push. The result left the club watching a frontline arm land elsewhere while the cost of doing business kept climbing past the point Chicago was willing to go. [Read more 🡒]
Cubs Finally Moved Jameson Taillon And The Return Says Plenty
Jameson Taillon is on the move, and the Cubs have finally turned a veteran arm into something usable for the stretch run. Toronto landed the pitcher from Chicago, while the Cubs cleared a spot on the 40-man roster by shifting utility player Lenyn Sosa to the 60-day injured list.
What Chicago is getting back is not the kind of headline return that changes the conversation by itself, but it does speak to how the front office handled the deal. The Cubs are also taking on part of Taillons remaining salary, a reminder that this was as much about reshaping the roster and payroll as it was about the name going out the door. [Read more 🡒]
Cubs Deadline Pitching Hunt Just Took A Surprising Seattle Turn
The Cubs search for rotation help has already taken an unexpected route across the country, with Seattle suddenly sitting at the center of the deadline conversation. The White Soxs acquisition of Luis Castillo from the Mariners changed the pitching market in a hurry, and for Chicago it only sharpened the focus on what still needs to happen before the deadline. The Cubs have been expected to chase multiple arms, and the price for any starter who can help now appears to be rising fast.
Seattles involvement could matter even more from the Cubs perspective because George Kirby remains in play, and Chicago has been linked to him as well as Emerson Hancock. Kirby would be the kind of bigger swing that can reshape a clubs October outlook, but any discussion around him is complicated by what the Mariners are looking for in return. For the Cubs, the next move is less about whether they want to add pitching and more about how aggressive theyre willing to be to get the right one. [Read more 🡒]