The Cubs are turning back to a familiar arm as they try to patch together a battered pitching staff.
Chicago acquired Aaron Civale and cash considerations from the Athletics on Saturday, sending minor-league reliever Aiden Moffett the other way in a deal aimed squarely at adding depth. The move comes with the Cubs’ pitching staff stretched thin for months and carrying 12 pitchers on the injured list.
Civale, 31, had recently been designated for assignment by the Athletics. He’s no stranger to the Cubs’ orbit. Chicago claimed him off waivers from the White Sox last August during a chaotic stretch of the season, and he also overlapped with Cubs manager Craig Counsell in Milwaukee.
That Milwaukee connection is part of a longer, winding path. Civale had previously asked for a trade from the Brewers after Jacob Misiorowski bumped him from their rotation. He was then dealt to the White Sox for Andrew Vaughn in a move that ended up affecting the National League Central race directly, with Vaughn later posting an .868 OPS for a Brewers club that won the division and knocked the Cubs out of the playoffs.
Civale then signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the Athletics. In Oakland, he went 5-7 with a 5.42 ERA across 16 appearances, including 15 starts, before landing on waivers again.
For the Cubs, the appeal is simple: innings. With so many arms sidelined, they needed someone who could help absorb the workload as they try to get back to October.
Moffett, who was an undrafted free agent last year, had spent parts of this season at Class-A Myrtle Beach and in the Arizona Complex League.
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