Cubs Go Big: Chicago Cubs Inquires About Padres Ace in Blockbuster Move
The Chicago Cubs starting rotation isn’t a weakness, but that hasn’t stopped them from looking into making it even better.
It is no secret that the San Diego Padres have been shopping starting pitcher Dylan Cease around with him set to enter free agency after the season.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post recently officially named a couple of teams that have “inquired” about Cease. Among those listed were the Cubs.
Chicago is clearly in a win-now mode and has invested heavily into this year’s team. They traded for two All-Stars from the Houston Astros in a blockbuster deal for Kyle Tucker followed by getting their new closer in Ryan Pressly.
Both of those players are set to hit free agency next year and are, frankly, pretty big swings for the Cubs to make. Cease would be no different.
The righty is an All-Star caliber pitcher without ever actually making an All-Star team. He has pitched at least 160 innings in each of the last four seasons and has a 3.54 ERA in that time.
He also has an incredible 11.2 K/9 to go with a 1.207 WHIP and 120 ERA+. His fastball sits in the high-90s and is paired with an even deadlier slider.
The 29-year-old is capable of great things on the mound. Back in 2022, he posted a 2.20 ERA and a 180 ERA+. It was one of his two top-five Cy Young finishes.
The Cubs don’t even necessarily need to add a starting pitcher, which makes them checking in on Cease a little more interesting.
Javier Assad looks to be missing some time with an oblique strain, but Chicago signed Matthew Boyd and Colin Rea this offseason.
While those two aren’t world beaters, they could certainly hold a team over while it gets healthy and potentially maintain the backend of a rotation for a while.
The Cubs have also recently been connected to Lance Lynn, who might make more sense and would certainly be much cheaper.
It appears as though the Padres will take their time to trade Cease anyway. If Chicago does well through the early stretch of the season, a trade for the San Diego ace could make more sense.
They have already invested a ton into this season, so why not put together the best team possible for down the stretch.
Like with Tucker and Pressly, they would also be in a better situation to end up signing Cease longterm to be a centerpiece of that starting rotation.
Even if it is for just half a season, that is half a season of one of baseball’s best pitchers.
