The Chicago Cubs had a few glaring needs heading into the MLB trade deadline, and while they bolstered their bullpen, they failed to land a reliable starting pitcher.
Their attempt at doing so ended up being Washington Nationals hurler Michael Soroka, who was acquired for a pair of prospects on Wednesday night. Soroka has started 16 games this season, with a 3-8 record and a 4.87 ERA for the Nationals in those games.
He struggled badly as a starter last season, with a 6.39 ERA in nine starts with the White Sox. He was significantly better as a reliever, with a 2.75 ERA in 36 innings, and he struck out 60 batters in that role, leading to questions on whether the Cubs would be better off using him out of the bullpen this season.
The Cubs did make a pair of bullpen moves before the deadline, adding reliever Taylor Rogers in a deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Andrew Kittredge from the Baltimore Orioles.
Rogers has a 2.45 ERA in 33 innings this season, with 34 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.46, which has ballooned due to an elevated walk rate of more than five batters per nine innings.
To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, the Cubs designated pitcher Ryan Pressly for assignment.
Kittredge has a 3.45 ERA in 31.1 innings for the Orioles, with a strong 1.09 WHIP and a strikeout rate of 9.2 batters per nine innings.
Finally, they traded for Minnesota Twins utilityman Willi Castro, giving themselves a backup for both Pete Crow-Armstrong and Matt Shaw heading into the home stretch.
Castro has a .245 batting average this season, with 10 home runs and 27 RBI’s. He’s got a .335 on-base percentage and a 103 OPS+, according to Baseball Reference.
To make room for Castro on the 40-man roster, the Cubs transferred catcher Miguel Amaya to the 60-day injured list.
Still, one can’t help but feel that the Cubs missed out on adding an impact starting pitcher at the deadline. Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Merrill Kelly was arguably the top starting pitcher to move at the deadline, as he was sent to the Texas Rangers in exchange for three pitching prospects, according to reports.
Starting pitchers like Dylan Cease, MacKenzie Gore, Mitch Keller, Zac Gallen, Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera were all pursued by teams, but all stayed put past the deadline.
Still, other pitchers did indeed move. Charlie Morton was traded by the Orioles to the Tigers, while Adrian Houser was dealt to the Rays by the White Sox. JP Sears was traded by the Athletics to the Padres in the blockbuster Mason Miller deal, meaning that the Cubs were largely sidelined in the acquisition of starting pitching.
The closer market was brisk as well, with David Bednar headed from the Pirates to the Yankees, Ryan Helsley landing with the Mets and Jhoan Duran ending up with the Phillies.
The Cubs will now have to make decisions not only on their big-league roster, but in their minor league system as well, as they retained the services of Owen Caissie, Moises Ballesteros and others.
The post-deadline schedule gets underway against the Baltimore Orioles, with first pitch set for 1:20 p.m. Friday.