NEWSLETTER
Woo hoo!
No, this may not wind up a major move, but when it comes to retaining pitching depth and giving the Cubs possible significant bullpen upside, I am so, so very into this move:
Trevor Cahill enjoyed his experience with the Cubs: He has agreed to return to them on a new contract.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 7, 2015
We’ll have more as the terms become available, but the thinking was that he’d be looking for a one-year, prove-it contract (and rumors had him specifically looking for a shot to start somewhere).
[adinserter block=”1″]For the Cubs, Cahill can be a depth starting option, though his career had stalled in that role. He found new life in the Cubs’ bullpen, where his two-seamer picked up velocity, his changeup was nastily paired with it, and his knuckle curve came along. Take it all together, and you had a guy who was set adrift by multiple organizations earlier in the year, then became one of the Cubs’ most reliable relievers up to, and including, the playoffs. He posted a 2.12 ERA, a 3.13 FIP, and a 2.21 xFIP in his 17.0 regular season innings for the Cubs, and looked every bit that good.
Luis’s timing on bargain-hunting, with Cahill included, was well-timed, eh?
Once we get the terms, we’ll have a little more. For now, it’s fair to say that the Cubs have their emergency starting depth pretty well set, what with Travis Wood, Clayton Richard, and now Trevor Cahill in the fold. And all three of them can be effective relievers, too (including, sometimes, all in the same “bullpen game”).
I’m probably way too excited about this move. But, yeah. I’m really excited.
UPDATE: And I’m now even more excited when I see how low risk the move is:
Trevor Cahill gets one year, $4.25 million from the Cubs.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 7, 2015
At that price, the Cubs aren’t burned if Cahill’s reliever break-out was a fluke, or if they are forced to try him back in the rotation and he continues to struggle. But the upside? Imagine a need emerges, and Cahill resumes his early career form as a solid starter? Imagine he sticks in the bullpen, and keeps dominating?
When you see how much money guys like Ryan Madson and Joakim Soria are getting ($7+ million on multi-year deals), this is just a fantastic move for the Cubs.
And, for Cahill, he gets a chance to re-establish himself at age 28 in a place where he had a lot of success last year.
