NEWSLETTER
The Cubs have had a very active day, reportedly agreeing to sign Seiya Suzuki and Steven Brault, and now they’ve added an arm to the bullpen.
The Cubs, themselves, got the scoop on this one:
The #Cubs today agreed to terms with RHP David Robertson on a one-year major league contract.
RHP Codi Heuer was placed on the 60-day IL as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. pic.twitter.com/40nuKpKirn
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) March 16, 2022
Robertson, who turns 37 next month, is best remembered as a ridiculously dominant reliever for the Yankees from 2011-14, a good reliever for the White Sox and Yankees from 2015-18, and then his elbow popped with the Phillies in 2019. He had Tommy John surgery, didn’t make it back for the 2020 season, and then threw 12.0 decent innings for the Rays last year (plus 4.0 scoreless postseason innings).
That he is getting a big league deal from the Cubs is a signal that they have liked what they’ve seen from him, both last year with the Rays and – I suspect – in some throwing sessions this spring. At his age and coming off the injury, it’s pretty hard to say what you can expect. But his velocity was mostly back last year (albeit still down from his peak, pre-30 days, of course).
Seems like an ideal low-cost flier to me, and right there in the Cubs’ MO: find a guy who used to be great, but who is down for reasons you believe can be overcome. They have had so much success with this. Maybe he helps you surprisingly compete. Maybe he becomes a trade piece in July.
More on Robertson, and the bullpen as a whole, soon.
UPDATE: Robertson is getting $3.5 million plus incentives, per Mark Feinsand. That sounds about right, but does again suggest that the Cubs think he’s a good bet to be productive immediately.
