NEWSLETTER
When the Tampa Bay Rays extended rehabbing pitcher Tyler Glasnow last year to a deal that would pay him around $5 million in 2023 and then $25 million in 2024, it wasn’t remotely hard to see what was going on. The Rays wanted to have him pitch on the cheap in 2023, hoping that he showed himself to be healthy and productive post-Tommy John, and then they could trade him before 2024. They get a prospect package out of it, and they don’t have to foot the bill for what would be something like 30% of their entire payroll.
Glasnow, 30, did indeed more or less show himself to be healthy this year, and he also pitched well, posting a 3.53 ERA (2.91 FIP) over 21 starts and 120.0 innings. His 33.6% K rate and 7.6% BB rate gave him the second largest spread between those numbers in all of baseball. By the end of the year, he was really on a heater, too.
So, given the contract, and given his health and performance, let’s just say the latest rumor out of Tampa Bay is hardly surprising:
“The team will have a different look, as it always does, when reassembling in February in Port Charlotte, as team officials weigh salaries against performances, as well as current need vs. future projections. Top salaried pitcher Tyler Glasnow (a team-record $25 million) and position player Manuel Margot ($10 million) seem likely to be in trade discussions.”
AKA: Come make your offers.
The Cubs have been rumored to have interest in Glasnow in the past, and with an expectation that their payroll is going to pop above the luxury tax this coming year (but without a desire to stay above the luxury tax for years and years in a row), you could see them as a fit here. The Cubs need an arm at the front of the rotation, and they would theoretically have an open rotation spot even if both Marcus Stroman and Kyle Hendricks return.
The free agent market is going to be robust this year, though, so the Cubs may wind up more choosey, preferring to spend prospect capital on a major bat acquisition or two.
If the Cubs have always liked Glasnow, though, and if they wanted a crack at landing him before trying to extend him, then they’ve gotta make the phone call. Without a whole lot of swing and miss in the rotation, it sure seems like Glasnow would be a great fit for the Cubs in 2024. I figure to be monitoring this one, as the Cubs would be far from the only team interested.
