The Cubs’ two-year, $29MM deal with Matthew Boyd became official earlier today, locking in the veteran southpaw as the newest member of the Wrigleyville rotation. Even with this signing now on the books, Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic report that the Cubs remain open to adding more starting pitching, and Walker Buehler is still “on their radar.”
Boyd lines up as Chicago’s fourth starter, behind Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele, and Jameson Taillon. Javier Assad is the favorite for the fifth starter role, with the likes of Jordan Wicks, Hayden Wesneski, and Ben Brown also in the mix for start, plus top prospect Cade Horton also on the verge of his MLB debut. While this seems like plenty of depth already, the “you can never have enough pitching” mantra may apply, as Wicks, Brown, and Horton all missed a lot of time in 2024 due to injuries.
Acquiring yet another experienced starter via trade or free agency would allow the Cubs to make Assad its top depth arm, and it can be argued that Assad is overqualified for such a role given his solid 3.40 ERA over his 294 career Major League innings. Since injuries are basically inevitable, however, it stands to reason that Assad would still get some degree of rotation work. Beyond Assad, one of the other pitchers could potentially become a trade chip if the Cubs feel secure in the number of starters on hand.
The Cubs haven’t exactly been pinching pennies on the rotation during Jed Hoyer’s time as president of baseball operations, considering Taillon’s four-year, $68MM deal and Imanaga’s four-year, $53MM deal. However, Chicago has trended away from shopping at the very top of the pitching market to instead pursue more mid-range or shorter-term contracts like Taillon, Imanaga, Boyd, or (in the past) Marcus Stroman or Drew Smyly.
Buehler would also likely fall into this category, as it is widely assumed that the righty will sign a one-year pact as something of a pillow contract in the wake of a disappointing 2024 season. While that disappointment was certainly tempered by a couple of great postseason outings and a championship ring with the Dodgers, Buehler’s regular season saw him post a 5.38 ERA with a host of below-average secondary metrics over 75 1/3 innings.
Since Buehler didn’t pitch at all in 2023 while recovering from Tommy John surgery, it seems possible that he could perform better in 2025 now that he has shaken off the rust. The baseball world hasn’t forgotten how dynamic Buehler looked prior to that TJ procedure, and this kind of upside potential has led to interest from not just the Cubs, but also suc publicly known suitors as the Braves, Yankees, Mets, and Athletics.
As Mooney and Sharma note, it shouldn’t be considered a lock that Buehler will receive just a one-year contract, given how several pitchers have already exceeded expectations in the first month of free agency. As such, Mooney/Sharma feel the Cubs could prefer to avoid the free agent market and instead pivot to adding a starter (or a reliever, or lineup help) in a trade. News on that front might not develop until Juan Soto signs, which would then perhaps clear the Cubs’ path in terms of finding a potential trade partner for one of Cody Bellinger or Seiya Suzuki.
