Chicago Cubs’ target no. 1: Picking up an ace on the cheap

The Chicago Cubs limped into the final games of the NLDS against the Milwaukee Brewers, carrying with them a strained, battered pitching staff held together by true grit and manager Craig Counsell’s savvy guidance.

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Right before their elimination in Game Five, the Cubs were down to two semi-reliable starters (Jameson Taillon and Matthew Boyd) and maybe three relievers worthy to be in Counsell’s circle of trust.

But there was a lesson to be learned at the end of the Cubs’ postseason run. They need pitching. They need the kind pitching that makes a good team into a credible championship team. They need the kind of pitching that can’t be built around coupon cutting, bargain bin shopping, and the cross-your-fingers hope of pitchers wildly overperforming.

The unbelievable World Series MVP performance of the Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto should highlight just how much of an impact elite starting pitching can provide to a serious championship-level team.

Chicago Cubs starting pitching: Insurance needed

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The Cubs are also staring down the distinct possibility that there may be some regression from starters Boyd and rookie Cade Horton, who both have a history of injury and could be looking at some slippage from their 2025 showing. Shota Imanaga faded down the stretch and was horrible in the postseason. The fall from grace was so prodigious that there’s no guarantee Chicago will even pick up his option for next season. Justin Steele, meanwhile, is not a lock to return to form after elbow surgery last April.

With that in mind, the Cubs need to be focusing on acquiring some real pitching muscle this offseason. Media and fans are already looking ahead to how the team can do just that.

First, though, it would probably be wise to disregard any of the top free agent starting pitchers available. Framber Valdez, Dylan Cease, Michael King, Zac Gallen and Shane Bieber will all be too rich for the tastes of Cubs ownership, which has not invested in a front-of-rotation free agent starter since Yu Darvish in 2018 (and then proceeded to trade him away, three years into a six-year deal). Despite the buzz regarding the team’s interest in Cease, it just doesn’t seem likely that they’ll be fishing in deep waters for the big pitching fish.

So, that leaves trade as the only way to add a high-end starter.

Trade targets?

The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey, in a recent Boston Red Sox mailbag column, talked up the potential asking price for right-hander Joe Ryan from the Minnesota Twins. The info relayed to her suggests a very affordable deal for a front-two starter who still has two years before free agency.

Per McCaffrey:

“Dan Hayes, The Athletic’s Twins writer, suggested Minnesota would be seeking two top-50 prospects, one with a mid-ceiling and one more of a lottery ticket.”

The Cubs are not overstuffed with top prospects at this point. So, one can assume that approaching the Twins for Ryan would mean probably giving up someone like Owen Caissie or Moises Ballesteros and Jonathon Long/Jefferson Rojas/James Triantos.

Chicago’s willingness to make such a deal would hinge on their willingness to gamble on winning big these next two seasons.

Controllable arms

Ryan was a sought-after asset at the trade deadline last season, but the Twins opted to hold on to him. The Nationals’ Mackenzie Gore, the Pirates’ Mitch Keller, and the Florida Marlins duo of Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera were also tied to the Cubs at the deadline

Ryan, Gore and Alcantara will become free agents at the end of the 2027 season. Cabrera and Keller won’t become free agents until after the 2028 season.

If the goal is controllable pitching without the free agent mega-contracts, a trade will be the way to go, even if it costs a good chunk of prospect capital.

Another option is more Cubs-like, though– look for reclamation projects, gamble on pleasant surprises, and hope for the best.

The post Chicago Cubs’ target no. 1: Picking up an ace on the cheap appeared first on ChiCitySports.

Source: https://www.chicitysports.com/chicago-cubs-trade-rumors-pitching-alcantara-ryan-gore