Cubs Looking to Bring Back a Fireball Pitcher, Crazy Package Suggested

It was a cool January day in 2011 when the Chicago Cubs acquired starting pitcher, Matt Garza from the Tampa Bay Rays. While Matt Garza had pitched exceptionally well for the Rays in the previous three seasons before the trade, sending Sam Fuld, Robinson Chirinos, Brandon Guyer, Hak-Ju Lee, and Chris Archer was thought to be an overpayment (the Cubs also received Zach Rosscup and Fernando Perez). Now the Cubs are reportedly interested in bringing Archer back into the fold for 2017 and beyond.

So what would Archer cost? Well Jim Bowden of ESPN suggests that it would be another haul for the Rays. The Cubs would send Jorge Soler, Albert Almora Jr, Carl Edwards, and Ian Happ in return for Kevin Kiermaier, Alex Colome, and Archer. This deal would give the Cubs a young, controllable starter that they have coveted for a while, a starting centerfielder/leadoff man to replace Dexter Fowler, and a proven and legitimate closer to replace the leaving Aroldis Chapman.

While some may question the amount of talent the Cubs would send over, you really would have to look at the big picture as to why this makes tons of sense for the Cubs. Soler seems to have run his course here in Chicago. Losing his starting job to Jason Heyward, and with playing time becoming more and more difficult with Kyle Schwarber back and Ben Zobrist playing more in left field, he doesn’t really have a place on the team any longer. Almora would immediately be replaced by potentially the best defensive centerfielder in the game today, although Albert himself is no slouch. Happ is essentially blocked by both Javy Baez and Zobrist, and while the Cubs think highly of Edwards – Colome will come in and immediately be the closer. Oh, and possibly the best part, both Colome and Kiermaier are under team control until 2021, and Archer is under control until 2022.

Now there is certainly some questions on Chris Archer, and if he will be able to bounce back after a very poor 2016 season. From 2013 – 2015 Archer held a 3.26 ERA and a 1.186 WHIP, but then regressed in 2016 finishing with a 4.02 ERA, 1.242 WHIP, while losing 19 games for the Rays. Archer was promising in his 14 second half starts, coming back down to a 3.25 ERA. Perhaps most notably improving his control, only walking 19 in those 14 games, striking out 103 batters, and owned a 1.042 WHIP after July.

While trading for Archer would more than likely keep Mike Montgomery in the bullpen (where some would prefer he stay anyways), it does give the Cubs a great deal of security in the event that Jake Arrieta and John Lackey leave for free agency after the 2017 season. It also gives the Cubs a ton of salary flexibility in the years that come. Archer is due an average of $8.5 million a season over the next four seasons (there is a $1.750 million buyout in 2020, and a $250,000 buyout in 2021), Kiermaier is first year arbitration eligible this offseason (he is a Super 2 player), and should be affordable until his first free agent eligible season (2021), and Alex Colome isn’t arbitration eligible until 2018.

Now, there will be some of us that just think – the Cubs dealt Fuld, Chirinos, Guyer, Lee, Soler, Happ, Almora, and Edwards for Garza, Fernandez, Rosscup, Colome, and Kiermaier. While we should separate the two, as they really do not have much to do with each other at all. On paper, this is a great deal for both sides, and the player that might hurt the most is losing Happ. However, there isn’t much room for him on the big league roster and he is a kid that is beginning to prove he will be a potentially good player in the near future.

I would pull the trigger on this deal. It gives the Rays what they want, and it secures any possible holes the Cubs have due to loses in free agency. Most of all it continues to allow the Cubs to compete for championships through the next five to six seasons.

Jamie Baker

Hi, I’m Jamie and I run this site. I’ve published work on multiple other sites and through that experience I decided to create CHICAGO style SPORTS. We truly aim to speak for the Chicago fan. Additionally, as a member of the IBWAA (Internet Baseball Writers Association of America) you can be assured that all content you read will be written with incredible integrity.

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