Roster Move: Cubs acquire lefty Drew Pomeranz from Mariners

Mark Rebilas - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese - Senior Writer - 12 hours ago

At some point, you knew that Jed Hoyer would look to address the pitching infrastructure within the organization, as several injuries have already taken shape. Although this may not be the idea anyone had in mind, the Cubs did make a move to add depth within their organization, agreeing with the Seattle Mariners to trade for veteran lefty Drew Pomeranz.

This marks the second time this month that the Cubs have pulled off a Minor League trade, the last one with the San Diego Padres when they acquired Tom Cosgrove. While hearing the Cubs and Mariners get together on a trade for a pitcher wouldn't shock anyone, given the rumors that were going on this offseason, trading for Pomeranz was a surprise, as he will now head to AAA Iowa to continue his season.

The return going Seattle's way hasn't been released, but you can assume that a large chunk of the trade will revolve around some cash going the Mariners way. When you talk about a reclamation project that the Cubs have become famous for doing, Pomeranz fits that mold as the once reliable arm has seen his career go south in a hurry, and he is looking to remain in baseball any way he can.

Signed this offseason to a Minor League deal, the now 36-year-old had an upward mobility clause in his contract that forced the Mariners to offer him to every other club. If a team was willing to bring him to the majors, they either had to promote him or trade him there. Seeing that the Cubs traded for him, there must be some belief that he will reach the majors soon as a potential left-handed reliever.

As shocking a trade as this may be, there are some connections here as Pomeranz pitched for the Brewers and Craig Counsell in 2019. During that season, he appeared in 25 games and posted a 2.39 ERA in 26 innings. He walked eight and struck out 45 to emerge as one of the better left-handed relievers in the game that season. That is ultimately what the Cubs are hoping to accomplish with his move, and should he come close to that type of production, Pomeranz will be a factor this season for the Cubs.

Not only was he a dominant reliever most of his career, posting a 2.72 career ERA in relief, but he also had some strong showings as a starter, where he was mainly a back-of-the-rotation guy. His best season came with the Boston Red Sox in 2017, as Pomeranz made 32 starts that season, going 17-6 and posting a 3.32 ERA. Apart from that, his starter days were short-lived as he has combined to go 48-58 across his career with a 3.91 ERA.

Even if he has proven time and again to be a reliable arm, especially out of the pen, Pomeranz hasn't been himself in over three seasons and has been dealing with injuries since the end of 2021. This season, he appears to be healthy, but after diving into his minor league numbers thus far, there isn't much to get excited about.

Across nine innings this season, Pomeranz has posted a 4.66 ERA while picking up two saves in as many attempts. He has walked six and struck out 14 while holding opponents to a .176 average against. The back half of that line has gotten the Cubs' attention as teams are having a challenging time making contact against Pomeranz.

Throw in that 32.6% strikeout rate, which is very good, and you can see that he still has the swing-and-miss stuff you need in a reliever, even if his best stuff is well behind him. Pomeranz could rush things up there in the 96-97 MPH range in his prime, but now he sits around 93. He still has a great change-up and slider combination as his secondary offerings, but neither of those pitches has been as effective over the past few seasons.

Seeing what happened with Luke Little during his season debut and watching Jordan Wicks get knocked around thus far, it's safe to say that Caleb Thielbar is the Cubs' lone trusted lefty right now, and that could be a problem should he struggle at any point. That is why adding Pomeranz could be a sneaky good pickup for the Cubs, as they are adding a proven arm capable of relieving and an arm that has had plenty of success when healthy.