Ivy League Cubs

By: Jacob Zanolla

Bruce Levine reported on Saturday morning that the Cubs were open to trading Jameson Taillon, which led to multiple different opinions across Cubs Twitter. Jed Hoyer’s deadline plans still appear unclear, but selling seems like it may be the best option. The problem is that we aren’t in a great spot to sell with very few easily sellable pieces. The expectation entering the year being that this squad would be able to compete and make a run at the division title. Instead, they’re 4.5 games out of the playoffs with an offense that can’t score runs. 

Jameson Taillon signed with Chicago in December of 2022, and has been quite good with the Cubs. This season, Taillon has posted a 3.10 ERA with a 1.161 WHIP. He’s thrown 60 less innings so far, and already has nearly the same fWAR as last season. He missed a small amount of time to begin the season, but since then has aided a very strong Cubs rotation. 

In 2023, Taillon really struggled against lefties, and performed well against righties. This season he’s improved both, but is actually getting better results against left-handed hitters. One interesting thing I noticed is that he strikes out more left-handed hitters, but walks more lefties as well. He’s not striking out as many batters as usual, but his walk rate is 4.7%, which is in the 92nd percentile. 

Contract-wise, Taillon still has 2.5 years on his contract, with the next two years worth $18 Million. One reason to move him would be getting a few prospects, and lowering the payroll as well. His value is decently high, which would be the main reason Hoyer could trade him. When all players are healthy, you could argue that the Cubs have too many starters. Ben Brown and Jordan Wicks are hurt, but that doesn’t mean that trading away Taillon is the right move. If they free up the payroll of Taillon, signing one of the many top-tier Starting Pitcher free agents this offseason becomes easier. 

Several teams are interested, with Bob Nightengale reporting that the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees have both approached the Cubs about acquiring Taillon. If the Cubs want to compete in 2025, which I’d hope they do, then Taillon being in the rotation seems like the most reasonable solution. Brett over at BleacherNation mentioned how the two team names leaked so far are big rivals may not be a coincidence, so possibly Hoyer wants to try and create a bidding war and take advantage of the surplus of starters the Cubs currently have. Teams may not want to spend a massive prospect haul on someone like Garrett Crochet or Tarik Skubal, so acquiring Taillon adds a lot of value while not giving up anywhere near the prospect’s return. 

Photo Credit: Chicago Sun-Times