Chicago Cubs would be wise to tender a contract to Travis Wood

With the non-tender deadline coming Tuesday, all teams are deciding whether they should keep or let loose some of their players. That is no different with the Chicago Cubs, and the organization has plenty of players that are waiting to see what the future holds to them.

Players like backup catcher Jeff Baker and Justin Ruggiano are currently on the bubble, with Baker expected to leave while Ruggiano likely will be retained at first but he could easily be dealt before the start of the season. However, if there’s one player the Cubs should keep in order to give him a chance to bounce back its Travis Wood.

The lefty has been polarizing in the last two years. After a great year in 2013 where he made the All-Star team as the lone Cubs representative, he had a down season in 2014 as he simply couldn’t repeat his previous year’s performance. A 5.03 ERA, an 8-13 record and only 173.2 IP aren’t the things the management expected from Wood after a 2013 that saw him finish with a 3.11 in 200 IP.

However, it seems as if ‘the real’ Travis Wood lies somewhere in between those two seasons. After all, if he’s able to maintain an ERA around the 4.00 or 4.20 mark while pitching over six innings a game, that could be quite valuable for the organization especially considering he’s also a threat with the bat. Wood is a control pitcher and if he’s able to pepper the strike zone than he should be able to turn things around.

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The tendered players will be made public later Tuesday but one thing is certain, Chicago would be extremely wise to give Wood a new deal to prove himself. If he’s not able to perform up to their expectation then he can be released or dealt later in the season. But if he’s able to re-discover some of his 2013 form, then Chicago could have a reliable, consistent lefty at the bottom of their rotation.