Chicago Cubs Acquire Matt Garza

As Joe Han touched on earlier today, the Cubs and Rays have had on again and off again trade discussions regarding Starting Pitcher Matt Garza.  In the report, Joe made note of the latest rumor that had a trade for Garza being close for the Chicago Cubs. The rumor turned out to be true as the Chicago Cubs and Tampa Bay Rays have agreed on a 8 player deal that will bring Garza to the Chicago Cubs. Along with Garza, the Cubs will also receive two minor leaguers. One of those minor leaguers is 27 year old outfielder Fernando Perez, and the other is assumed to be a pitcher. As for the Tampa Bay Rays, they will receive prospects Chris Archer, Hak-Ju Lee, Brandon Guyer, Robinson Chirinos, and Sam Fuld.

The trade for Garza definitely signals that Cubs General Manager Jim Hendry has a win now approach for the 2011 season. However, I still find this trade a bit surprising, considering what the Cubs actually gave up. Cubs Chairman wanted to put an emphasis on building from within and improving the farm system, however, three of prospects traded were on Baseball America’s Top 10 List of Cubs prospects in 2011.

While some fans may chastise Jim Hendry for the amount of prospects that he gave up, it actually will turn out to be a very good trade for the Chicago Cubs. Multiple talent evaluators as well as scouts believe that the Rays did not get any high end prospects. Many project that the prospects the Cubs traded will be good depth players, but not superstars. However, both Chris Archer and Hak-Ju Lee have the potential to be really good at the major league level. Archer came onto the scene this year, after his dominant performance against the Cuba National Team, as a member of Team USA. While Lee does project to be a good fielding shortstop, there are questions as to whether or not he can produce offensively at a major league level.

The addition of Garza dramatically changes the outlook of the 2011 season. When you add Garza to a top half of a rotation that already includes Ryan Dempster and Carlos Zambrano, the chances are strong that those three will push the Cubs into postseason contention. It also was a perfect way for Hendry to answer the Brewer’s acquisition of Zack Greinke. In a way, it reminds me of when the Brewers acquired C.C. Sabathia, and then the Cubs responded by trading for Rich Harden.

Garza,27, is entering his second year of arbitration, where his salary is expected to bump up to $6MM. In addition, Garza is under team control through the 2013 season. In 2010, Garza had a record of 15-10 with an ERA of 3.91. With the move to the National League, Garza could very well be the front line starter that the Cubs have been lacking in recent years.

We will have more on the Garza trade as more information becomes available.