Chicago Cubs: Several former Chicago hurlers could be low-cost trade targets

The Chicago Cubs will undoubtedly pursue starting pitching ahead of the July 31 trade deadline. We look at some lesser talked about options for the club.

At a certain point, the usual names connected to the Chicago Cubs start to get a bit repetitive.

Sonny Gray. Chris Archer. Marcus Stroman.

What do all these players have in common? They’re young, controllable and come with a steep price tag in a market dominated by contenders – most of whom are vying for rotation upgrades. With the team 5 1/2 games out of the division lead and 7 1/2 back of a Wild Card spot, unloading the farm for a top-tier arm may not be the wisest course of action.

But a mid-level arm to pick up the slack left by John Lackey and the injuries to Kyle Hendricks and Brett Anderson? That makes a lot of sense – especially if the arms have any remaining control past the end of the season.

Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester have both underperformed and, although Hendricks could be back as early as this weekend, another quality arm would go a long way in shoring up the rotation. Funny enough, several former Cubs hurlers are enjoying solid seasons and could very well be on the move before the end of the month.

Scott Feldman – CIN – 102.2 IP, 3.94 ERA, 4.26 FIP, 1.5 WAR

Contract: 1 year/$2.3 million, free agency: 2018

In his half-season on the North Side of Chicago, Scott Feldman put together a solid body of work. He made 15 starts for a rebuilding Cubs team before he was packaged with Steve Clevenger that brought Pedro Strop and Jake Arrieta to the Windy City in 2013.

Since then, of course, Strop has emerged as one of the most lethal (albeit underrated) relievers in the National League. Arrieta, meanwhile, won the 2015 National League Cy Young Award and played a critical role in the team’s 103 wins and World Series title last season.

Chicago Cubs

Feldman, meanwhile, has spent time in Baltimore, Houston, Toronto and, this season, Cincinnati, since departing Chicago. Since 2014, the right-hander made 70 starts and appeared in 35 games as a reliever, totaling 468 1/3 innings in the process. Last year, he worked almost exclusively as a reliever for the Astros and Blue Jays. He struggled badly in the Great White North – but has since regained his form as a middle-of-the-rotation starter.

With the Reds, Feldman has made 18 starts this year, pitching largely to the tune of his career averages. He may very well break 200 innings pitched for the first time, pitching in the National League for a full season for the first time (barring a trade).

The Pros

Similar to Straily, Feldman is familiar with Chicago. Over the course of his career, he’s been a dependable arm. Nothing flashy to be sure, but still a valuable member of several pitching staffs.

Most importantly, he’s on a one-year deal with the Reds, which means his trade value as a rental middle man is much lower than those guys who have long-term control. So, even if he doesn’t come to the North Side this month, don’t count out a reunion come this winter.

The Cons

He’s a rental and whether or not the Reds really want to help a division rival is questionable. While he’ll give you quality innings, he’s not going to alter the look of a starting rotation. Feldman isn’t a guy you run out in a best-of-five playoff series.

Clayton Richard – SD – 110 IP, 4.66 ERA, 4.42 FIP, 1.1 WAR

Contract: 1 year/$1.75 million, free agency: 2018

Fun fact: Clayton Richard has a World Series ring.

I don’t know why I didn’t remember this, but the left-hander was with Chicago until early August last season. He made 25 appearances totaling just 14 innings, posting an unsavory 6.43 ERA – prompting his release.

The season prior, he proved to be a valuable member of the bullpen for the Cubs. He ate up 42-plus innings for Chicago in 2015, posting a 3.58 FIP for the NL Wild Card winning-ballclub. He’s got a lengthy history of being a decent back-end starter – making more than 30 starts twice (2017 is on-pace to be his third).

Now make no mistake, Richard is no world-beater. He’s going to take the ball every fifth day and, by and large, will keep you in the game. This season with the Padres, he’s allowed four or fewer earned runs in all but five of his 18 starts. So there’s clearly some rough outings in there, but, for the most part, he does his job.

He’s spent all but two years of his career with either the Cubs or Padres. And with San Diego going nowhere yet again in 2017, he’s likely to be available.

The Pros

He adds another left-hander to the mix. Maybe he turns into a long-man for Chicago or he takes Lackey’s spot in the  rotation – who knows. But he turned in quality work on the North Side back in 2015 and was solid even after he joined San Diego last season.

On a one-year deal, a mid-level prospect deal could bring him back to the Cubs for a stretch run.

The Cons

He leads the league in hits allowed and won’t impact your rotation all that much. Pitching in Wrigley Field late in the summer can be lethal to a pitcher that doesn’t miss bats (he’s averaging just 5.6 K/9 in his career). Furthermore, he serves up more than a hit per inning.

Chicago features two lefties in the rotation right now. If you’re really going to add a third, you’d like him to be an impact arm – or, at the very least, a young arm with room to grow. We know what Richard is – and that’s not anything special.

Matt Moore – SF

Contract: Signed thru 2017, 6 years/$19.5M (12-17) & 18-19 team option

Remember how I said Clayton Richard isn’t an impact left-hander? Well, Matt Moore has all the makings of that pitcher. But his value is lower than it’s ever been in his career and there are some very troubling signs with him, as well.

In short, he’s a risk.

After putting together a solid stint in Tampa Bay to begin his career, things have trended downward for Moore since joining the San Francisco Giants two years ago. His earned run average has jumped from 3.88 in six years with Tampa to 5.24 in two seasons out west. He’s allowed over 11 hits per nine, as well.

That’s the main difference. Because his strikeouts per nine, walks per nine and, thus, strikeout-to-walk ratio are almost identical to his American League East tenure.

In the Division Series in 2016, he twirled a gem against the Cubs in what turned out to be the deciding game. Moore allowed just one run over eight innings of work in Game Four, but Chicago rallied to advance to their second-straight NLCS appearance.

The Pros

The southpaw is still relatively young (just turned 28 in June) and his contract features two team options for 2018 and 2019, lending some control to the team. His best years came in Tampa under Maddon and a reunion with him could be just the change of scenery Moore needs.

Throw in Chris Bosio, who’s turned around his share of struggling starting pitchers and this may very well be the best option Chicago has as far as a mid-level arm this summer.

The Cons

He’s been bad – really bad, actually – since coming to the National League. If the Cubs want a pitcher to post a 5.00+ ERA the rest of the year, they can keep trotting out John Lackey every fifth day.

Moore is tied for the league lead in earned runs – so will a change of scenery be enough to get him back on track for the second half of his career?

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