Chicago Cubs Rumors: Nathan Eovaldi the perfect fit for pitching needs?

A name that makes more sense

Here we circle back to Eovaldi, the Tampa Bay Rays’ 28-year-old right-hander. He is indeed an injury concern, but in comparison to DeGrom’s Porsche price tag Eovaldi would most likely cost something along the lines of a Chevy Cruze.

(I’m just shooting in the dark here) but he could cost the Cubs a package centered around David Bote and/or Victor Caratini. Even though these two have proven their value this season it would be a little bit easier to part with them as opposed to Happ, Russell or another of the big league regulars. His price tag could be even lower given it’s clearly a buyer’s market and he’s got a fairly significant injury history.

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When Eovaldi is right, he has proven to be an excellent pitcher. His best season came in 2015 with the Yankees He went 14-3 with a 4.20 ERA in 27 starts. Peripherals suggest he pitched even better – (3.42 FIP). On the flip side, though, he carries a career 1.353 WHIP and has allowed at least 10 hits per nine in three of the last five seasons.

As for the Cubs’ current group of arms, Jon Lester continues doing Jon Lester-like things. He’s 12-3 with a 3.13 ERA in his first 20 starts of the season, good enough to earn his fifth All-Star nod.

Other than that, the Cubs’ rotation has been shaky Kyle Hendricks, Jose Quintana, have been inconsistent, face it,  Tyler Chatwood has been bad, and that might still be an understatement. Mike Montgomery has been solid, but with him in the rotation, a clear void exists in the bullpen for a long man.

Then we come to Yu Darvish. If he were on the mound doing what he’s capable of, we likely wouldn’t be having this discussion. But he hasn’t pitched in over two months, and his return from the disabled list still seems quite a ways away.