Chicago Cubs Rumors: Team pivoting away from Zach Britton?

Chicago Cubs Rumors: More unrealized potential in Gausman

If nothing else, Kevin Gausman has been a horse in his career. 2018 seems likely to be his third consecutive season making at least 30 starts. The arbitration-eligible right-hander, another former first-round pick of the O’s, represents a very interesting trade target for the Cubs.

In 20 outings this year, Gausman owns a 4.59 ERA, 1.368 WHIP and, for the second straight year, he’s allowing 10 hits per nine. This guy isn’t missing many bats – but only walks 2.3 batters per nine. I think after dealing with Tyler Chatwood‘s maddening inconsistencies, we’d all be happy with a pitch-to-contact guy.

Not to mention, the righty has some postseason experience under his belt – which has obvious value to a team like Chicago. He could slot into the bullpen and bridge the gap from Jon Lester, Jose Quintana and Kyle Hendricks to guys like Pedro Strop and Brandon Morrow in the late innings.

We’re talking about a guy who led the American League in starts last season. You could do far worse than adding someone with affordable team control to the mix – giving you an asset not just for the second half of 2018, but for years to come.