Where are they now? Checking in on former Cubs ace Jeff Samardzija

Chicago Cubs: Turning a stretch of dominance into chips for the future

From there, you have to keep in mind that most of Samardzija’s tenure with Chicago came during the early years of the rebuild under Theo Epstein. Run support was nonexistent – and it took time for the new regime to modernize the organization.

After a strong 2011 showing, Samardzija moved to the rotation full-time in 2012 – and put up strong numbers, with a 3.55 FIP and 1.219 WHIP across a career-high 174 2/3 innings of work. Funnily enough, during his run as a Cubs starter, he never managed a winning record which – again – was largely the result of poor run support.

His final year on the North Side was historic. Through his first 10 starts, Samardzija set a new big league record for lowest ERA by a winless pitcher (1.46 ERA). On the heels of this breakout stretch, Epstein offered the righty a five-year deal that was well below market value – which Samardzija promptly declined. That was the final nail in the coffin when it came to his run with the Cubs.

I remember being at the local Fourth of July fireworks show (that actually took place on July 5) when I got the news: Chicago had traded Samardzija and Jason Hammel to the Oakland Athletics in exchange for one of the best prospects in baseball in Addison Russell, along with Billy McKinney and Dan Straily.

Chicago Cubs: Headed over to the American League for the first time

That year, Oakland’s front office jettisoned its typically forward-thinking philosophy and went all-in trying to win it all. Weeks after shoring up the rotation with Hammel and Samardzija, the A’s traded for Jon Lester, as well. Of course, as we now know, the Boston left-hander wound up inking a six-year, $155 million deal with the Cubs that offseason.

Samardzija held his own with the Athletics, working to a 0.931 WHIP across 111 2/3 innings of work as Oakland advanced to the AL Wild Card Game, losing in heartbreaking fashion to the Kansas City Royals. Following the loss, Oakland sent the right-hander back to the Windy City – this time the White Sox – for a package of players, including current A’s standout Marcus Semien.

He spent just one year on the South Side – and it wasn’t a particularly impressive campaign heading into free agency for the first time. His 228 hits and 118 earned runs allowed were major league-highs and his 29 home runs marked an American League-worst. Still, his raw stuff was enough for the San Francisco Giants to ink him to a five-year, $90 million deal that offseason.

If there was one thing the Giants knew they were getting – it was durability. In his first season with San Francisco, Samardzija eclipsed 200 innings for the fourth-straight year – and as fate would have it, a date against the team that drafted him awaited in the first round of the postseason.

Chicago Cubs: A night that quickly went wrong for Samardzija, Giants

After Javier Baez connected on a solo shot in the eighth inning of Game 1 to sink the Giants and ace Johnny Cueto, the Cubs had a chance to push the Giants to the brink of elimination in Game 2 of the 2016 NLDS.

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Toeing the rubber opposite Kyle Hendricks, Samardzija had a chance to even up the series and strike back at his former club. But that’s not what happened. With two outs in the first, Ben Zobrist connected on a run-scoring single in the first to get Chicago on the board. In the second, two more RBI knocks – one courtesy of Hendricks – pushed the Cubs’ lead to 4-0.

That was it. Gregor Blanco pinch-hit for Samardzija in the top of the third, ending his night abruptly. Of course, the Cubs went on to win the series – eventually winning the World Series.

Still looking for his first World Series ring, Samardzija came back in 2017 and had what can only be called an interesting season. He lost 15 games, which at first might make you think he really struggled. But he once again broke the 200-inning mark and actually led all of baseball, walking just 1.4 batters per nine.

After an injury-plagued 2018, the former Notre Dame star bounced back last season, making 32 starts for a disappointing Giants club while working to a 1.108 WHIP. It wasn’t a dominant performance, by any stretch, but he was once again healthy and taking the ball every five days.

2020 marks the final year of that five-year contract Samardzija signed with San Francisco. Given his age and the shortened season, he could be one of the players in a strange position heading into 2021, potentially testing the open waters for the second time in his career in what can only be called an uncertain environment.