Cubs gave Michael Soroka the green light despite obvious concern

If you went to bed early on Wednesday night, hoping to wake up to Eugenio Suárez under the MLB trade deadline tree for the Chicago Cubs, you likely did a double-take when you saw that Washington Nationals' starting pitcher Michael Soroka was the first move the Cubs made ahead of the deadline.

Let's state the obvious one more time for Cubs fans who prove they lack media literacy this time of year: the Cubs were entering the deadline season with the idea of adding two starting pitchers. One starting pitcher was going to be a depth arm, where the Cubs are banking on their defense and pitching infrastructure; the other arm was going to be a top-of-the-rotation arm who likely can start in a postseason series for the Cubs.

Soroka very much is the depth arm for the Cubs, and when Jed Hoyer meets with reporters tonight, there likely will be a larger starting pitching addition to discuss. But, for now, Soroka is taking center stage, and it comes at a time when there has been a noticeable dip in his fastball velocity.

Cubs bet on Mike Soroka even after concerning trend got worse

In particular, Soroka's fastball velocity has seen some significant dips over his last three starts--going from 94.5 mph on June 29 to a tick under 91.5 mph during his start earlier this week.

If the Cubs were planning on Soroka being their primary addition to the starting rotation, they simply would not have made the trade with the Nationals, considering this trend. However, assuming the plan is for Soroka to ultimately finish the season in the bullpen, this is a risk worth taking--especially when he is striking out over 25 percent of the hitters he is facing.

As a whole, the Cubs' front office wouldn't have made this deal if there was a health concern tied to his dip in velocity. Yet, this will be the flag that the Anti-Jed Hoyer crowd waves until they are immediately disappointed by the next move he makes. It likely will be tied to the fact that Owen Caissie will probably be in the deal.

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