Cubs make trade as Jed Hoyer turns his go-to move to fix ailing pitching staff

The Chicago Cubs have made a trade!

At face value, it's nothing to get too excited about. The Cubs acquired right-hander Yosver Zulueta from the Seattle Mariners, sending a yet-to-be-named minor leaguer and cash back in the deal.

He came to Seattle via trade in January after the Reds designated him for assignment, and he spent his entire stint with the Mariners organization in Triple-A, without much to show for it. An ERA pushing 6.00 and a ghastly 7.1 BB/9 tell the story of his 2026 season to this point and the Cubs have to be hoping there are tweaks that can be made to get him back on track.

If Cubs can address Yosver Zulueta's biggest issue, it would be huge

A high walk rate has consistently plagued Zulueta during his professional career. The hope is that Chicago can discover an unlock and he can be the latest in a long line of reclamation projects and buy-low pick-ups to find success with the Cubs. He's got some limited big-league experience to draw upon, having made 19 appearances with Cincinnati over the last two seasons.

If he can dial back the self-inflicted damage, the right-hander profiles as someone who could be successful on the North Side. He's got an upper-90s heater (something the Cubs could always use more of) and has always been able to keep the ball on the ground, which is perfect for this team given the elite defense that will line up behind him.

Again, we've seen this play from Jed Hoyer's playbook time and time again during his tenure as Cubs' president of baseball operations. And, in his defense, he's had some big wins. Drew Pomeranz, Brad Keller, Chris Flexen and Tyson Miller have all been key contributors to the bullpen in recent years - and the hope is this trade can add one more name to that list.

Zulueta was designated for assignment in recent days and now has a new home with Chicago. With the 40-man roster full, there will need to be a corresponding move to clear a roster spot for the 28-year-old pitcher, but that's a small price to pay to hopefully inject some life into the pitching staff.

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