Cubs' potential trade target making audition in Twins series finale

Cubs fans know the deal at this point. Over the next few weeks, the team is going to bring in starting pitchers via trade(s), more than likely including at least one frontline ace to pair with Shota Imanaga and Matthew Boyd.

Chris Paddack is far from that caliber of pitcher, but as the Cubs know better than anyone, quality pitching depth is a necessity, not a luxury, when it comes to the postseason stretch run.

With Jameson Taillon, Justin Steele, and Javier Assad all on the injured list, three-fifths of the team's projected Opening Day rotation remain out of action. It isn't the most glamorous of moves, but bringing in an innings eater like Paddack can assuage concerns of burnout and injuries in August and September.

And, as luck would have it, the Cubs face Paddack today in the series finale against the Twins, offering the scouts and front office a first-row seat to his unofficial audition for deadline buyers.

Chris Paddack's start versus Cubs could affect trade deadline plans

No matter what Paddack does against the Cubs today, the Twins will exit the game below .500. They aren't so far out of it that they're guaranteed to be sellers, but their huge deficit to the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central could encourage them to ship off some of their rental pieces.

Paddack is in the final year of a three-year, $12.5 million contract, and the remainder of his $7.5 million salary ($4.17 million AAV) is more than digestible for a Cubs team that purposefully left a lot of room under the luxury tax to make big splashes at the deadline.

Heading into his start against the Cubs, "The Sheriff" has had a solid, yet slightly underwhelming, 2025 campaign. In 18 starts (95 innings), Paddack has a 4.64 ERA (4.28 FIP) to go along with a 17.0% strikeout rate and 6.0% walk rate. Those figures are both worse than his career averages, though they are bogged down by a difficult start to the season.

In March/April, Paddack surrendered 5.60 ERA and .334 wOBA to opposing batters. His June wasn't any better, as his final tallies for the month stood at a 6.06 ERA and .351 wOBA. However, in between, the Chris Paddack of old returned, as the big righty fired off a 2.40 ERA and allowed a scant .239 wOBA in 30 innings in May.

There's no guarantee the latter version is the one the Cubs would get in a trade, though a strong start against them would be a nice confidence boost (even if it hurts them in the standings). His chase and walk rates are both elite, and his five-pitch profile has enough variation to grab the attention of Carter Hawkins and the pitching lab.

He can't be the only starting pitcher the Cubs acquire at the deadline, but as a secondary addition alongside a true No. 2 (perhaps in the same deal with the Twins' own Pablo Lopez or Joe Ryan?), Paddack would make for some fine depth for Chicago's ailing rotation.