After Tyler Glasnow trade, Cubs fans' impatience is reaching dangerous levels
An oft-mentioned Cubs trade target comes off the board with Chicago remaining largely silent halfway through the month of December.
The blows from the Dodgers just keep on coming. On the very same day Los Angeles introduced Shohei Ohtani at Dodger Stadium, Andrew Friedman pulled off a trade to bring Rays right-hander Tyler Glasnow to Chavez Ravine, ending the Cubs' hopes of bringing in the high-powered starter.
The deal also sends outfielder Manual Margo to the Dodgers, with prospects Ryan Pepiot and Jonny Deluca going back to Tampa Bay. Heading into the 2023 campaign, Pepiot, a right-handed pitcher, was ranked as the #55 prospect in the game by Baseball America, while Deluca just got his first cup of coffee at the big league level this year.
As Cubs remain quiet, Dodgers continue to dominate the offseason
Adding Ohtani seems to have made Friedman and the Dodgers only more dangerous, with the team adding Glasnow and remaining very much in the hunt for 25-year-old Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, as well. Meanwhile, the Cubs' most notable addition of the offseason outside of Craig Counsell is a third-string backup catcher. Feels good, doesn't it?
Chicago has starting rotation depth. That's not the issue here. The issue is the gap between Justin Steele atop that rotation and the rest of the pack. The Cubs don't have another proven arm to turn to in a must-win game or a big October postseason matchup and that's a problem.
Between Ohtani and Glasnow joining the Dodgers and Juan Soto heading to the Bronx, the number of true impact players available is starting to wane. A reunion with Cody Bellinger makes a ton of sense, but the only way Chicago makes a major starting pitching addition is via the trade market (although you could see them add another arm regardless - someone along the lines of Michael Wacha, perhaps?
The Cubs are going to make moves this winter. But the dreams the offseason started with - a blockbuster Soto trade or a record-breaking Ohtani deal - are dead and buried. And with Glasnow officially off the board, patience is wearing thin with a large number of Cubs fans.