The Cubs may not be done making veteran additions to their rotation. With plenty of arms still on the market, the Cubs might turn to a few familiar faces to provide some pitching depth. Some reports have suggested the Cubs could be looking to sign veterans Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn. The former NL central duo would have familiarity within the division. Additionally, both have had long-tenured major league careers with All-star selections.
With a long trip to Japan on the horizon the Cubs have looked into the possibility of signing former Cardinals pitchers Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson. According to Ken Rosenthal “At the moment, the Cubs aren’t in a position to promise Gibson or Lynn a spot in their rotation, much less guarantee that either pitcher would make the major-league club by a certain date.” This quote by Rosenthal reads like the Cubs have done their homework on the veteran pitching market and would like to add a low-budget, depth piece for this season without guaranteeing anything. I recently wrote about the bottom of Chicago’s rotation and the questions around it. This could give the Cubs some clarity and/or buy themselves time for young players like Ben Brown and Cade Horton to be ready.
Lance Lynn
Last year Lance Lynn pitched his best season since his 2021 campaign with the Chicago White Sox. In 117 innings for the Cardinals, he managed a 3.84 ERA, 1.338 WHIP, and a 7-4 record. Those numbers are by no means elite, but it’s fair to assume Lynn still has some good baseball left in him. The 37-year-old, thirteen-year vet has pitched for four teams since 2022 and has been below average. After being initially drafted by the Cardinals in 2008, Lynn played for St. Louis for the first five and a half years of his career before leaving for the Twins. He found himself back in St. Louis last offseason on a one-year $11 million deal. The Cardinals declined his club option for 2025 on October 31st of last season.
Kyle Gibson
Meanwhile, Kyle Gibson had a very similar season to Lynn for the Cardinals last season. The 37-year-old twelve-year veteran threw 169.2 innings, and had a 4.24 ERA and a 99 ERA+. He graded average to below average in almost every metric on Baseball Savant, with the exception being his extension (89th percentile), Average exit velocity (68th percentile), and offspeed run value (77th percentile). Gibson signed for $13 million before he too had his club option declined for 2025 by the Cardinals.
The Cubs are not looking for ace-level production from the former Cardinal teammates, but they could provide valuable depth. They are both veterans who have seen and played a lot of baseball. And at worst, they could be inning eaters to help the Cubs get through the long season and keep some of their other arms fresh for the playoffs. You need to make 4,374 outs to get through an entire season, and these veterans may help with that gauntlet. Both pitchers would likely sign league minimum deals, which would be essential as the Cubs have shown a hesitancy to spend big this offseason.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Cubs keeping two Ex-Cardinals pitchers on their radar appeared first on Heavy Sports.