Matthew Boyd is excited about his new opportunity with the Chicago Cubs and hopes to contribute to the team’s playoff push as an important part of the starting rotation.
The fact that his late grandfather, John Boyd, was a huge Cubs fan makes the signing even more special for him.
“My grandfather grew up in downtown Chicago and was a diehard Cubs fan,” Boyd said on Monday. “I think he was more excited about the Cubs’ scores than my own performance some of the times. It would be like, ‘Hey, the Cubs lost today, but you did pitch well.’”
Boyd also shared that the day the Cubs won the World Series in 2016 “was one of the happiest days of his life,” adding, “so I know he’s smiling somewhere.”
Boyd finalized a $29 million, two-year contract with the Cubs last weekend after successfully recovering from Tommy John surgery.
The left-handed pitcher signed with the Cleveland Guardians in June and made his season debut against the Cubs on August 13, pitching 5 1/3 innings and allowing just one run.
Boyd went 2-2 with a 2.72 ERA in eight starts with Cleveland. He also pitched three times in the postseason for the AL Central champions, allowing only one run and striking out 14 in 11 2/3 innings. The Seattle-area native now joins the Cubs’ rotation alongside Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, and Jameson Taillon.
“I think Matthew’s in a good place kind of post some injuries where we feel like this could be a really good season for him or a couple seasons for him,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said at the winter meetings. “Then like I said, it’s just a place where you can’t get caught without depth, quality. You have to have it, and we thought that was a good place to go.”
Boyd, who turns 34 in February, is hoping to help the Cubs reach the playoffs for the first time since 2020. The Cubs have finished second in the NL Central with an 83-79 record in each of the last two years.
Boyd sees a strong potential for a postseason run with a solid rotation and a lineup that includes Ian Happ, Cody Bellinger, Seiya Suzuki, Dansby Swanson, and Pete Crow-Armstrong, one of the team’s top prospects.
“I think a year of growth from some of the young players,” Boyd said. “Seeing what they did down the stretch last year was really, really exciting. The lineup is strong. … The weapons that are there, the speed that’s in the offense, the ability to hit for power and whatnot — there’s a lot of tools in the lineup.”
Boyd’s deal includes a $5 million signing bonus and salaries of $7.5 million next year and $14.5 million in 2026. It also includes a $15 million mutual option with a $2 million buyout. He can earn $500,000 annually in performance bonuses based on innings pitched: $100,000 for 80, 90, 100, 110, and 120 innings. He also gets a hotel suite on road trips.
The Cubs also announced their coaching staff for next season on Monday, with several new additions: first base coach Jose Javier, third base coach Quentin Berry, assistant pitching coach Casey Jacobson, and staff assistant A.J. Lewis.
Mark Strittmatter will move to bullpen coach after spending last season as the major league field coordinator. The Cubs also named Kevin Poppe head strength and conditioning coach and Mark Weisman assistant strength and conditioning coach.
The other nine coaches on Counsell’s staff, including pitching coach Tommy Hottovy and hitting coach Dustin Kelly, will return from last season.
