The north side of Chicago was in for a rude awakening when Garrett Crochet landed with the Boston Red Sox for a massive package.
The Cubs, who like the Red Sox also have a deep pool of prospects to deal from, were hopeful about acquiring Crochet. But the Wrigleyville rotation may not be a concern for much longer. Reports have it that plan B may be close to a reality.
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Reports out of Chicago state that the Cubbies and the Miami Marlins are working towards a trade for Jesus Luzardo. These reports stem from insider Bruce Levine who had this to say:
“I think Luzardo is something they’d really like to get done here, in the next few days. They’ve been working on it.”
— Cubs Zone (@CubsZone) December 16, 2024
The lefty from Miami was injured for most of last season, posting an unsatisfactory ERA of 5.00 through only 66.2 innings. However, in the prior two years, Luzardo posted ERAs below 3.60. During those two seasons, he recorded a whopping 328 strikeouts in just 279 innings.
But like in 2024, the years before Luzardo’s 2022 breakout season were also nothing to write home about. Luzardo maintains a rather unsightly 4.29 career ERA as a result. It is also worth mentioning that Luzardo has only topped 101 innings once in his career, that being in 2023. Chicago is betting that Luzardo can stay healthy and pitch to his recent quality numbers.
Luzardo is somewhat comparable to Crochet who also threw to a 3.58 ERA in his only full year as a starter and has the makings of a strikeout machine. The 27-year-old southpaw will be entering arbitration 3 next season and is expected to make $8.6 million. He will be a free agent after the 2026 season.
