The Chicago Cubs want arms. Specifically, they’ve talked about starting pitcher arms to bolster an already-good rotation.
What they desperately need, however, is another quality arm or two coming out of what could be seen as a questionable bullpen.
To do that, some are encouraging Chicago to bring back a familiar face from the past, Andrew Chafin.
Welcome Back Andrew Chafin?
The left-hander’s free agent status has fallen under the radar this offseason, after a rough second half of the 2024 season– and amid some of the gigantic names making monster deals this winter. But all that means is that, really, it’s a buyer’s market when it comes to the veteran pitcher.
Recent news, however, has the New York Yankees interested. Jon Heyman of the New York Post recently reported that Chafin was “high on the Yankees’ list of lefty pen targets.”
And while it’s hard to imagine the frugal Cubs outbidding the free-spending Yankees, making some moves on their former shutdown bullpen presence might be a smart thing to do.
With The Chicago Cubs And Beyond
Chafin pitched part of two seasons for the Cubs. He had a brief stint in the 2020 Covid-abbreviated year, pitching only 3 innings and posting a 3.00 ERA. In 2021, he had a 2.06 ERA in 39.1 innings, until being traded to the Oakland A’s near the trade deadline for Greg Deichmann (Oakland’s No. 9 prospect) and minor league right-hander Daniel Palencia.
Over the course of 11 seasons in the majors, Chafin has a 3.42 ERA in 601 games with six different teams.
Last season, he was having a typically solid year with the Detroit Tigers until traded at the deadline to the Texas Rangers, where he struggled before eventually righting his ship to a degree.
The less-than-stellar second half of 2024 will make the 34-year-old a bargain acquisition and an all-around low risk/high reward addition.
Andrew Chafin Makes Sense
As such, he’d be an ideal pickup for the always budget-minded Cubs, who could definitely use a reliable left-hander coming out of the bullpen. He’d also likely to garner a one-year deal– also something right up the Cubs’ alley when it comes to their bullpen modus operandi.
Per scouting report from MetsmerizedOnline.com:
“While he is a soft-tosser, averaging 91.7 miles per hour on his sinker and four-seam fastball, Chafin misses bats at an elite rate. He finished 2024 with chase and whiff percentages of 35.1 and 34.5, respectively, while punching out 11.18 hitters per nine innings.
Chafin’s slider is his go-to weapon, as he throws it 45.8% of the time. The offering limited batters to a .127 average and .186 slugging percentage last season while generating a whiff rate of 54.7%.
Any concerns with his profile would come due to the fact that his ground-ball rate, which currently sits at 48.1% for his career, has dropped below 40% each of the past two years.
That won’t sound any alarms quite yet given that Chafin is a sinker-baller who doesn’t allow much hard contact, but it bears watching moving forward.
He also has a combined walks per nine rate of 4.9 in that same stretch after that number landed at 2.7 over 2021 and 2022, which is drastic enough of a downward shift to raise some eyebrows.”
Bringing Andrew Chafin back aboard is something worth looking into for the Cubs, who are looking to make the most while spending the least. Again, however, it’ll be tough getting him if the Yankees already have their sights set on him.
Follow me on Twitter at @boxing_tribune, and follow us @ChiCitySports23. You can also reach out to Paul Magno via email at paulmagno@theboxingtribune.com.
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