The Cubs are now connected to a possible Emmanuel Clase trade
The MLB winter meetings are underway. Everything is currently revolving around the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes. That isn’t the only thing going on and insider information points to the Cubs being active on many fronts.
The Cubs need pitching reinforcements, that is common knowledge. The front office’s activity shows they are trying to remedy this issue. The Cubs have been linked to signing free-agent pitchers like Yoshinobu Yamamoto. As well as trading for pitchers since the season ended.
One of the new pitchers linked with a move to the Cubs is Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase.
The Guardians could be willing to move Emmanuel Clase
Shahadev Sharma and Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reported Cleveland-Chicago trade discussions in their December 4th article.
“The Cubs have checked in with the Cleveland Guardians, a team that’s almost always willing to move pitchers in the right deals. There are obvious targets there, both for starters and relievers, but whether those ideas pick up traction this week remains to be seen.” They added: “Hoyer is well aware that adding to the bullpen and the rotation is essential.”
Sharma wrote yesterday that Emmanuel Clase is one of the pitchers that makes the most sense for the Cubs to pursue. He also included mention of 28-year-old starter Shane Bieber as a likely trade target for the Cubs.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Cubs engage the Cleveland Guardians for pitching as well — both Shane Bieber and Emmanuel Clase make sense.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan detailed why teams may be interested in trading for Clase.
“The Cleveland Guardians are open to dealing Clase, their All-Star closer who has led the AL in saves for two consecutive years, sources told ESPN. With Hader seeking a deal in the neighborhood of Edwin Diaz’s (five years, $102 million) and the next-best closing option Jordan Hicks (with 32 career saves), Clase has broad appeal to any team looking for a bullpen upgrade.
Why the Cubs should trade for Emmanuel Clase
Emmanuel Clase, 25, has been one of the best relievers in baseball over this past half-decade, with a career 2.00 ERA (2.44 FIP), 24.9% strikeout rate and 5.3% walk rate.
There are some concerns surrounding Clase. They are not huge problems, but they are worth considering if the Cubs want to trade for him.
For one, back in 2020, Emmanuel Clase was suspended 80 games after testing positive for a banned PED. He has put together 2.5 ish solid seasons since that suspension,
Another area of concern is his statistical slide. Clase blew a league-leading 12(!) saves last season en route to his worst overall season: 3.22 ERA (2.91 FIP). His strikeout rate dropped considerable and his walk rate climbed (albeit to just 5.3%). In addition, in 2023, Clase allowed his highest average exit velocity (88.4 MPH), barrel rate (5.0%), and hard-hit rate (37.6%).
Those are obviously still very solid numbers. They’re just not quite as impressive as he was from 2021-2022, when he was easily one of the top-5 relievers in MLB.
Regardless of these concerns, Emmanuel Clase is still a young reliever with a ton of success, closing experience, and a 100 MPH cutter. The chance to sign a player like that is a rare occurrence. And the Guardians locked him up to a really valuable deal back in 2022.
Any team acquiring Clase via trade would get him for at least three seasons. And for a total commitment of just $15M, and would then get two option years with small buyouts when he’d still be only 29 and 30 years old. That’s a steal relative to current relief pitcher pricing.
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