CHICAGO -- The Cubs headed into the Trade Deadline not only searching for an impact starter to help the rotation immediately, but with the goal of continuing to strengthen the rotation’s depth chart. The North Siders have found one potential answer for the latter.
After pulling off big-ticket deals to add starters Kevin Gausman (Blue Jays) and Clay Holmes (Mets) over the past two days, Chicago swung a deal with the Marlins Monday to acquire lefty Braxton Garrett. Chicago sent two prospects, first baseman Jonathon Long (No. 10 on Pipeline’s Top 30 list for the Cubs) and righty Jace Beck (No. 28), to Miami.
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“It’s just another layer of depth,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “I think there’s some thought about it for next year that makes sense for us. And it’s a pitcher that has had a very good Major League season that we’ve been interested in for a while.”
After officially bringing Garrett into the fold, the Cubs optioned him to Triple-A Iowa as an important depth layer behind the Major League rotation.
TRADE DETAILS
Cubs get: LHP Braxton Garrett
Marlins get: 1B/OF Jonathon Long, RHP Jace Beck
The Cubs and Marlins also teamed up over the offseason on a deal that brought right-hander Edward Cabrera to Chicago.
In Garrett, the Cubs are adding a 28-year-old lefty who has had Major League success, but more recently has been trying to find his footing after a comeback from surgery on his left elbow in December 2024. Garrett -- selected seventh overall in the 2016 MLB Draft -- has spent the bulk of this season with Triple-A Jacksonville.
Across 16 appearances (15 starts) at Triple-A this season, Garrett has a 2.90 ERA with 83 strikeouts against 29 walks in 77 2/3 innings. He made a pair of starts for the Marlins in May with rough results (resulting in a combined 14.54 ERA) and has remained in the Minors since those outings.
Under contract on a one-year, $1.53 million deal, Garrett has one Minor League option year remaining and is under team control through 2028. He has pitched in parts of six seasons with the Marlins and enjoyed his best showing in '23, when he was worth 4.3 wins above replacement (per Baseball Reference) with a 3.66 ERA and 156 strikeouts against 29 walks in 159 2/3 innings.
“He’s a guy we’ve always liked,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said. “He’s having a really good year in Triple-A for the Marlins and we control him going forward. We’re going to need depth. We’re going to need innings. He’s likely to provide that here, but it’s also a future play, as well. We’ve always thought highly of him, so it worked out. It lined up well.”
Beyond Gausman and Holmes, the Cubs’ rotation in the Majors includes Matthew Boyd, Shota Imanaga, David Peterson, Colin Rea and Javier Assad. Cabrera is on the 15-day IL with a left hamstring/adductor strain, but he began a Minor League rehab assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Friday and projects to return later this month.
“It was very clear we needed to add pitching,” Hoyer said. “The position-player group has been excellent all year. I think the pitchers have fought through a lot of injuries and I think they’ve been really resilient, but we wanted to add reinforcements. And we certainly did that.”