Cubs get Guerrier from Dodgers for Marmol

OAKLAND -- The Cubs found Carlos Marmol a new home.

The Cubs traded the embattled closer to the Dodgers for Matt Guerrier in a deal that also includes a swap of Draft picks and financial considerations.

Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said the club is hoping a change of scenery will help Guerrier, who will join the team later this week. The Dodgers acquired international signing bonus slot No. 4 from the Cubs as part of the deal.

"The significant part of that deal was it netted us cash savings once we had designated Carlos for assignment," Hoyer said Tuesday.

The Dodgers will pay roughly $500,000 of the remaining $5 million on Marmol's contract. Guerrier has about $1.8 million remaining on the final year of a three-year, $12 million contract. Guerrier was designated for assignment on Sunday.

Marmol, who was designated for assignment June 25, will not become the Dodgers' closer, but he will provide a veteran arm in their revamped bullpen.

After the Cubs designated Marmol, a few teams had expressed an interest in the right-hander, who was 2-4 with a 5.86 ERA in 31 games. He did strike out 32, but also walked 21 and served up 26 hits over 27 2/3 innings.

Marmol, 30, began the season as the Cubs' closer, but he lost the job after the first week to Kyuji Fujikawa. However, the Japanese pitcher had elbow problems and eventually required Tommy John surgery. Kevin Gregg has taken over as closer, replacing Marmol, who had replaced Gregg in that role in 2009. It's also ironic that Gregg was with the Dodgers in Spring Training, but they released him.

Marmol ranks third on the Cubs' franchise leaderboard with 117 saves, but he was inconsistent with his slider and fastball command this season and struggled in late innings. On June 16, he blew a three-run lead in the ninth against the Mets, which resulted in a 4-3 loss. In Marmol's last outing, on June 20 against the Cardinals, he had his command back and threw nine strikes in his 11 pitches.

"He did provide value for us pitching in the middle of the game," Hoyer said last Tuesday. "He had struggles that frustrated people at the end of the game.

"The decision [to designate him] really came down to it that he had become a distraction. It became hard to pitch as well as he could, because every time he threw two balls, he'd get booed, and I don't think that's easy for anybody."

Hoyer said every time Marmol pitched, it was a "sideshow."

The Dodgers' bullpen has been in disarray most of the season as Brandon League, signed to a $22.5 million contract in the offseason to be the closer, lost his job to Kenley Jansen, and Ronald Belisario has been inconsistent as a setup man.