Vincent Velasquez: Everything you need to know

The Cubs selected Velasquez's contract from Triple-A Iowa on Friday. Velasquez signed a minors deal with Chicago in the offseason and has since posted a 3.71 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over 17 innings at Iowa. The 33-year-old will now return to the majors for the first time since 2023 to round out the Cubs' bullpen following Caleb Thielbar's (hamstring) move to the injured list.

The Cubs signed Velasquez to a minor-league contract Tuesday. Velasquez made it back to the majors briefly in 2025 with the Guardians but did not make an appearance. He collected a 3.42 ERA and 95:50 K:BB over 81.2 innings with Triple-A Columbus last season before finishing the year with the Lotte Giants in Korea. Velasquez, 33, will give the Cubs some experienced rotation depth at Triple-A Iowa.

The Guardians released Velasquez on Wednesday. Velasquez is headed to Korea to sign with the Lotte Giants of the Korea Baseball Organization. The right-hander has spent all of the 2025 season with Triple-A Columbus, posting a 3.42 ERA and 95:50 K:BB over 81.2 innings. Velasquez has not pitched in the big leagues since 2023.