37-Year-Old Relief Pitcher Seen as ‘Under-the-Radar’ Cubs Trade Target

Getty The Cubs' bullpen has struggled out of the gate in 2024. Could Angels reliever Luis Garcia be available as a potential upgrade?

The Chicago Cubs are off to a solid start in 2024. They’re currently battling the Milwaukee Brewers for first place in the National League Central and just got ace hurler Justin Steele back from the injured list. Could president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer target Los Angeles Angels reliever Luis Garcia to help with Chicago’s bullpen woes?

Bleacher Nation’s Michael Cerami thinks Garcia would be a good “under-the-radar” trade target to help Cubs manager Craig Counsell’s relief corps. Garcia boasts a 5.54 ERA through 13 innings, but some of the 37-year-old veteran’s advanced statistics paint a better picture. This ERA is accompanied by a 1.08 WHIP, 2.54 Fielder Independent Pitching (FIP) and 2.43 Expected ERA (xERA).

“In short, we’re talking about a guy that throws strikes, doesn’t walk batters, gets groundballs, generates weak contact, throws hard, and has a good out-pitch,” Cerami said. “All of that makes him a guy you WANT.

“On the flip side, he’s older, he’s a rental, his stats don’t look great on the surface, and he’s on a bad team that should be willing to sell sooner than later. All of that makes him a guy that should be AVAILABLE.”

He did point out that Garcia has had a tough time facing left-handed hitters throughout his career. Across 900 total plate appearances, lefties have slashed .282/.369/.408 against Garcia with 18 home runs and 40 doubles.

Garcia Would Only Be the Start of Cubs’ Bullpen Makeover

Cerami also mentioned that the Cubs simply pursuing a reliever like Garcia wouldn’t solve all of their bullpen issues. Entering action on May 6, he noted the Cubs’ 4.57 bullpen ERA was baseball’s eighth-worst mark.

The most concerning hurler in Chicago’s bullpen right now is probably Adbert Alzolay. He emerged as the club’s closer in 2023, racking up 22 saves with a 2.67 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 1.5 fWAR in 64 innings. His first 13 innings of 2024 have been the complete opposite.

It’s included a 5.54 ERA, 1.54 WHIP and -0.8 fWAR, along with a drop in strikeout rate (26.5% in ’23 to 18.6% so far in ’24) and a rise in walk rate (5.1% to 6.8%). Alzolay has also saved just three games in eight opportunities. That already surpasses his number of blown saves from 2023 (three).

Cerami is right about the Cubs’ solution to their bullpen issues going beyond Garcia. They could be hoping to eventually get one of the best available relievers ahead of the July 30 trade deadline. However, adding someone like Garcia could go a long way in raising the general performance floor for this area of Counsell’s roster.

Cubs Are Aiming for a Return to October in 2024

While the Cubs’ last competitive window yielded just one World Series title, they were consistent postseason participants.

Chicago posted a winning record each year between 2015 and 2020. This included one 100-win campaign (2016) and three 90-win seasons. However, they haven’t won a postseason game since 2017. The Cubbies have been ousted in the Wild Card Round in both 2018 and 2020.

That 2020 appearance is the last time the club has played in October. It was followed by two straight losing campaigns in 2021 and 2022. They finished 2023 with an 83-79 record but just missed the playoffs.

Things are looking good through Counsell’s first 35 games as manager. Chicago has won 21 of those contests and is jockeying for position at the top of its division. As long as that continues, Hoyer would likely be expected to search for significant bullpen upgrades to help down the stretch.