The good news is that you kind of get the impression that Jed Hoyer and the Chicago Cubs are acting with a higher sense of urgency this offseason as the team looks to upgrade the pitching staff. Maybe it would have helped to have a more aggressive mindset last year or once again at the trade deadline, but maybe that’s a valuable lesson that has been learned by Hoyer and his colleagues. This week, Cubs fans were reminded of the shortcomings of a lackluster pursuit for a starting pitcher back in July and maybe the results will incentivize Hoyer to be be more aggressive now.
Cubs fans hated the acquisition the second the news dropped and it didn’t take long for it to completely blow up in Hoyer’s face. Searching for rotation help as the trade deadline approached, the Cubs settled for Michael Soroka. The right-handed pitcher made one total start with the Cubs and threw two innings before he went down with a bum shoulder on Aug. 4. Soroka missed the next six weeks and returned to help out in the bullpen.
Soroka did make the playoff roster, but his lasting memory was getting hit around by the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 1 of the NLDS. Soroka gave up three runs on five hits and two walks as he was only able to get three outs against the Brewers en route to a 9-3 loss after coming in relief of Matthew Boyd.
Overall, Soroka pitched in six regular season games, two playoff games, one total start and 11 innings during his time with the Cubs. Sure, injuries are always a concern with any pitcher, but the process here with Soroka seemed bad all along. There were signs so obvious that something was wrong with Soroka as his velocity drastically dipped in July, something that should have been a bigger warning sign for the Cubs.
I know, the asking prices for starting pitching across the league was insanely high at the trade deadline, but maybe the Cubs should have made it a higher priority to add a starter since the offseason. They tried, eventually backing out of a trade for Jesus Luzardo, but after that they settled in free agency for a solid, but unspectacular arm in Colin Rea. Once the need popped up again during the season the Cubs settled for Soroka and the output was minimal.
There was some discussion early in the offseason that the Cubs may re-sign Soroka, obviously the organization believed in his ability despite the below-average results with the Washington Nationals last season. Yet, Soroka has officially moved on as the right-handed pitcher has signed a one-year deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Fingers crossed that Hoyer doesn’t settle again in pursuit of pitching this offseason. Again, just words and actions ultimately matter, but The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma did reiterate at the Winter Meetings that the Cubs are aiming higher and appear to be involved with high-end targets in the pitching market.
We shall see.
