Cubs Acquire Nate Pearson

[CubinNY]

57 minutes ago, Rob said:

It's not like that at all. 

There isn't enough talent on the trade block to make us prime competitors. So the buys we make aren't really geared at this season.

Pearson is a fine reclamation project for 2025/2026. If we get anything out of him this season, great. But nobody with a room temperature IQ thinks this was about making us competitive for the world series this year.

He’s a 27 year old who throws taters. It’s just the kind of move a small market team like the Cubs make who try to turn a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. It’s literally nothing. It’s a move where they cleared some flotsam out of their minor leagues for trash from someone else. They could have waited for the DFA. 

[Rob]

Just now, Irrelevant Dude said:

I'm not sure what this means.  If the point is that all you have to do is be the last Wild Card team to have a shot at the World Series - sure, that is absolutely true.  But it is the Wild Card part of that equation that is the problem, being 6.5 games back and needing to pass 6 teams.  Regardless of who the Cubs trade for, that isn't happening.

Yup.

While we aren't out of it just yet, we're down to about a 3.8% chance to make the playoffs, according to fangraphs. I said there wasn't enough talent on the block to make us prime competitors, and I stand by that. Even if we were buying Crochet and Chisholm and everybody else on the block, we still aren't getting to a 50%+ odds of making the playoffs.

Is there a chance the team starts hitting and weasels its way into the final playoff spot? Sure. It's just not likely no matter what we do. So it'd be silly to assume that Jed is out there trying to make 2024 happen.

[Tryptamine]

Just now, CubinNY said:

He’s a 27 year old who throws taters. It’s just the kind of move a small market team like the Cubs make who try to turn a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. It’s literally nothing. It’s a move where they cleared some flotsam out of their minor leagues for trash from someone else. They could have waited for the DFA. 

I get it, it's not a huge exciting move, but there is upside in this move to become a backend of the bullpen arm for very little prospect cost. Getting a guy who could be a part of your 2025 roster for some prospect fodder is a good thing.

[Rob]

Just now, CubinNY said:

He’s a 27 year old who throws taters. It’s just the kind of move a small market team like the Cubs make who try to turn a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. It’s literally nothing. It’s a move where they cleared some flotsam out of their minor leagues for trash from someone else. They could have waited for the DFA. 

Jake Arrieta posted ERAs of 4.66, 5.05, 6.20, and 7.23 in his final season before the Cubs traded for him. His strikeout rate, walk rate, home run rate, and even his groundball rate all sucked prior to his acquisition. He was 27 at the time.

Obviously, I am not attempting to equate the two. Jake Arrieta was an all-time dumpster-diving success story. I don't expect nearly the same from Pearson.

The point is that sometimes you see something in a player that you think you can fix. And then sometimes you fix it. Presumably, the Cubs think they've got what it takes to fix Pearson, and with the obvious physical tools that he has that could make him something special. I wont begrudge the Cubs for giving up two dumpy prospects for a guy who could obviously be pretty darn good if things break right for us.

[Tryptamine]

So after an admittedly brief review, it looks like the slider and curve are nails, but the fastball is ass. This actually makes me kind of hopeful, This is something I think is right up the Cub pitch lab's alley. 

[Dfan25]

Don’t hate it . Hopefully they can find a 3B the next couple of days . Miguel Vargas from the Dodgers ?  

[Jason Ross]

Love that. Two prospects who are well on the outs in the org as Pinango's star had fallen enough he wasn't getting picked for a 40 man spot and Rivera, who I never really liked from jump-street and has struggled. Turn him into a controllable arm who hits 98 and needs work on fastball shape. That's a trade I make every day and twice on Sunday.  

 

Worthwhile gamble for a team like the Cubs in the position they are in. 

[CubinNY]

12 minutes ago, Rob said:

Jake Arrieta posted ERAs of 4.66, 5.05, 6.20, and 7.23 in his final season before the Cubs traded for him. His strikeout rate, walk rate, home run rate, and even his groundball rate all sucked prior to his acquisition. He was 27 at the time.

Obviously, I am not attempting to equate the two. Jake Arrieta was an all-time dumpster-diving success story. I don't expect nearly the same from Pearson.

The point is that sometimes you see something in a player that you think you can fix. And then sometimes you fix it. Presumably, the Cubs think they've got what it takes to fix Pearson, and with the obvious physical tools that he has that could make him something special. I wont begrudge the Cubs for giving up two dumpy prospects for a guy who could obviously be pretty darn good if things break right for us.

Yes he’s Jake

[Post Count Padder]

23 minutes ago, CubinNY said:

He’s a 27 year old who throws taters. It’s just the kind of move a small market team like the Cubs make who try to turn a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. It’s literally nothing. It’s a move where they cleared some flotsam out of their minor leagues for trash from someone else. They could have waited for the DFA. 

The cost was minimal and there's clear upside. Pearson was a top 20 prospect in all of baseball not that long ago. It's a worthy gamble with an eye on next year.

[squally1313]

37 minutes ago, CubinNY said:

He’s a 27 year old who throws taters. It’s just the kind of move a small market team like the Cubs make who try to turn a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. It’s literally nothing. It’s a move where they cleared some flotsam out of their minor leagues for trash from someone else. They could have waited for the DFA. 

He's a 26 year old who put up a .539 OPS as a first baseman last year. They could have waited for the DFA. 

[squally1313]

Coming to a conclusion that a trade means nothing to you, and then logging onto the Cubs message board to tell other people who are discussing it to stop talking about it because you decided there's nothing to discuss, on a discussion board, is certainly a choice. It's one thing if you loved Rivera or Pinango. But if you simply don't care...great! Good for you, some people do. 

[itisallpartoftheplan]

Last year got a Pinango chrome in a bowman pack. My daughter likes opening cards so we do it together.

When South Bend came to QC last year she got it autographed. Had to break the news to her.. she was a little upset, but is glad Nico hasn’t been traded yet.

[CubinNY]

23 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

Coming to a conclusion that a trade means nothing to you, and then logging onto the Cubs message board to tell other people who are discussing it to stop talking about it because you decided there's nothing to discuss, on a discussion board, is certainly a choice. It's one thing if you loved Rivera or Pinango. But if you simply don't care...great! Good for you, some people do. 

Who said stop talking about. Talk away! 

[CubinNY]

40 minutes ago, Post Count Padder said:

The cost was minimal and there's clear upside. Pearson was a top 20 prospect in all of baseball not that long ago. It's a worthy gamble with an eye on next year.

There is not clear upside. 

[Rob]

4 minutes ago, CubinNY said:

There is not clear upside. 

Pearson is a former top prospect who hits 102 on the gun, but that's arguably his weakest pitch.

Not even you can be so obtuse as to see no clear upside there. You're just grumpy. Go eat a snickers.

[CubinNY]

6 minutes ago, Rob said:

Pearson is a former top prospect who hits 102 on the gun, but that's arguably his weakest pitch.

Not even you can be so obtuse as to see no clear upside there. You're just grumpy. Go eat a snickers.

Have you looked at his stats in 100+ major league innings over the last four years? The fact that he was once thought to be a prospect is irrelevant at this point. He’s been worth -1 win in four years with an ERA above 5 and a WHIP above 1.5. 
 
It’s at best at swap of guys who were not going to be with organization minus Riviera who can’t hit. 
 

I don’t get the liking of the trade. It’s an exchange of fringe talent. 

Edited July 27, 2024 by CubinNY

[Bertz]

I swear CubinNY has one of these moments at least once a week

[Post Count Padder]

26 minutes ago, itisallpartoftheplan said:

Last year got a Pinango chrome in a bowman pack. My daughter likes opening cards so we do it together.

When South Bend came to QC last year she got it autographed. Had to break the news to her.. she was a little upset, but is glad Nico hasn’t been traded yet.

I'm a big card collector and also send cards through the mail to various current and former players. I admittedly am biased toward the players who sign for me or whom I pull autographs from packs. Which is part of the reason I adore Adbert and Keegan. And Chris Paciolla as my minor league sleeper who actually has been asleep at the plate for several months.

[Irrelevant Dude]

7 minutes ago, CubinNY said:

I don’t get the liking of the trade. It’s an exchange of fringe talent. 

It's two guys who likely were never going to matter for the Cubs in exchange for a guy who "could" matter if things go right.  There's a good chance that this deal is a wash in the end and all parties involved are mediocre at best, but if I had to choose one of the lottery tickets, I would take Pearson.

[Irrelevant Dude]

6 minutes ago, Post Count Padder said:

I'm a big card collector and also send cards through the mail to various current and former players.

I learned a hard lesson as a kid when I sent Ryne Sandberg's Topps rookie card in the mail and never got it back. I was devastated. 

On the other side though, I did get signed cards returned from Billy Williams, Andre Dawson, Greg Maddux, and Mark Grace.

[Rob]

13 minutes ago, CubinNY said:

I don’t get the liking of the trade. It’s an exchange of fringe talent. 

We exchanged our fringe talent for actual talent.

The reason the actual talent was available was because that actual talent hasn't translated to production yet. But there's plenty of arm for the development staff to work with.

Maybe Pearson turns into something. Maybe not. But on the chance he does turn into something, there's a real potential for it to be something special.

Nobody is here creaming our pants or anything of the sort. It's a numbers game. But we just got a better lotto ticket than the two we traded away. So it was a good trade.

[Post Count Padder]

1 minute ago, Irrelevant Dude said:

I learned a hard lesson as a kid when I sent Ryne Sandberg's Topps rookie card in the mail and never got it back. I was devastated. 

On the other side though, I did get signed cards returned from Billy Williams, Andre Dawson, Greg Maddux, and Mark Grace.

Sandberg signs pretty regularly now with a small fee, as does Dawson. Both have signed for me as well as Dunston and Jody Davis from those teams. I have like three binders full of cards I've gotten back, ha. Lot of Cubs duds and randos over the years too like Augie Ojeda, Jason Dubois, Bobby Brownlie, Rockey Cherry, Brian LaHair, Brooks Kieschnick, etc. I have a rookie card of Steve Trachsel and Turk Wendell I got both to sign ha. 

[Transmogrified Tiger]

A roll of the dice on a guy who may be a leverage reliever(w/ multiple years of control) in a new org, in exchange for two guys who lack big ceiling and aren’t currently on MLB trajectories.  Works for me, I like it better than the similarly flavored Cuas deal last year.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

This is just what you do when you give up.  You start using your roster spots and playing time on guys who have some thin, longshot upside if they get MLB playing time that good teams won't want to give them.  You'll never get an Arrieta if you aren't willing to cycle through a few dozens of these turds when you're out of contention.

Is it a good move to do the basic thing that you're supposed to do when you play yourself into a terrible situation?  I'll leave that question to the philosophers.

[javy knows my name]

6 minutes ago, Hairyducked Idiot said:

This is just what you do when you give up.  You start using your roster spots and playing time on guys who have some thin, longshot upside if they get MLB playing time that good teams won't want to give them.  You'll never get an Arrieta if you aren't willing to cycle through a few dozens of these turds when you're out of contention.

Is it a good move to do the basic thing that you're supposed to do when you play yourself into a terrible situation?  I'll leave that question to the philosophers.

We got him from a worse team that is further out of contention. For nothing. It was a good trade.