Cubs Have Had "Recent Contact" With Lance Lynn, But Deal Not Imminent

[Matthew Trueblood]

The burly righthander would be added depth for a pitching staff facing the unique challenge of being ready for a season by mid-March and trying to play until the end of October—but he's unlikely to be more than a transitory part of that long journey.

Image courtesy of © Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

 

Right-handed pitcher Lance Lynn and the Cubs have had recent talks about a one-year deal, on the eve of a season that the team hopes will stretch more than seven full months, a source said. That (apparently) confirms a report from USA Today's Bob Nightengale, although Nightengale's report makes the deal sound closer than it is. A real agreement is "not imminent," the source emphasized.

If the deal were to be completed, it would likely include a provision that Lynn begins the season with Triple-A Iowa, to ensure he's stretched out as far as possible before being called up. Chicago's front office is trying to head off problems that could stem from ramping up many of their pitchers earlier than they would otherwise need to. 

Already this spring, would-be starting rotation candidate Javier Assad has been sidelined by an oblique issue, although all reports so far are that it's very mild, and that Assad will be ready to re-join the active roster before the end of April. Pitching prospect Brandon Birdsell, meanwhile, has a more severe problem—a shoulder injury that could keep him off the mound for much of the season. That said, the team would not have put any pitcher on the plane to Tokyo whom they didn't consider healthy right now, and that group itself runs 17 players deep.

Among starter-capable arms, Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, Jameson Taillon, Matthew Boyd, Colin Rea, Jordan Wicks, and Ben Brown are in Japan with the team. Cody Poteet, Caleb Kilian, Cade Horton and Chris Flexen are the potential starters the team left in the States, and there could be an injury issue with one or more of them, but the depth at this moment isn't the primary motivation for the team in considering Lynn.

Flexen's velocity is up a tick this spring, and he's throwing firmer versions of multiple secondary offerings, including a tighter, more vertical slider. The team is optimistic about Horton, who is expected to pitch in one of the team's two Spring Breakout games, the first of which is Thursday night. The hope, though, is that the team only needs very limited contributions from any of those hurlers this season. Last year, the Dodgers went to Seoul for a similar season-opening jewel event, and ended up using 40 pitchers over the course of the regular season. Only the hapless Miami Marlins used more.

By October (and despite trading for key playoff contributors Jack Flaherty and Michael Kopech), the team nearly ran out of pitching, and had to gasp and stagger over the finish line of their World Series victory. They went into the season not only loaded with stars, but with injury-ravaged veteran James Paxton in their rotation and lefty long man Ryan Yarbrough eating innings out of the bullpen throughout the first half. They traded both players midseason, but without the 156 innings the two combined to pitch before the trade deadline, the Dodgers really would have run out of steam. They probably wouldn't have won the pennant, let alone the Series.

Signing Lynn would be a measure akin to the Paxton deal, on the Cubs' part, but (obviously) at a lower cost and with less upside. It would be a way to take early innings off the plate of one or more of the pitchers the team will need to be in top form come October—assuming they make it that far. He might also be better than you're remembering. Last season, he posted a 3.84 ERA in 117 2/3 innings, with a modest but playable strikeout rate and his usual modest but playable pitch mix. His fastball is down to an average of just 92.3 miles per hour, but because of his release point and movement profile, his two most-used pitches (the four-seamer and his cutter) both grade as average or better.

It's not a significant move, except in the context of the extra-long season the team has to survive, and the risks they know they're exposed to because of it. It hasn't yet come to fruition, but even if it does, it will merely be about better insuring themselves against injuries and early fatigue on the part of vital arms. Don't read any more into it than that.

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[JunkyardWalrus]

Like my mom who can't pass up a sale on purses (like a handbag,) Jed sees the bargain bin and thinks like Bilbo, "Why not? Why shouldn't I have more?" Got all the extra money, Bad Company is on the jukebox and Lance Lynn sways quietly alone. Jed's heart races in anticipation as he takes his first shuffling steps forward... hoping to lock eyes while he still has moisture in his mouth to speak with...