But who really is? There’s always a bidding war tax that teams have to pay, Cubs unwillingness to meet players on their preferred $ terms is why they have a rotation full of number 3-4 starters. His peripherals were very good, he’s durable and the Padres defense was 36 runs worse than the cubs.. Is there a reason why you think his velocity will dip, like an injury? Pitch counts keep arms fresh regardless of innings.
If the Cubs refuse to shop for the Max Fried, Corbin Burnes type pitchers they’re better off with a capable number 2 starter than their current power in numbers approach in my opinion.