Cuas, 30, was a September waiver claim out of the Blue Jays organization. He didn’t pitch for the Phillies during the season after joining the organization. He logged a combined 16 1/3 innings between the Jays and Cubs, working to a 7.71 ERA in that small sample. Cuas has pitched 119 1/3 innings in the big leagues and sports a career 4.37 ERA with a 22% strikeout rate, a 12.9% walk rate and a solid 45.2% ground-ball rate.

From 2022-23, Cuas pitched 103 innings for the Royals and Cubs — the first big league experience of his career. During that time, the former infielder notched a tidy 3.84 ERA while fanning 22.2% of his opponents against a 12.5% walk rate. In parts of four Triple-A seasons, the sidearming righty carries a 4.12 ERA, 27.4% strikeout rate and 10.3% walk rate.

Cuas’ journey in baseball has been one of the least traditional you’ll encounter, as chronicled at great length by Alec Lewis of The Athletic a couple years back in a must-read piece for fans of players endure extensive minor league grinds. An 11th-round draft pick by the Brewers as an infielder back in 2015, he was out of baseball a few years later and working as a FedEx driver during the day while training with his brother after dark in freezing weather. Cuas had washed out as a hitter and briefly tinkered with a move to the mound in 2018, but he was released by the Brewers midseason.

Cuas pitched indie ball in 2018 and ’19, parlaying a strong run in the Atlantic League into a minor league look with the D-backs. In 2020, a couple months after the league shut down due to the pandemic, he was released. One of his former D-backs coaches reached out to get Cuas a look in the Dominican Winter League the following offseason. It didn’t lead to a big league deal. He went back to the Atlantic League — this time catching the attention of the Royals, who eventually have him his MLB debut in 2022.

Now sporting more than two full years of big league service, Cuas has pitched in each of the past three MLB seasons. He’s obviously yet to solidify himself as a consistent contributor, but the mere fact that he’s reached this point is somewhat incredible, given his move from the infield to the mound, multiple stints in independent ball, and multiple releases from big league organizations.

With the Phillies, Cuas could have to bide his time before an opportunity arises. Philadelphia has a very veteran bullpen, with young Orion Kerkering (one year of MLB service) and lefty Tanner Banks (2.092 years) the only members under four full years of big league service. Kerkering and Banks are the only two members who can even be optioned, but they’re both locked into spots after nice 2024 seasons. Cuas will join lefty Nick Vespi and righty Cody Stashak as players with some notable big league experience who’ll be non-roster invitees in Phillies camp.

Ross, 32 in May, spent the 2024 season with the Brewers. He opened the year in Milwaukee’s rotation, making nine starts with a 4.50 ERA and 4.65 SIERA through mid-May. Unfortunately, a lower back strain landed him on the IL for more than two months in the middle of the year. He made one poor start upon his return before moving into the bullpen.

It was there that Ross thrived, pitching to a 1.67 ERA and 3.89 SIERA in 27 innings of work. Although his fastball velocity didn’t increase by much, he raised his strikeout rate from 18.7% as a starter to 24.1% as a reliever. He also did an excellent job limiting extra-base hits. While the righty gave up more fly balls and fewer grounders, he dropped his opponents’ isolated power from .134 to .060. In addition, Ross provided the Brewers bullpen with valuable length; he threw more than one inning in 10 of his 15 relief appearances.

Ultimately, the sample size of Ross’s 2024 season is relatively small. He pitched 47 innings as a starter and 27 out of the bullpen. Meanwhile, the sample size of his 2022 and ’23 seasons is non-existent. He landed on the IL with a UCL injury in August 2021, underwent his second career Tommy John surgery in May 2022, and did not pitch in the majors again until this past year.

From 2015-21, Ross was a capable pitcher when healthy. In 76 starts and 22 relief appearances for the Nationals, he put up a 4.26 ERA and an identical 4.26 SIERA. In 2024, he showed he could still be that arm. Across 74 innings, he produced a respectable 3.77 ERA and 4.38 SIERA. He went at least five innings in seven of his 10 starts and held his opponents scoreless in 12 of his 15 relief appearances. It’s easy to see what the Phillies like in a guy who can provide depth for the rotation and length for the bullpen. At the same time, it’s easy to see why fans might be nervous. Ross has a lengthy injury history that has prevented him from ever pitching more than 27 games or 108 innings in a season. That upside is why he landed a major league deal; his injury history is why it’s only a $4MM guarantee, pocket change for a Phillies team with a projected $289MM payroll (per RosterResource).

In a media availability last week, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said he was looking for a swingman type who could pitch out of both the rotation and the bullpen. However, after the team’s surprise acquisition of starter Jesús Luzardo, it was unclear if Dombrowski was still seeking another pitcher. With a projected rotation of Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sánchez, Ranger Suárez, and Luzardo, the Phillies could have opted to use Taijuan Walker as their swingman. The veteran lost his starting job this past year amidst a career-worst season. In 19 appearances (15 starts) he pitched to a 7.10 ERA and 5.25 SIERA in 83 2/3 innings of work.

With Ross in the fold, it’s hard to guess what Walker’s role will be with the Phillies in 2025 – if he’ll have one at all. The seven locks for the 2025 bullpen are José Alvarado, Matt Strahm, Jordan Romano, Orion Kerkering, José Ruiz, Tanner Banks, and Ross. That only leaves one spot left on the pitching staff. The Phillies could give that spot to Walker, but they might prefer to go with a higher-upside young arm rather than carrying two long men. Max Lazar, whom Dombrowski mentioned in his media availability last week, is one name on the 40-man roster to keep in mind. As for any further outside additions, the POBO suggested he’s likely done supplementing to the bullpen (per Gelb). For now, Walker will prepare to compete for a bullpen job and provide additional starting depth in case of injury. Still, one has to presume the Phillies are looking for any way to offload his contract this winter. He is set to earn $36MM over the next two seasons.

Cuas did not appear in a game with the Phillies in 2024. After beginning his career with the Royals in 2022, he was traded to the Cubs at the deadline in 2023. Chicago DFA’d him this past June, and the Blue Jays claimed him off of waivers. Toronto would DFA him as well before the end of the year, and although the Phillies claimed him in September, they optioned him to Triple-A and never called him up. The right-hander has a career 4.37 ERA and 4.43 SIERA in 119 1/3 innings. He also has two option years remaining. That should help him find a new club to sign him as a depth arm for 2025.

September 7: The Phillies announced a quartet of roster moves in advance of their game with the Marlins, as catcher Aramis Garcia is joining the big league roster after his contract was selected from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.  Right-hander Jose Cuas is also joining the organization on a waiver claim from the Blue Jays and has been assigned to Triple-A.  In corresponding moves, Philadelphia designated right-hander Nick Nelson for assignment and placed infielder Rodolfo Castro on the 60-day injured list.  Castro was first called up from Triple-A before the IL placement, and it was already known that his season would be over after he tore a thumb ligament at the end of August.

Garcia is back in the Show to give the Phillies some extra catching depth since J.T. Realmuto is a little banged up.  Manager Rob Thomson told reporters (including Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer) that Realmuto will need “a couple of days” to rest up after fouling a ball off his knee in yesterday’s game, but the Phils don’t think Realmuto will need to visit the 10-day injured list.  Garcia and Garrett Stubbs will therefore handle catching duties for what the team hopes is just a short time until Realmuto is feeling better.

This is the second time this season that Cuas has changed teams via the waiver wire, as the Blue Jays claimed him off the Cubs’ roster back in June.  Cuas tossed three innings across four appearances for Toronto before the Jays DFA’ed him earlier this week, and the righty has a rough 7.71 ERA in 16 1/3 total innings this season with the Blue Jays and Cubs.  It has been a big step down from the 3.84 ERA Cuas posted over 103 innings with the Royals and Cubs during the 2022-23 seasons, and even that respectable number was undermined by some shaky secondary metrics.

Control problems have contributed to Cuas’ struggles in both the majors and minors this year, as he has a 6.67 ERA across 27 combined Triple-A frames.  Still missing a lot of bats despite those walks, the Phillies will take a look at Cuas and his plus sweeper, and Cuas will essentially replace Nelson as a depth arm.

Nelson was also designated for assignment last month before he cleared waivers and was outrighted to Lehigh Valley.  This prior outright means that Nelson can now decline another outright assignment in favor of free agency, if he is perhaps looking for a fresh start after three seasons with the Phillies.  He pitched 68 2/3 innings over 47 appearances with Philadelphia in 2022 but he has made just five MLB appearances since, totaling 10 2/3 frames at the big league level.  A couple of injuries contributed to some of Nelson’s missed time on the Phils’ roster, but the club seemed to just view Nelson as a depth pitcher, first as a starter in 2023 and then back to relief work this season.

Ramírez, 30, made his big league debut with the Marlins this season but pitched to a rough 6.97 ERA in 20 2/3 innings out of the Miami bullpen. He’s been considerably better with their Triple-A affiliate in Jacksonville, recording a 3.76 ERA, 30.5% strikeout rate and 9.6% walk rate in 40 2/3 frames. He posted similar numbers in a 2023 season split between the Yankees’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates.

Ramírez has averaged 93.9 mph on his four-seamer and paired that with a splitter and lesser-used slider to round out a three-pitch repertoire. He has a full slate of minor league options remaining, despite his age, so he could be a flexible depth arm for the Jays next season if they opt to keep him on the 40-man roster. For now, he’ll get an audition in the final three-plus weeks of regular-season play.

Cuas, also 30, was a waiver claim out of the Cubs organization earlier in the summer. He wound up pitching only three MLB innings with the Jays and allowing three runs. The rest of his time in the organization came in Triple-A Buffalo, where he was roughed up for a dozen runs in 15 2/3 innings of work.

From 2022-23, Cuas was a solid, if command-challenged reliever who notched a 3.84 ERA in 103 innings between the Royals and Cubs. Kansas City traded him to Chicago in a ’23 deadline swap that sent designated hitter/outfielder Nelson Velázquez back to the Royals. Cuas posted good results down the stretch with the Cubs despite a high walk rate, but the glut of free passes caught up to him this season. He’s walked at least 12% of his opponents in all three of his big league seasons and also plunked an alarming 3.2% of the batters he’s faced. In 17 1/3 innings this year, Cuas has a 7.71 ERA.

Cuas will now head to waivers, where all 29 other clubs will have the chance to claim him. He has a minor league option remaining beyond the current season and has demonstrated an ability to miss bats in bunches in spite of pedestrian velocity, thanks largely to a sweeper that generates huge whiff rates.

Today’s news likely ends Mayza’s tenure with the Jays, which began when he was a 12th-round pick for the club in the 2013 draft.  (Danny Jansen was a 16th-round pick in that same draft and is now officially Toronto’s longest-tenured player.)  Designating Mayza would’ve seemed inconceivable just a few months ago, as Mayza was quietly one of baseball’s better relievers in 2023, posting a 1.52 ERA over 53 1/3 frames.  A 3.11 SIERA was a little less flattering, but Mayza still had solidly above-average walk and strikeout rates, as well as elite grounder (58.2%) and barrel (4.1%) rates.  Mayza allowed only two homers over his 53 1/3 innings, as while he allowed a fair amount of hard contract overall, his ability to keep the ball in the park greatly limited the damage.

However, the dropoff has been as sharp as it was unexpected.  Mayza has already allowed three home runs in 24 2/3 innings this season, contributing to a garish 8.03 ERA.  The Statcast numbers reveal a slew of below-average metrics, including a 13.2% strikeout rate that is among the worst in the league, and a 39.1% grounder rate that is far below the 54.4% career average that Mayza carried into 2024.  A .367 BABIP has partially contributed to Mayza’s problems, though while his 5.03 SIERA is three runs lower than his ERA, it is clear that Mayza’s struggles are due to far more than just bad batted-ball luck.

Things reached a low point in Mayza’s last two outings, as he faced eight batters and allowed seven earned runs without recording even a single out.  These two disastrous performances (against the Red Sox last Monday and against the Yankees last night) raised his ERA from 5.47 to 8.03, and essentially might have forced the Blue Jays’ hand in making a tough call on a veteran reliever.

Starting the season with four years and 156 days of MLB service time, Mayza needed just 16 more days on the big league roster to hit the five-year threshold, so he is now far beyond that mark.  Five years of service time gives Mayza the right to refuse a minor league assignment, and though he has two minor league options remaining, it could be that Mayza exercised his right to pass on a trip to Triple-A Buffalo.

In deciding to DFA Mayza, Toronto has now left open the possibility that he could leave the organization altogether via waiver claim.  A claiming club would have to cover the roughly $1.7MM remaining of Mayza’s remaining salary, and since the Jays would be eating that money in the event of a release, it is possible teams might choose to see if Mayza indeed hits the open market in order to save some cash.  That said, Mayza’s salary isn’t particularly onerous, so any number of teams with bullpen needs might very well be looking to put in a claim or to work out a trade with the Blue Jays during the DFA period.  As rough as Mayza’s performance has been in 2024, he could be an interesting change-of-scenery candidate, given his stronger career track record.

After a Tommy John surgery cost him the entire 2020 season, Mayza returned to post a 2.67 ERA over 155 relief innings from 2021-23, along with a 24.9% strikeout rate, 6.3% walk rate, and 58.3% groundball rate.  He has naturally been a lot better against left-handed batters than right-handed batters over his career, and even amidst his struggles this year, Mayza has held lefty swingers to a .280/.362/.360 slash line in 58 PA.  The batting average and OBP leave something to be desired, but at least this version of Mayza can still limit the power of left-handed hitters.

Since Mayza is also a Super Two player, he has another year of arbitration eligibility before hitting free agency following the 2025 season.  If Mayza joins another team and gets back to his old form, he suddenly becomes an inexpensive piece for a club’s roster next season as well.

Blue Jays relievers have a collective 4.78 ERA this season, ranking 28th of the 30 Major League bullpens.  Injuries to Jordan Romano and Yimi Garcia haven’t helped matters, but Romano was struggling even when not on the injured list, and both Mayza and Erik Swanson (who has been optioned to Triple-A) saw their production crater after impressive 2023 seasons.

Between the leaky bullpen, the inconsistent offense, and a starting rotation that pretty average across the board, not much as gone right for the Blue Jays as they have stumbled to a 37-44 record.  The Jays already parted ways with another struggling homegrown player in Cavan Biggio earlier this month when Biggio was traded to the Dodgers, and if Mayza is also traded or claimed away on waivers, the moves essentially act as harbingers that Toronto will be selling at the deadline.  GM Ross Atkins said two days ago that the Jays are still “focused on building the best possible team we can this year,” but “if we get to a point where we need to adjust, we’ll be prepared to do so.“

Cuas, who will celebrate his 30th birthday later this week, made his big league debut with the Royals back in 2022 but was traded to the Cubs in exchange for outfielder Nelson Velazquez at the trade deadline last summer. He was a decent middle reliever for the Royals during his time in Kansas City, pitching to a 4.08 ERA (106 ERA+) with a 4.41 FIP in 79 1/3 innings of work for the club between the 2022 and ’23 campaigns. Unfortunately for both Cuas and the Cubs, the wheels began to come off for the sidearming righty upon his arrival in Chicago last year.

While his 3.04 ERA in 27 appearances for the Cubs down the stretch last summer was actually fairly strong, it came with concerning peripherals. His strikeout rate dipped from a strong 27.1% during his time with the Royals last year to a worrisome 19% in Chicago, while his walk rate simultaneously ballooned from a manageable 10% figure in Kansas City all the way up to 14% for the north siders. While a strong 55.6% groundball rate allowed Cuas to keep the damage to a minimum, he was no longer looking the part of a quality middle relief option.

Things took an even worse turn for Cuas in 2024 when his groundball rate plummeted to just 31%. While his walk rate dropped down to a career-best 9.2% figure, that came at least in part as a result of opposing hitters teeing off Cuas pitches with a 14.3% barrel rate and a 45.2% Hard Hit rate. While Cuas’s strikeout rate crept back up to a more acceptable 21.5% this year, that still wasn’t enough to stop the right-hander from surrendering 12 runs (11 earned) in 13 1/3 innings of work for the Cubs this year, leaving him with a 7.43 ERA and a 5.99 FIP.

Despite those deep struggles during his time in Chicago, it’s not hard to see why the Blue Jays would want to take a chance on the righty. After all, when Cuas’s arsenal is working well, his sinker/slider combo allows him to strike out around a quarter of the batters he faces while keeping walks to a clip of around 10% and eliciting grounders on around half of his batted balls. That’s certainly the profile of a valuable pitcher, even though Cuas has not been able to put it all together at the big league level yet during his career.

Even if he isn’t able to reach that potential, the right-hander still provides the Blue Jays with an optionable relief arm on a minimum salary who can be shuttled from Triple-A to the majors as necessary. That’s a valuable commodity for any bullpen, but especially for a Blue Jays bullpen that has posted a league-worst 4.83 FIP to this point in the 2024 campaign. Should the club turn to Cuas at some point, he’d likely factor into the middle relief mix alongside the likes of Zach Pop and Genesis Cabrera.

Roberts signed a minor league deal with Chicago back in December, and he had an opt-out in that contract on June 15, according to The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma.  Since Sharma indicated that Roberts chose to pass on that opt-out, it could be that he already had some advance notice that the Cubs were going to call him up soon to the majors, and the righty is now in line to receive his first MLB action since April 2022.

Roberts made his big league debut that season and posted an 8.22 ERA over 7 2/3 innings in the Show before injuries derailed his career.  A Tommy John surgery in June 2022 kept Roberts on the shelf for the entirety of the 2023 season, and he only officially got back on the hill last month.  Roberts has thrown 11 1/3 scoreless innings across three minor league levels — 9 2/3 IP with with Triple-A Iowa (9 2/3 IP), two-third of an inning in one Double-A game, and one inning of Arizona Complex League ball — but the spotless ERA masks the fact that Roberts has issued eight walks in those 11 1/3 frames.

Even though Roberts also had an inflated walk rate during his brief cup of coffee as a big leaguer, the control issues are a new problem for a pitcher who did a good job of limiting free passes earlier in his minor league career.  It could be that Roberts was simply working off the rust after his long layoff, and the Cubs were still satisfied enough to select Roberts’ contract and add a fresh arm to their bullpen.  For his minor league career as a whole, Roberts has a 2.84 ERA, 26.25% strikeout rate, and 7.08% walk rate across 139 2/3 innings (almost all as a reliever) since the Cubs made him a fourth-round pick in the 2018 draft.

Cuas has been optioned back and forth from Triple-A a few times this season, amassing a 7.43 ERA in 13 1/3 big league innings.  Acquired from the Royals prior to last year’s trade deadline, Cuas has a 4.26 ERA in 116 1/3 career MLB frames since the start of the 2022 season, but control has also been an issue given his 12.1% walk rate.

Since Cuas is also still optionable for the 2025 season, rival teams might be interested in a waiver claim in order to add another reliever to their depth chart for more than just the current campaign.  Cuas (who turns 30 later this month) has upped his strikeout numbers considerably over the last two seasons but has also had a subsequent spike in his walk rate.

It’s not yet clear how much time Alzolay is expected to miss, though there seems to be some level of worry. Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune relays word from manager Craig Counsell on X, with the skipper saying the righty became sore during yesterday’s game in Pittsburgh and is getting imaging today. Per Counsell’s framing, since Alzolay is getting testing and has been immediately placed on the IL before the team even has the results, it indicates a level of concern.

The full results of the testing will provide more details on the severity and the timing, but there’s always some uneasiness when a pitcher’s throwing arm is involved. This also isn’t Alzolay’s first IL stint of this nature, as he missed about two weeks in September last year, also due to a right forearm strain.

He’s also experienced a drop off in results. He broke out as the Cubs’ closer last year, something MLBTR covered in August. He finished the year with a 2.67 earned run average in 64 innings. He struck out 26.5% of batters faced while giving out walks just 5.1% of the time and getting grounders on 42.2% of balls in play. He racked up 22 saves in the process.

Here in 2024, he has a 4.67 ERA through 18 appearances. His walk rate is up to 8% and his strikeout rate is way down to 17.3%. The velocity is down a bit on all five of his pitches, per Statcast. He was bumped out of the closer’s role a few weeks back, with Counsell saying that “we’ve got to get Adbert some confidence.”

Time will tell whether this is just a blip or a significant setback, but it should be a challenge for the Cubs either way. Their injured list already featured six pitchers before today, with Caleb Kilian, Jordan Wicks, Yency Almonte, Julian Merryweather, Daniel Palencia and Drew Smyly now joined by Alzolay. The club’s relief core has a combined ERA of 4.58 for the year, which places them 24th in the league. As the injuries continue piling up, it will be harder for the club to improve upon that mark.

For now, Héctor Neris has taken over the closer’s role, with six saves already. He has an even ERA of 3.00 on the year despite walking more batters than he has struck out. He has an 18.6% strikeout rate and 20% walk rate. A 52.4% ground ball rate has helped him strand 86.5% of runners and keep his ERA down, but his 5.27 FIP and 5.75 SIERA suggest he may be on shaky ground. Mark Leiter Jr. has an excellent 0.53 ERA on the year with strong peripherals. He can’t keep stranding 84.2% of baserunners but his 2.14 FIP and 3.24 SIERA are still strong. Pitchers like Colten Brewer and Richard Lovelady may also have to factor into the setup mix until other arms get healthy.

May 11: The Cubs plan to activate right-hander Kyle Hendricks from the 15-day injured list tomorrow, manager Craig Counsell told reporters (including Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun Times) following tonight’s game. He’ll start tomorrow’s game against the Pirates opposite left-hander Bailey Falter. The Cubs will need to make space for Hendricks on the active roster prior to the game.

Right-hander Jameson Taillon was initially expected to start tomorrow’s game, but Counsell told reporters (as noted by Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune) earlier today that the right-hander was dealing with a bout of back stiffness that cropped up during a bullpen session on Tuesday. While Counsell indicated after the game that Taillon’s bullpen session today went well, he nonetheless is “not quite ready” to start another game. With left-hander Shota Imanaga lined up to start Monday’s series opener in Atlanta, that would put Taillon in line to potentially take the ball opposite the Braves on Tuesday.

That Taillon won’t require another trip to the injured list is surely a relief for Cubs fans. The right-hander missed the first three weeks of the season with lower back and quad issues but has been excellent in four starts since being activated off the IL, with a 1.13 ERA and 3.52 FIP in 24 innings of work. On the other hand, it’s somewhat surprising to see Hendricks activated off the injured list so quickly. While the right-hander has been on a rehab assignment since the start of May, the club had previously indicated that the plan was for Hendricks to make a third rehab start this weekend before determining next steps. That plan now appears to have been scuttled in favor of Hendricks returning to the club’s rotation.

Rushing the veteran back into action at the big league level is a risky decision after his start to the season. The 34-year-old righty was placed on the injured list at the end of April due to a lower back issue of his own after making five starts, the results of which were nothing short of brutal. Hendricks has yet to record an out in the sixth inning in any of his appearances this season, and has completed the fifth inning just once while striking out just 15.1% of batters faced. While his 6.6% walk rate is more or less in line with his career norms, he’s allowed a whopping eight home runs this season en route to a ghastly 12.00 ERA and 7.72 FIP in 21 innings of work. MLBTR’s Anthony Franco explored Hendricks’s tough start in depth shortly before the club placed him on the IL last month.

Assuming Taillon is able to slot back into the club’s rotation next week and Hendricks will remain in the mix for starts for the time being, the Cubs figure to have an overflow of starting pitching options for their rotation at the moment. Right-hander Ben Brown has already moved into a bullpen role after starting four games for the club earlier this year, and lefty Jordan Wicks is currently on the injured list while nursing a forearm strain, but that still leaves Imanaga, Justin Steele, Javier Assad, and Hayden Wesneski in the mix for starts alongside Taillon and Hendricks, to say nothing of top prospect Cade Horton lurking at the Triple-A level.

Assuming an injury within that group doesn’t solve the logjam organically, the Cubs appear likely to either utilize a six-man rotation or simply move Wesneski to the bullpen, where he would pair with Brown to form a lethal multi-inning duo who could be used in a variety of roles to bolster a struggling relief corps. Assad also has relief experience on his resume, but it would be something of a shock to see the Cubs move the 26-year-old out of the rotation given sensational start to the season that’s seen him pitch to a 1.70 ERA in eight starts. It’s also possible that if Hendricks’s struggles continue the club could look to remove him from the rotation, although his lone relief appearance at the big league level came all the way back in 2016.

Stroman, 32, got off to a great start this year, as he carried a 2.28 earned run average after his start on June 20. With him succeeding and the club floundering, he became a popular trade candidate leading up to the deadline but their fortunes have flipped in recent weeks. Stroman has allowed 30 earned runs in 30 innings over his last seven starts as the Cubs have surged back into contention, eventually deciding to buy instead of sell. They held onto Stroman and Cody Bellinger, in addition to acquiring Jeimer Candelario.

Now the club will have to proceed with their postseason race without Stroman, at least for a little while. He told reporters today, including Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times, that he received a cortisone shot and the plan is for him to miss just one start. If he can get back to health and back to his previous form, that would obviously be a boon to the club.

For now, they will proceed with a rotation of Justin Steele, Drew Smyly, Jameson Taillon and Kyle Hendricks. They will need a fifth starter at some point, which could be Hayden Wesneski, though he’s been pitching out of the big league bullpen of late. Some of the other options on the 40-man roster include Ben Brown and Caleb Kilian. They are currently three games back in the National League Wild Card race.

Stroman is in the second season of a three-year deal that he signed with the Cubs prior to 2022. He can opt out of the final year of that pact, leaving $21MM on the table. If he returns healthy and effective, it should be an easy decision for him to turn that down and secure himself a larger guarantee on the open market this winter. If the issue were to linger into the offseason, that could perhaps change his calculus, though there’s been nothing to suggest that’s likely to be the case.

Cuas, 29, bounced around the minors before cracking Kansas City’s roster last summer. He has made 92 appearances in middle relief over the past two seasons. The right-hander owns a 4.08 ERA across 79 1/3 career innings. He has seen a big jump in whiffs year-over-year, pushing his strikeout rate from a modest 18.9% as a rookie to 27.1% this season. He’s picking up swinging strikes on an above-average 13.3% of his offerings.

The University of Maryland product works with a sinker-slider mix from a lower arm slot. He doesn’t throw especially hard but has missed plenty of bats with his low-80s slider. He’ll step into the middle innings mix and can bounce between Chicago and Triple-A Iowa for a while. He still has two minor league options year remaining and won’t be eligible for arbitration until at least after the 2024 campaign.

In exchange, the Royals get a look at Velázquez. A right-handed hitting outfielder, he picked up some prospect attention on the strength of his power potential early in his career. The former fifth-round draftee struggled to a .205/.286/.373 line while striking out almost 32% of the time in 77 games as a rookie last season. He has mashed in a small big league sample this year but spent the bulk of the season with Iowa.

Over 330 trips to the dish there, the 24-year-old Velázquez owns a .253/.333/.469 batting line. He’s connected on 16 home runs but struck out in just under 30% of his plate appearances. He’s playing mostly center field but has generally been viewed as a better fit for a corner by prospect evaluators.

In recent years, the Royals have rolled the dice on a few upper level outfielders with above-average tools but swing-and-miss concerns. Kansas City has given looks to the likes of Edward Olivares and Drew Waters. Velázquez has a generally similar profile and will compete for reps in an uncertain outfield at Kauffman Stadium. He has one minor league option beyond this season and is at least two years away from arbitration.

Cox, 26, was Kansas City’s fifth-round pick out of Mercer University back in 2018. He’s opened the season with 20 1/3 innings of 2.21 ERA ball but a 22-to-11 K/BB ratio in Omaha. Cox is currently sporting a career-best 53.5% ground-ball rate in this year’s small sample of innings — a stark increase from the 37.5% mark he posted in 147 2/3 innings of Triple-A ball in 2022. Last season, Cox worked to a 4.21 ERA in Omaha, fanning just 16.2% of opponents but posting a strong 7.7% walk rate.

During the Royals’ most recent rebuilding effort, they spent a couple years putting an emphasis on college pitchers early in the draft, and Cox is a product of that strategy. It hasn’t panned out yet for Kansas City, however, as they’ve yet to produce a reliable big league starter from the experiment. Brady Singer certainly looked to be that during a breakout 2022 season, but he’s been torched for 28 earned runs in 29 2/3 innings this season. Other notable college draftees include Bubic, Daniel Lynch, Jackson Kowar, Asa Lacy, Alec Marsh, Grant Gambrell and Jonathan Bowlan, among others, but the development on that group simply hasn’t gone as hoped, whether due to injury or poor performance.

The Royals didn’t announce Cox as a starter for any of their upcoming games, so he could well head to the bullpen for his initial MLB assignment. That said, Kansas City starting pitchers have combined for a ghastly 5.80 ERA on the season, so there ought to be ample opportunity for Cox to eventually break into the group. Brad Keller and the injured Bubic —  who’ll miss the rest of the season following Tommy John surgery — are the only Royals starters with ERAs under 6.00. Zack Greinke (6.10), Jordan Lyles (6.11), Singer (8.49) and Ryan Yarbrough (7.40) have all struggled enormously to begin the year.

Greinke is the only one of the three IL players who is going to the 15-day IL with a designated issue, implying that Peacock and Speier are on the COVID-related injury list.  Isbel had also been on the COVID list due to virus symptoms, though it ended up being a non-COVID illness that sidelined the outfielder for four days.

Greinke is suffering from a right flexor strain, and the veteran righty recently told MLB.com’s Anne Rogers and other reporters that he has been dealing with related soreness for “a little bit.”  While any injury in the forearm or elbow area is a red flag, Greinke added that he has been dealing with some degree of elbow problems for years, so it’s possible that a 15-day absence might be all it takes for Greinke to heal up.

The injury could explain Greinke’s lack of success in his last four starts, as the former Cy Young Award winner has a 9.50 ERA in his last 18 innings of work.  His ERA now sits at 5.05 over 51 2/3 innings, with only a minuscule 11.2% strikeout rate.  Between this lack of whiffs and a lot of hard contact allowed, there isn’t much to like about Greinke’s numbers apart from his typically excellent walk rate (4.5%).

Vizcaino is on the verge of his first MLB appearance since the 2019 season, when he tossed four innings for the Braves before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery.  The veteran didn’t return to the field at all until 2021, when he tossed 7 2/3 innings with the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate, and Vizcaino then inked a minor league with the Royals this past winter.

After essentially three full years off, it’s hard to know what to expect from Vizcaino in his return to the Show, though he was a very capable bullpen arm for Atlanta in his heyday.  He has also looked quite good with Triple-A Omaha, posting a 1.76 ERA and 29.7% strikeout rate in 15 1/3 innings.  Vizcaino’s 9.4% walk rate is a little on the high side, but actually an improvement over his career 10.8% walk rate at the big league level.

The 27-year-old Cuas has finally reached the majors after a pro career that has seen him bounce around the minors and independent leagues, and change his position entirely from infielder to pitcher.  An 11th-round draft pick by the Brewers in 2015, Cuas wasn’t getting anywhere as a position player, but his fortunes changed after converting to relief pitching in 2018.  Over 126 2/3 career innings in the minors, Cuas has a 2.63 ERA, with a sidearm delivery and a sinker-slider combo that induces a lot of grounders and a good amount (22.22%) of strikeouts.