The Chicago Cubs are making up for the inactivity of the offseason with their signings during the season. This time, reliever Josh Staumont is joining the organization on a minor-league contract.
Before being DFA’d in July, he signed a one-year deal with the Minnesota Twins in the offseason. It’s surprising to see a pitcher of his caliber hit the open market in the middle of the season.
A 3.70 ERA should appeal to many teams looking for help in the bullpen. One team’s loss is another’s gain and the Cubs will look to capitalize just like they did when adding Jorge Lopez.
Our @DWolfsonKSTP hears that former #MNTwins reliever Josh Staumont is set to sign with the Chicago #Cubs organization. He'll report to AAA-Iowa Cubs. pic.twitter.com/wmEWdWIJhB
— KSTPSports (@KSTPSports) August 9, 2024
Staumont has an impressive pitching arsenal. While his strikeout rate is down, the Cubs see the potential, and rightfully so. His better seasons came as a member of the Kansas City Royals.
With a 27% K rate in 2023, there is optimism to believe that he can figure things out with the Cubs’ talented pitch lab. If Staumont can contribute to Triple-A Iowa, he should be up in no time.
He seems a perfect fit for what the team is looking for. If a pitcher has the talent, the Cubs can see potential in a guy that nobody else is seeing. Tyson Miller and Julian Merryweather are examples of this strategy.
With this signing, the Cubs are taking a little risk to see if they can get a large gain. While the bullpen has shown improvement, it never hurts to add another quality arm to the fold.
If Staumont comes up and contributes, he joins others in the bullpen who deserve to return in 2025. To Jed Hoyer’s credit, he didn’t make knee-jerk decisions to try and fix the problem. He was calculated with his midseason additions and they have worked to perfection.
