Cubs Could Circle Back to Marlins Pitchers During Winter Meetings
The Winter Meetings start tomorrow, which typically supercharges the offseason. The hot stove continues to spit out rumor after rumor, with one of the latest regarding the Miami Marlins and their starting pitching availability. I feel like a broken record with how many pieces I’ve written about the Cubs’ search for starters, but that’s likely to be the theme of this offseason until they solidify their rotation with at least one more arm.
We once again look back to the 2025 trade deadline, when the Cubs were involved with many different teams in hopes of acquiring a starter for the playoff race. That didn’t happen, but there were plenty of discussions with the Marlins. The Cubs were close to trading for Jesús Luzardo before the season, a deal that was scuttled by concerns over his medicals, then they workshopped deals for both Sandy Alcántara and Edward Cabrera in July.
Jed Hoyer will have the opportunity to restart negotiations with counterpart Peter Bendix, as Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon have reported that the Marlins are listening to offers on all of their starting pitchers other than Eury Pérez. The Athletic reported that Ryan Weathers has received a lot of interest from other teams, but his injury-riddled 2025 season creates some hesitation. Alcántara had a 5.36 ERA and 1.27 WHIP, but a strong second half showed that he could bounce back to his previous ace-level performance.
Cabrera made a name for himself this past year with 150 strikeouts in 137.2 innings. His fastball sits around 97 mph, but he throws his changeup and curve more frequently and gets lots of grounders in addition to whiffs. Even if he only threw his offspeed pitch, its 94.2 mph average would make him the second-hardest thrower in the Cubs rotation. A sprained right elbow caused Cabrera to miss three weeks late in the season, but he made two starts at the end of September and the upside he offers is worth the risk.
One last name that I wanted to briefly discuss is Max Meyer. A top prospect after being drafted third overall in 2020, Meyer has yet to stay healthy for a full season. He’s had Tommy John surgery, shoulder issues, more elbow issues, and then hip surgery in 2025. Because of the extreme health risk, the price to acquire him should be very reasonable. Adding him to a deal with someone like Cabrera would be genius, as Meyer could throw out of the bullpen until a spot opens up in the rotation.
The offseason is a time to be creative with roster construction, which is right up Hoyer’s alley. There are still 75 days until spring training games begin, but those 10-plus weeks will go by quickly as teams jostle to get ready for the 2026 season.
