Cubs reportedly signing veteran righty Kenta Maeda

Lon Horwdel - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese - Senior Writer - 12 hours ago

You can tell that this season's Chicago Cubs team has a different vibe to them as they are playing with more urgency than in the past. Yes, they have gotten off to a great start, but they are also starting to see their injuries pile up, which could end up haunting them sooner rather than later.

Instead of taking the cautious approach and doing just enough to get by, the Cubs have already called the likes of Chris Flexen, Cade Horton, and Moises Ballesteros from the Minors as they aren't messing around this season. Another thing they have done is continue to add depth across the board, which is something Jed Hoyer is very familiar with, and that continued with another under-the-radar move late Thursday that could impact this team at some point this summer.

In case you missed it, Former Detroit Tigers right-hander Kenta Maeda and the Cubs have agreed on a Minor League deal as Maeda will now report to Iowa. While the terms of this contract haven't been released, you have to think there is a Major League option tied in somehow, otherwise it seems highly unlikely that he would've taken a straight up Minor League deal.

Regardless of what many fans will feel about this deal from a number side of things, Maeda is a veteran arm with over a decade of success in the bigs and Japan. Anytime you can add a pitcher with that much experience, it's hard to pass up, and the Cubs now have another starting option to play with in Iowa to see what they have in him going forward.

Before arriving in the Majors, Maeda was one of the more successful pitchers in the NPB, going 97-67 across eight seasons and turning in a 2.39 ERA. That alone made him one of the more coveted Japanese arms in quite some time as he wound up signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers for a four-year deal before the start of 2016.

In his nine years since, the now 37-year-old has had plenty of success, but has also bounced around toward the end of his career, seeing time with the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers before being released this season. During his time, Maeda has posted a 68-56 record with a 4.10 ERA, all while missing all of 2022 with Tommy John.

Since returning from Tommy John, Maeda has seen his numbers start to decline, but some of that could also be attributed to his age. After going 6-8 with a 4.27 ERA with the Twins in 2023, Minnesota elected to let him walk, and he wound up signing a two-year deal with the Tigers last offseason.

His first season in Detroit didn't go well, going 3-7 with a 6.09 ERA, and it even got worse from there as he had a 7.88 ERA in eight innings this season, which is why he was released. It's clear from the past two seasons that his days as a reliable MLB arm could be over, but given this is a minor league deal, it's almost impossible to pass up.

When Maeda was at his best, he was viewed as a top-three starter in most rotations, going 16-11 as a rookie in 2016 and posting a 3.48 ERA that season. Those were career-best numbers for Maeda, although he did win double-digit games in three of his first four seasons before starting to fall off after the COVID-shortened 2020 season.

Ironically, the COVID year was the first time Maeda looked like an ace as he went 6-1 across 11 starts that season and posted an ERA below 2.8. That was why the Twins signed him, and had it not been for the struggles after the injury, there is a good chance he would still be in Minnesota today.

Not a hard thrower by any means, Maeda tends to sit in the 93-94 MPH range with his fastball, although that has dropped to 92 this season. He mixes in a steady dose of breaking pitches with the fastball, including his 87 MPH splitter that was seen as a true out pitch early on.

His lack of command has gotten Maeda in trouble in the past, as the high walk rates have led to an increase in pitch counts and shorter outings on the mound. With more traffic comes the chance to give up the big hit, as he has had an issue keeping the ball in the park at times.

It will be interesting to see the plans for Maeda now that he is in the Cubs system, but you should expect him to continue starting in Iowa. This could be more of a long-term play for Cade Horton should he reach his innings limit this season. Regardless, this is a low-risk deal for the Cubs and one that came out of nowhere.