Cubs Have Talked to David Robertson About Reunion

David Robertson will turn 40 on April 9 and he doesn’t have a strong connection to the Cubs, having spent just half a season on the North Side, but there could be mutual interest in a reunion. There are obvious anecdotal ties and Bruce Levine reported Thursday that the sides have discussed a return as the Cubs watch their relief options dwindle. They put in a significant bid on Tanner Scott that fell short, then saw Kirby Yates opt for the Dodgers as well. Paul Sewald, another potential target, joined the Guardians recently.

There was a little buzz Thursday evening when Bob Nightengale reported that the Cubs were on the verge of trading for Ryan Pressly, though that may have been a little premature. While a tentative agreement may be in place between the two teams, Pressly has yet to waive his no-trade clause. It’s probably in his best financial interest to do so, as the 36-year-old will hit free agency next year and would benefit more from racking up 30+ saves than he would 25+ holds.

Provided he’s able to get back to his performance from 2-4 years ago, that is. Robertson, on the other hand, has maintained or improved from his rebound with the Cubs in 2022 and is coming off a career-best 72 innings with the Rangers. He’s also throwing harder than ever, which is impressive at his age. Robertson’s cutter is among the best in baseball and he throws it almost two-thirds of the time for big strikeout numbers. If he can keep the above-average ride on that pitch, he’ll remain effective.

The only question is whether Robertson can still operate as a closer, a role he hasn’t held full-time since 2016 with the White Sox. But maybe he doesn’t need to close. Whether it’s as a mentor to Porter Hodge or a setup man for Pressly, Robertson feels like exactly the kind of veteran back-end pitcher the Cubs could use to round out a potent bullpen.

Let’s say Robertson lands a one-year deal for $10 million and the Cubs get Houston to pay down $2-4 million of Pressly’s deal. Add in the $2 million for Jon Berti which could stretch to $3.3 million with incentives and you’re bumping right up against the $25 million the Cubs saved in the Cody Bellinger trade. Jed Hoyer said his focus was on the bullpen and bench, and there’s no more fitting way for him to address those needs than with a trifecta of one-year deals for seasoned veterans.

Should they manage to add those two relievers — or any two from among a shrinking list of options — I’d imagine that’ll put a bow on the offseason. Operating under the assumption that they want to remain around $15-20 million under the first CBT level and/or a $200 million actual payroll means Hoyer has somewhere around $20 million left to spend ahead of spring training. Doing so would yield a significant upgrade to the ‘pen while leaving plenty of buffer for midseason acquisitions should the Cubs be in position to buy at the deadline.

I suspect we’ll hear more about these pursuits on Friday and throughout the weekend.