Reports: The Kansas City Royals have won the race against rivals to sign experienced top star to the team……Read more

According to Darren Wolfson of KSTP and SKOR North Radio, the Cubs have reached an agreement with right-handed pitcher Josh Staumont, who recently became a free agency. Staumont was recently released by the Twins after the team designated him for assignment on their roster. He will be moving to Iowa, where the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate is located.

After pitching for Minnesota for 24 and a half innings, Staumont, who is 30 years old, had a respectable earned run average of 3.70. In spite of a terrible strikeout and walk rate, he was able to achieve that run-prevention milestone despite the fact that his velocity had significantly decreased from its peak levels.

Right-handed pitcher who had previously played for the Twins and Royals only struck out 17.6% of his opponents, which is far lower than the league average and significantly lower than the 26.2% mark he carried into the season.

A decrease in the number of strikeouts did not coincide with an improvement in command. Staumont, who walked 13% of his opponents when playing for the Royals between the years 2019 and 23; while playing for the Twins, he gave a free pass to 13.7% of his opponents. Compared to his baseline ERA, his SIERA of 5.06 paints a picture that is significantly less positive.

Despite having a command that was below average, Staumont appeared to be making a name for himself as a reliable part of the Kansas City bullpen in the 2020-21 season.

After pitching 91 and a half innings out of the Royals’ bullpen between those two seasons, the player who was selected in the second round in 2015 went on to record a 2.76 earned run average, an excellent 29% strikeout percentage, and a 11.4% walk rate. In the year 2020, Staumont achieved an average speed of more than 98 miles per hour, and in the year 2021, he came close to achieving 97 miles per hour.

The injuries, on the other hand, have taken their toll since then. Since 2021, he has been sidelined due to injuries to his biceps, knee, calf, and neck. Additionally, he had to undergo thoracic outlet surgery in the summer of 2023, which brought an end to his 2023 season.

Over the course of the offseason, the Twins signed Staumont to a free agent contract worth $950,000 for a period of one year. They are responsible for the remaining portion, with the exception of the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the Cubs’ big league roster (which Chicago would pay).

In the event that Staumont is able to make it to the major leagues with the Cubs and impresses them, he will be available for arbitration once more over the winter of this year, and as a result, he may be retained through the 2025 season.