It's been a day of trading in the MLB with Thanksgiving likely to put a pause on the offseason tomorrow. The Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians bolstered their bullpens having been involved with some deals on Wednesday.
The Cubs acquired Rex Brothers from the Colorado Rockies, the team announced on Twitter.
#Cubs have acquired LHP Rex Brothers from @Rockies for Minor League LHP Wander Cabrera. Welcome, @RexCBrothers! pic.twitter.com/gPM4sIT53T
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) November 25, 2015
Chicago had a number of relievers that recently became free agents, such as Jason Motte, Tommy Hunter, Fernando Rodney, Clayton Richard and Trevor Cahill, so the front office will be tasked with addressing that unit in addition to the starting rotation and outfield.
Brothers, 27, is in his first year of arbitration eligibility after spending the last six seasons in Colorado. The left-hander owns a career 3.42 ERA and 1.49 WHIP in 286 games (242 1/3 innings).
The Rockies get prospect pitcher Wander Cabrera in return. The 18-year-old made his professional debut this year as a 17-year-old and maintained a 2.34 ERA in 14 games (seven starts).
In Cleveland, the Indians acquired Kirby Yates from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for cash considerations. Jordan Bastian of MLB.com first reported the deal.
The #Rays have traded RHP Kirby Yates to the @Indians for cash considerations.
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) November 25, 2015
The Indians' Twitter account retweeted a bunch of other relative tweets to confirm the news. The team designated outfielder Michael Choice for assignment to make room for Yates on the 40-man roster.
Yates, 28, endured an impressive rookie campaign in 2014 when he maintained a 3.75 ERA and 1.33 WHIP while striking out 42 batters in 37 games (36 innings). However, he took a step back in 2015 after his ERA ballooned to a 7.97 in 20 games (20 1/3 innings). He gave up 10 home runs as well, compared to four in 2014.
Perhaps the Indians feel his sophomore slump was a fluke and expect him to provide value in 2016.
Stay tuned for more updates on trades as this action-packed day progresses.
