Why Astros Gave Up Cash to Trade for Cubs Pitching Prospect Nico Zeglin

The Houston Astros have a new pitcher in the minor league system and there’s a good reason why they made the deal.

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In the offseason, every deal has some value to a Major League team. The Houston Astros made an under-the-radar trade that has the potential to pay big dividends.

The Astros traded for Chicago Cubs pitching prospect Nico Zeglin, a deal revealed on Thursday on Zeglin’s MiLB.com page. MLB teams don’t typically announce minor league or prospect deals unless they’re attached to deals involving Major League players. In return, the Cubs received cash, $250,000 in international bonus pool money, per Francys Romero on X (formerly Twitter). Chicago may have a big-time prospect in mind by acquiring that cash. Zeglin was the price to be paid.

On the surface, the deal means little. Down the road, it could mean a lot.

About Nico Zeglin

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Zeglin didn’t pitch in 2025 due to injury. He joined the Cubs in 2024 as an undrafted free agent after he played his college baseball at Long Beach State. He went undrafted even though he was named second-team all-America by two different outlets and the Big West Conference pitcher of the year. He went 8-4 in 15 starts, with a 2.00 ERA in 94.2 innings. He struck out 117 and walked 27 and allowed a .202 opponent batting average.

That wasn’t enough to entire a Major League team to draft him. But the Cubs signed him and shipped him off to Class-A Myrtle Beach and then High-A South Bend, where he dominated hitters in 2024.

He appeared mostly in relief, pitching in 25 games with four starts. He went 7-0 with a 0.95 ERA, including two holds and three saves in four chances. He struck out 90 and walked 16 and allowed batters to hit .165. He gave up just 10 runs, seven of which were earned. He was named the Midwest League pitcher of the week while with South Bend and was named a Carolina League postseason all-star with Myrtle Beach.  

The Astros have assigned the 25-year-old Zeglin to their High-A affiliate at Fayetteville, perhaps a nod to the fact that he’s ready to hit the mound at some point in 2026. While at South Bend, which is comparable competition, he went 2-0 with a 0.33 ERA in nine games (two starts), with 33 strikeouts and nine walks in 27.2 innings. He also allowed batters to hit .149 against him.

He showed some obvious polish in the Cubs’ system, and how quickly he progresses through the Astros’ system will be defined early by how far he’s recovered from his injury. Long-term, he appears to have the stuff to be a high-leverage set-up man, or even a closer, at the Major League level. But he probably needs two more years to prepare. That’s why they made the move.

Time will tell if that’s worth a reported $250,000 in international bonus money.