Chicago Cubs Trade Promising Relief Pitcher to New York Yankees

The Chicago Cubs have traded a young reliever to the New York Yankees.
Feb 16, 2024; Mesa, AZ, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Michael Arias (82) throws in the bullpen during Spring Training camp at Sloan Park.
Feb 16, 2024; Mesa, AZ, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Michael Arias (82) throws in the bullpen during Spring Training camp at Sloan Park. / Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images
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The Chicago Cubs have officially moved on from a pitcher that was designated for assignment earlier this week after signing Colin Rea to the pitching staff.

On Monday afternoon, the New York Yankees announced that they had completed a trade to acquire former Cubs pitcher Michael Arias in exchange for cash considerations.

Arias is a young pitching prospect, that was originally an international signing out of the Dominican Republic back ahead of the 2018 season.

He was originally signed as a shortstop, but got released before making an appearance. They brought him back as a pitcher in 2021.

The 23-year-old has a career 4.25 ERA in the minor leagues, making his Triple-A debut last season. Moving on from him isn't because he hasn't shown promise, but he also hasn't shown any improvements over the last few years.

He averaged 7.2 walks per nine innings last season. Control has always been an issue for him. On the plus side, he has 11.2 K/9, so it makes sense that someone would want to take a chance for him.

Given that he was originally a position player, the developments he has made could be extra promising.

Arias is also fairly undersized at just 6-foot, 155 pounds. Some teams are wary of the durability of smaller pitchers, given the increase in pitcher injuries over the years. It also certainly limits him to a bullpen role.

He was the No. 18 overall prospect in the Chicago farm system, per the MLB pipeline rankings, so it a bit of a shock to see the team move on from him so young.


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Dylan Sanders
DYLAN SANDERS

Dylan Sanders graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree from the Manship School of Mass Communication in 2023. He was born in raised in Baton Rouge, LA but has also lived in Buffalo, NY. Though he is a recent graduate, he has been writing about sports since he was in high school, covering different sports from baseball to football. While in college, he wrote for the school paper The Reveille and for 247Sports. He was able cover championships in football, baseball and women's basketball during his time at LSU. He has also spent a few years covering the NFL draft and every day activities of the New Orleans Saints. He is a Senior Writer at Inside the Marlins and will also be found across Sports Illustrated's baseball sites as a contributing writer. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram @dillysanders