Former Chicago Cubs Pitcher Signed by New York Yankees in Late Move

After the Chicago Cubs outrighted one of their pitchers this offseason, he has found a new home with the New York Yankees after refusing that assignment.

May 8, 2018; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Rob Zastryzny (29) pitches during a game against the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field / Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

It's easy to forget about the early offseason additions the Chicago Cubs made after they brought in two high-profile stars later in the winter, but those players who were originally added are also major reasons why this team is being viewed as NL Central favorites.

With a massive need in the bullpen, Jed Hoyer wasted little time making upgrades.

One of those was claiming Rob Zastryzny off waivers after he was designated for assignment by the Milwaukee Brewers in the early stages of the offseason.

Seen as someone who could be a left-handed weapon for the Cubs, he became one of the causalities when the front office got aggressive to add other pieces to their bullpen. And on Feb. 4, he was designated for assignment before going unclaimed in the waiver process this time around.

Chicago then outrighted him to their Triple-A affiliate, but based on service time, he was able to reject that assignment and elected to become a free agent in search of an opportunity elsewhere.

Zastryzny has found it.

In an announcement made by the New York Yankees, they revealed they signed the left-hander to a minor league contract that includes an invite to their Major League Spring Training camp.

If the 32-year-old can have a good showing, there is a real chance he can become a featured part of their bullpen because the Yankees only have one left-hander on their active relief staff.

Zastryzny hasn't quite shown consistency at the MLB level, sitting with a 4.30 ERA across his 54 outings that includes five starts in his six big league seasons, but his ERA+ is four points above the league average, so he's at least been serviceable.

As for the Cubs, they likely would have enjoyed keeping him around.

They know how poorly the arms in their bullpen have performed the past two years, so the more options they have at their disposal, the better the situation is entering the 2025 campaign.

However, the front office has also done a good job of making significant upgrades to this unit, so not having Zastryzny in the mix isn't detrimental.

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