Joey Pollizze | Roundtable Sports

The Chicago Cubs have acquired a controllable starting pitcher.

The Cubs have made a surprising move to acquire Miami Marlins left-handed pitcher Braxton Garrett from the Miami Marlins. Chicago is sending No. 10 prospect Jonathon Long and No. 28 prospect Jace Beck back to Miami as part of the deal.

Full Trade Details:

Cubs Receive: Braxton Garrett

Marlins Receive: Jonathon Long (No. 10), Jace Beck (No. 28)

There were rumblings that the Marlins could be looking to trade Garrett at the deadline. The Cubs swoop in to grab a pitcher with multiple years of control remaining. The southpaw won’t become a free agent until after the 2028 season.

Garrett showed a ton of potential early in his career with the Marlins. He posted a 3.58 ERA and 90 strikeouts across 88 innings pitched during the 2022 season and finished with a 3.66 ERA and 156 strikeouts in 159 ⅔ innings pitched in 2023. The 28-year-old left-hander was quickly emerging as a reliable starter in the league.

Then, his 2024 season was cut short after undergoing an internal brace procedure on his ulnar collateral ligament (UCL). He only made seven starts that year and missed the entire 2025 campaign as he worked his way back from that elbow surgery.

Garrett has finally returned to the mound this season, where he has posted solid numbers at Triple-A Jacksonville. He has a 2.90 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, and 83 strikeouts across 77 ⅔ innings pitched. His underlying metrics also show how impressive he has been in his first season back from elbow surgery.

The new Cubs pitcher has a .179 expected batting average against, a .279 expected slugging percentage, an 85.5 mph average exit velocity, a 26.8% strikeout rate, a 32.4% chase rate, a 36.6% whiff rate, a 62.8% zone-swing rate, and a 16.7% swinging-strike rate in Triple-A.

Obviously, these metrics are coming at the Triple-A level, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Garrett has the swing-and-miss stuff to succeed in the big leagues again. Back during the 2022 season, he had an elite 33.4% chase rate to go with an above-average 26.8% whiff rate and a 24.1% strikeout rate.

Garrett has struggled in his two Major League starts this year, allowing five runs across 1 ⅓ innings against the Twins on May 14 and giving up two runs across three innings against the Braves on May 19. However, this has the makings to be a sneaky pickup by the Cubs.

Jed Hoyer and company are always trying to find under-the-radar pitchers to acquire. Garrett certainly fits under that category. The Cubs hope to fix him up a bit and help him reach his full potential over the next 2 ½ seasons.

The two prospects the Cubs are giving back to Miami are Long and Beck. Both prospects are on the older side, as Long will turn 25 years old in January, and Beck just turned 26 years old in June.

Long was blocked at first baseman by Michael Busch, so getting rid of him at the deadline made a lot of sense. He had a .283 batting average 12 home runs, 30 doubles, and 62 RBI across 99 games with the Iowa Cubs.

Beck is having a strong season on the mound. He has a 3.62 ERA and 116 strikeouts across 74 2/3 innings pitched at Double-A and Triple-A this season. The Cubs signed Beck to a Minor League contact in the fall and flip him at the deadline.

Garrett gives the Cubs some starting pitcher depth in the minors and could be a rotation option for the team next year.