The Cubs in advance of baseball's Winter Meetings have been deep in talks with free agent reliever Brandon Morrow, and now Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports that a deal is in place ...
Morrow will have deal with cubs. Expected to be for 10 or 11M a year.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 10, 2017
Yahoo's Jeff Passan adds that it's a two-year contract with an option for a third. CBS Chicago's Bruce Levine was first to report that the two sides were in serious discussions.
Morrow, 33, is coming off a stellar season with the NL-champion Dodgers. In 43 2/3 innings, Morrow pitched to a 2.06 ERA/204 ERA+ with a 5.56 K/BB ratio and no home runs allowed. He's made 113 starts in his career, but Morrow's been an exclusive reliever since 2016. His stuff has played up in that role, and if healthy he projects as a big bullpen asset for Chicago. Staying healthy, of course, will be the primary concern moving forward.
This continues the Cubs' effort to buttress the pitching staff. Already this offseason they've signed Tyler Chatwood to a three-year deal, and they're strongly linked to free agent starter Alex Cobb. It hasn't yet been a splashy winter for the reigning NL Central champs, but they're certainly addressing roster weaknesses.
