Chicago Cubs: 3 free agents to sign, and 1 to avoid

There will be plenty of pitchers looking to cash in on solid statlines in the shortened 60-game season, and a former No. 4 overall pick in Gausman is chief among them. Arguably the hardest-throwing starting pitcher on the market this winter, Gausman put up a 3.62 ERA in 59.2 innings for Gabe Kapler’s Giants. A pitcher like Gausman that is about to turn 30 will have no shortage of suitors in the coming months, but the Cubs need to remember what his prior history was before this season.

If Gausman leaves the Giants, he will join his fifth team in 2.5 years. In a 2019 season that was split between Atlanta and Cincinnati, he only could manage a 5.72 ERA, and that performance led to a bullpen demotion as a member of the Reds. Taking a shot on him as a back of the rotation pitcher is acceptable, but getting seduced by the velocity and giving him frontline starter money could end up being a disaster.