MLB trade grades: Cubs bullpen revamp spells doom for Patrick Wisdom

There are several reasons as to why the Chicago Cubs failed to meet expectations this past season, but one area of their roster that underperformed was the bullpen. Chicago's bullpen ERA wasn't bad, but they blew 26 saves, tied for eighth-most in the majors.

Craig Counsell stuck with struggling relievers like Adbert Alzolay and Hector Neris until he couldn't anymore mainly because of the lack of talent in the bullpen. For the Cubs to get back to the postseason in 2025, Jed Hoyer was going to have to improve that part of the roster.

It's safe to say that Hoyer got off to a good start in that regard, as the Cubs have reportedly acquired former Cleveland Guardians reliever Eli Morgan in a trade, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. The Cubs are sending outfield prospect Alfonsin Rosario to the Guardians in this trade, per The Athletic's Sahadev Sharma.

To make room for Morgan on their roster, the Cubs made the decision to finally part ways with Patrick Wisdom, who has been designated for assignment.

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MLB trade grades: Cubs bullpen addition ends Patrick Wisdom's time in Chicago

Wisdom getting DFA'd comes as little surprise. The 33-year-old had three straight seasons of at least 23 home runs prior to the 2024 campaign, but he hit just eight home runs in 74 games this past season while slashing .171/.237/.392. He can provide value thanks to his power and his ability to play both corner infield spots, but with how poorly he played last season and the infield depth that the Cubs have, it makes sense that the Cubs didn't want to pay him what Spotrac estimates would've been over $2.7 million in his second year of arbitration.

It's a little sad that Wisdom's five-year Cubs tenure ended this way, but the sadness that comes from that can be taken away when knowing that the player who replaced his spot on the roster was Morgan, a very underrated and solid reliever.

Morgan flew under the radar this past season in large part because the entire Guardians bullpen was elite, but what Morgan was able to do cannot be ignored. The right-hander had a 1.93 ERA in 32 appearances and 42 innings of work.

He doesn't throw particularly hard and doesn't strike many batters out, but he's been an effective reliever for the majority of his four-year MLB career. What makes Morgan really fascinating is he's able to go multiple innings if needed. He recorded more than three outs 16 times this past season, going as far as 2.2 innings in an outing. Morgan was also used as early as the second inning and as late as the ninth inning during the regular season.

The 28-year-old is projected to make just under $1 million in his first year of arbitration according to Spotrac, and is under control through the 2027 campaign. The Cubs didn't just get themselves a useful reliever for 2025, but Morgan should play an integral role for years to come.

He probably won't close for the Cubs, but Morgan's ability to pitch in just about any situation and provide length if needed can come in handy. He won't blow hitters away, but suppresses hard contact at a high level, and again, is simply reliable. There's a reason why he was a big part of this dominant Guardians bullpen.

To get you have to give, though, and the Cubs did part with an intriguing prospect, Alfonsin Rosario - their No. 21 prospect per MLB Pipeline. Rosario, a 20-year-old, likely won't be close to MLB-ready for at least a couple of years, but he flashed an impressive combination of power and speed this past season, hitting 16 home runs and stealing 20 bases in 109n games for Single-A Myrtle Beach.

He did strike out 147 times in just 456 plate appearances played, which is pretty problematic, but the raw potential is there. If there's a team you should be willing to bet on making a prospect pan out, it should be the Guardians based on all of the homegrown talent in that organization.

While Rosario is intriguing, it's hard not to love this for the Cubs. They got an established reliever to fit into their bullpen and only had to part with a prospect who is nowhere near the majors and happens to have been just one of a slew of outfield prospects in their system. Somewhat deal for Cleveland, and they deserve the benefit of the doubt based on their track record, but this feels like a clear win for Jed Hoyer and the Cubs.

Cubs trade grade: A-
Guardians trade grade: C+