The Chicago Cubs were incredibly active on the trade market over the MLB offseason. They even pulled off arguably the biggest deal of the winter when they acquired Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros. While the Tucker acquisition was obviously a great one, it created a bit of a log jam in Chicago's outfield. Their solution to that dilemma was to trade Cody Bellinger to the New York Yankees.
Trading Bellinger made some sense considering his hefty contract and the fact that he was coming off a down year, but it felt at the time of the deal that the Cubs had essentially salary-dumped him. The Yankees ate most of the remaining money on his deal, but all the Cubs got was Cody Poteet, a pitcher who seemingly had little shot to make any sort of impact in Chicago.
Sure enough, Poteet wound up getting DFA'd by the Cubs and was just traded to the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. This trade really shows what Chicago's priorities were with the Bellinger deal.
Cody Poteet, who was acquired by the Cubs from the Yankees in the Cody Bellinger salary dump, has now been traded to the Baltimore Orioles strictly for cash considerations.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) March 29, 2025
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Cubs prove once and for all it was all about the money with Cody Bellinger trade
Again, there was reason to believe that the Cubs were only focused on the money at the time of the deal, but perhaps the Cubs really liked what they had seen from Poteet in New York. The team choosing to DFA him despite the right-hander having a pair of minor league options suggests they never really cared about acquiring him in the first place. It really was all about the money, which benefits nobody other than owner Tom Ricketts.
That, for a big market team like the Cubs, is unfortunate, especially with Bellinger getting off to a hot start on his new team.
MLB trade grades: Who won the Cubs-Orioles trade for Cody Poteet
As for the trade itself, it was hard to envision Chicago getting much of anything in exchange for a pitcher they had just DFA'd. Getting something, even if it's just cash considerations, is better than nothing, I suppose.
Still, it's hard not to like this deal from an Orioles perspective. Poteet has a 3.80 ERA in 24 appearances (13 starts) across parts of three MLB seasons. He might not be anything more than depth, but starting pitching depth is incredibly valuable in the modern game. The Orioles are dealing with a slew of starting pitching injuries, so Poteet gives them another arm to potentially turn to. Getting him essentially for nothing is good business, even if he's far from a game-changer.
Cubs trade grade: C-
Orioles trade grade: B