Headlines

  • Brewers Place Trevor Megill On IL Due To Flexor Strain, Sign Erick Fedde
  • Guardians Place Carlos Santana On Outright Waivers
  • Pirates Designate Andrew Heaney For Assignment
  • Astros Reinstate Yordan Alvarez From Injured List
  • Nathan Eovaldi Likely Out For Season Due To Rotator Cuff Strain
  • Mets To Promote Jonah Tong
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Rumors

MLB Trade Rumors

Remove Ads
  • Home
  • Teams
    • AL East
      • Baltimore Orioles
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Yankees
      • Tampa Bay Rays
      • Toronto Blue Jays
    • AL Central
      • Chicago White Sox
      • Cleveland Guardians
      • Detroit Tigers
      • Kansas City Royals
      • Minnesota Twins
    • AL West
      • Houston Astros
      • Los Angeles Angels
      • Oakland Athletics
      • Seattle Mariners
      • Texas Rangers
    • NL East
      • Atlanta Braves
      • Miami Marlins
      • New York Mets
      • Philadelphia Phillies
      • Washington Nationals
    • NL Central
      • Chicago Cubs
      • Cincinnati Reds
      • Milwaukee Brewers
      • Pittsburgh Pirates
      • St. Louis Cardinals
    • NL West
      • Arizona Diamondbacks
      • Colorado Rockies
      • Los Angeles Dodgers
      • San Diego Padres
      • San Francisco Giants
  • About
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Tim Dierkes
    • Writing team
    • Advertise
    • Archives
  • Contact
  • Tools
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2026-27 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Agency Database
  • NBA/NFL/NHL
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • App
  • Chats
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Cubs Sign Lucas Luetge To Minor League Deal

By Nick Deeds | August 7, 2024 at 6:14pm CDT

The Cubs have signed left-hander Lucas Luetge to a minor league deal, according to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. Luetge had spent the season in the Red Sox organization to this point but opted out of that arrangement last week.

A veteran of seven MLB seasons, the 37-year-old Luetge made his big league debut with Seattle back in 2012. The lefty spent four seasons shuttling between the majors and the minors with the Mariners, and during that time he posted a 4.35 ERA with a 4.27 FIP in 111 appearances in the majors with a similar 4.21 ERA across 94 appearances in the minors. Luetge’s middling numbers and a subpar 19% strikeout rate that he paired with an elevated 12.1% walk rate led the Mariners to outright him off their 40-man roster in September of 2015.

That outright kicked off a five-year stretch without appearing in the majors for Luetge. During those years, the southpaw bounced between the Reds, Orioles, Diamondbacks, and Angels organizations. He struggled badly with the Reds, Orioles, and Angels but enjoyed a resurgence at the Triple-A level with Arizona in 2019, pitching to a 3.14 ERA in 43 innings of work with a solid 25% strikeout rate at the highest level of the minors. The cancelled minor league season in 2020 prevented Luetge from building on that success, but the lefty finally landed another opportunity in the majors in 2021 when he made the Yankees’ Opening Day roster out of Spring Training.

While in the Bronx, the southpaw enjoyed the best seasons of his career and worked his way into being a preferred left-handed option for manager Aaron Boone while with the club for the 2021 and ’22 seasons. In 129 2/3 frames for the Yankees in those seasons, Luetge dominated to the tune of a 2.71 ERA with a 2.92 FIP while seeing massive improvements in his strikeout and walk rates as compared to his time in Seattle. He struck out 25% of batters faced for New York while walking just 5.8%, making him one of the more valuable relievers in the club’s bullpen during his tenure in the Bronx.

Given that status, it was something of a shock when the Yankees designated him for assignment early in the 2022-23 offseason. He was dealt to the Braves shortly thereafter and began the season in the Atlanta bullpen, although that stint was fairly short-lived as he allowed eleven runs in 9 2/3 innings of work in his first nine appearances as a Brave. The lefty was outrighted off the club’s 40-man roster but remained with the organization at the Triple-A level long enough to return to the majors down the stretch for four scoreless innings. The Braves did not retain him for the 2024 campaign, however, and that led him to a minor league deal with Boston. He pitched very well in his stint at Triple-A Worcester this year with a 3.02 ERA and 26.7% strikeout rate, but was unable to crack a fairly deep Red Sox bullpen that had plenty of left-handed options.

Fortunately for Luetge, it’s not difficult to imagine him finding greener pastures in Chicago. While the Cubs’ bullpen has been the best in baseball by ERA since June 1, the club has only veteran lefty Drew Smyly available as a left-handed option following a lat strain that’s likely to put fireballer Luke Little on the injured list for the remainder of the 2024 campaign. Veteran reliever Mark Leiter Jr. helped to fill in the gaps as a rare right-hander who pitched better against southpaws thanks to his impressive splitter, but Leiter was dealt to the Yankees ahead of the trade deadline. That leaves a fairly clear opening in Chicago’s bullpen for another southpaw, and it’s certainly possible to imagine the Cubs opting to give Luetge a look in the majors at some point during the stretch run.

Share 0 Retweet 0 Send via email0

Chicago Cubs Transactions Lucas Luetge

Denny Lemaster Passes Away
Main
Dodgers Place Brusdar Graterol On IL With Grade 1 Hamstring Strain
View Comments (6)
Post a Comment

6 Comments

  1. 'Tang It

    1 year ago

    Opted out of a minor league deal for his big chance at a… Well, a minor league deal.

    3
    Reply
    • GASoxFan

      1 year ago

      He was blackballed for whatever reason in Boston. They had pen issues, he was good in AAA. And rather than give him any shot, they went out and traded for 5.xx and 6.xx era guys.

      I’d assume playing time came up in the discussions.

      Reply
  2. Michael K. Igawa

    1 year ago

    He has a great story and he was a terrific Yankee. I love it when guys make it back to MLB after being gone for so long. Luck to him.

    2
    Reply
  3. Brick House Coffee Tables Inc

    1 year ago

    Break glass option if Smyly gets hurt, who can also eat some innings in Iowa.

    Reply
  4. Rynoshield

    1 year ago

    There are innings that need eaten at triple A. But you already knew that I’m sure

    Reply
  5. User 3222006999

    1 year ago

    As long as it’s a minor League deal it’s fine I guess. It’s better to have a guy and not need him him than need one and have none. With only Smyly for a LH since Leiter Jr. was traded. Leiter got Lefties out as well as Righties. Whatever slim chance the Cubs still have they might need him I guess. The only thing in their favor is the schedule. They’ve got 12 tough games left. 3 each with the Yankees, Dodgers, Guards, and Phillies who might be in shut down mode by then if they’ve clinched.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Brewers Place Trevor Megill On IL Due To Flexor Strain, Sign Erick Fedde

    Guardians Place Carlos Santana On Outright Waivers

    Pirates Designate Andrew Heaney For Assignment

    Astros Reinstate Yordan Alvarez From Injured List

    Nathan Eovaldi Likely Out For Season Due To Rotator Cuff Strain

    Mets To Promote Jonah Tong

    BBWAA To Institute Relief Pitcher Of The Year Award In 2026

    Zack Wheeler Recommended For Thoracic Outlet Syndrome Surgery

    Frankie Montas Done For 2025 Due To “Pretty Significant” UCL Injury

    Orioles Extend Samuel Basallo

    Astros Sign Craig Kimbrel

    Pirates Promote Bubba Chandler

    Evan Carter Diagnosed With Fractured Wrist

    Blue Jays Activate Shane Bieber

    MLB, ESPN Nearing Deal Involving MLB.TV And In-Market Rights For Five Clubs

    Rays Promote Carson Williams

    Red Sox To Promote Jhostynxon Garcia, Place Wilyer Abreu On IL

    Kyle Tucker Was Diagnosed With Hairline Hand Fracture In June

    Félix Bautista Undergoes Shoulder Surgery, Expected To Miss 12 Months

    Phillies Place Zack Wheeler On Injured List With Blood Clot

    Recent

    MLBTR Podcast: A Conversation With Pirates GM Ben Cherington — Also The O’s, Zack Wheeler, And The Rangers

    MLB Mailbag: Kyle Tucker, Nick Lodolo, Bo Bichette, Rays, Mets

    Cubs To Place Jameson Taillon On Injured List

    Orioles To Move To Six-Man Rotation

    Rockies Move Antonio Senzatela To Bullpen

    Royals Sign Geoff Hartlieb To Minor League Deal

    Nationals To Select CJ Stubbs

    Diamondbacks Designate Tristin English For Assignment, Select Taylor Rashi

    Drew Millas Suffers Finger Fracture

    Poll: The Rangers And The Waiver Wire

    MLBTR Newsletter - Hot stove highlights in your inbox, five days a week

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • Every MLB Trade In July
    Trade Rumors App for iOS and Android App Store Google Play

    MLBTR Features

    MLBTR Features

    • Remove Ads, Support Our Writers
    • Front Office Originals
    • Front Office Fantasy Baseball
    • MLBTR Podcast
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2026-27 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Agency Database
    • MLBTR On Twitter
    • MLBTR On Facebook
    • Team Facebook Pages
    • How To Set Up Notifications For Breaking News
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors

    Rumors By Team

    • Angels Rumors
    • Astros Rumors
    • Athletics Rumors
    • Blue Jays Rumors
    • Braves Rumors
    • Brewers Rumors
    • Cardinals Rumors
    • Cubs Rumors
    • Diamondbacks Rumors
    • Dodgers Rumors
    • Giants Rumors
    • Guardians Rumors
    • Mariners Rumors
    • Marlins Rumors
    • Mets Rumors
    • Nationals Rumors
    • Orioles Rumors
    • Padres Rumors
    • Phillies Rumors
    • Pirates Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Rays Rumors
    • Red Sox Rumors
    • Reds Rumors
    • Rockies Rumors
    • Royals Rumors
    • Tigers Rumors
    • Twins Rumors
    • White Sox Rumors
    • Yankees Rumors

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives
    • RSS/Twitter Feeds By Team

    MLBTR INFO

    • Advertise
    • About
    • Commenting Policy
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

    Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

    hide arrows scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version