The Cubs are eyeing upgrades for the back end of the bullpen and have looked into Orioles setup man Seranthony Dominguez and Rays closer Pete Fairbanks, reports Bruce Levine of 670 The Score. Levine notes that the Rays have been showing reluctance to part with Fairbanks, which lines up with recent reporting from Will Sammon, Katie Woo and Patrick Mooney of The Athletic, wherein they indicate that Tampa Bay “strongly prefers” to hang onto Fairbanks (but are still hearing out interested teams who inquire).
Both Dominguez and Fairbanks are sensible targets for a Cubs bullpen in need of help. Dominguez is being paid $8MM in his final year of club control. He’s a pure free agent at season’s end. The 30-year-old righty is in his first full season with the O’s after having been acquired from the Phillies at last year’s deadline. He’s pitched 40 2/3 innings this season and worked to a sharp 3.32 ERA with a hefty 31% strikeout rate. Dominguez has been one of the primary setup options for closer Félix Bautista, tallying 13 holds and two saves of his own on the season. He’s averaged a sizzling 97.7 mph on his four-seamer and 97.9 mph on his sinker.
Command troubles have plagued Dominguez at times in his career, however, and that’s never been truer than in 2025. This year’s 14% walk rate is far and away the worst of his career, and he’s also tossed nine wild pitches. That’s clearly far from ideal, but Chicago’s combined 20.1% strikeout rate from their relievers is fourth-lowest in MLB, so adding some swing-and-miss is an understandable focus — particularly given how important that ability tends to be in the postseason.
Fairbanks is earning a bit more than $3.8MM this season and has a club option for the 2026 campaign. That option comes with a $7MM base value, but Fairbanks has already boosted that to to $8MM as he begins reaching escalator milestones. So long as he remains healthy, he’ll likely increase that option value considerably more.
The 31-year-old Fairbanks has already finished 29 games and boost next year’s option value by $500K for each of 30, 35 and 40 games finished in 2025. The option also climbs by $1MM apiece when Fairbanks reaches 135, 150 and 165 total appearances from 2023-25 combined. He’s currently at 134 games total between those three seasons. There’s a strong chance that option winds up valued at $11.5MM.
In the past, Fairbanks has missed bats at comparable levels to Dominguez, but his 20.3% strikeout rate in 2025 is a career-low. He’s dealt with shoulder, lat, forearm and hip injuries over the past five seasons, and a four-seamer that once averaged a blistering 99 mph has accordingly dropped off, sitting at 97.3 mph in each of the past two seasons.
Fairbanks’ swinging-strike rate has unsurprisingly dropped as he’s lost some zip on that heater, though his velocity is still well above average and he’s continued to remain effective. In 38 innings this season, he’s sporting a 2.84 earned run average and has gone 17-for-20 in save opportunities. With the exception of 21-inning rookie debut, Fairbanks has never posted an ERA north of 3.59 in a season. This year’s 2.84 ERA is almost a dead match for the 2.88 mark he’s compiled dating back to the 2020 season.
Dominguez and Fairbanks are surely just two of many targets the Cubs are eyeing as they look to bolster a relief corps that ranks 10th in the majors with a collective 3.78 ERA but 27th in strikeout rate, 15th in FIP (4.05) and 24th in SIERA (3.98). Emerging closer Daniel Palencia and resurgent veteran Brad Keller are both showing plus velocity, with the former sitting at a whopping 99.5 mph with his fastball and Keller sitting 97.1 mph. The rest of Chicago’s bullpen — aside from the currently injured Porter Hodge — has average to below-average velocity (and, in many cases, sub-par strikeout rates to match).
Honestly, I’d be happy with either one. Palencia has been good, but the bullpen has fallen apart at the end of the season two years in a row, so reinforcements are needed.
I think Hoyer will address that. But I think front and center is their dire need for starting pitching. I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t pick up two.
If Hoyer can get a starter and a bullpen piece, that’s a good trade deadline. Shaw at 3B wouldn’t be the end of the world.
Cubs targets- Do you have a pulse and are shiny? We’re interested.
On board with that. A preference for me would be a starter and reliever who are signed beyond the 25 season. A decent bench guy would be nice as well.
A bench piece wouldn’t be bad. Maybe another guy that can play 3B/SS, just not sure who’d that’d be.
I think Castro would be a great add if he’s made available by the Twins.
The pulse might be optional, and the player only needs to be moderately shiny. That said, if Dominguez is available for cheap, it wouldn’t be the worst move.
They’re getting blown-out by the White Sox right now, the 2025 collapse has started. I’d sell off anyone other than PCA, Shaw, Busch, Horton or Palencia. Yes, even Tucker…he’s gone anyway in just over two months. No point in giving up any of the minor league talent just to finish 2 games behind the Reds for the last NL WC spot.
I’m not wrong on this one.
Why these guys? Are we short on issuing walks?
Fairbanks and Cleavenger are the only reliable arms left in the Rays bullpen. If Pete goes, so does 2025. I’m glad they are reluctant to let him go and hope that holds true. I think this team is still good for a run if they add some bullpen help. Most of their losses in this stretch have been due to bullpen issues and not a lack of good starting pitching or offense.
2025 is already done for the Rays. If the Cubs want Fairbanks, he should be available.
These two would be good consolation pieces. I’d prefer Jed goes after Emmanuel Clase.
I think the Rays are reasonably satisfied with the Paredes trade, partly because Paredes has continued to improve since he left Tampa (although the Houston stadium hasn’t hurt). By listening on Fairbanks and getting a feel for whom the Cubs are willing to let go from their middle-of-the-pack farm system,, the Rays may hope to work out something on the players they really want to deal away. But everybody expects the Rays to just dump people and it’s not happening.
Take what you know bout the Cubs Farm system- Add Zero- and you have -3.
Are you insane? The Paredes trade was a disaster for the Rays (every bit as bad as it looked the day it was announced). Morel plays about 1-2 games a week and he’s a negative performer. Paredes is a 4-5 WAR player who made the All-Star game.
Palencia has been the cubs best closer since Chapman. I’d love for them to add another high leverage guy and shorten those games. They need a playoff starter! That has to be their number 1 priority. Shaw finally started hitting but an upgrade there is priority 2. Their bench is absolute dog doodoo. Move Shaw to utility role. He will get plenty of ABs. Cut Turner, so Counsell will stop benching Busch against lefties.
Reminds me of Leo Durocher 1969 cubs in which Leo used the same eight position players each hame thru the dog days of August and September when they had nothing left. They need to shore up their pitiful bench or the same about.to happen.
It is odd that they have gone even this far with Turner and Brujan. They are a bit like Gene and Nate Oliver on the ’69 team. At least that team had Wonderful Willie Smith.
That’s actually a pretty good comparison except there were no night games at Wrigley then so the dog days were even worse than now.
As much as this has been written about, it has rarely been noted that that was an unusually hot summer, too.
>Results don’t matter
>velocity and strikeout rates matter
What.