The Reds announced that they have signed Keegan Thompson to a one-year contract. It is a Major League deal for the 30-year-old right-hander, and Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer specifies the contract is a split deal that will pay Thompson $1.3MM for his time in the majors. Another $100K in incentive bonuses is also available in the contract.
A career Cub since being drafted by Chicago in the third round of the 2017 draft, Thompson will now head elsewhere in the NL Central. Thompson was a pretty decent reliever and even an occasional starter for the Cubs during the 2021-24 seasons, at least in terms of bottom line numbers. The righty posted a 3.64 ERA over his 227 1/3 career innings in the majors, and his 3.94 SIERA wasn’t much higher. Thompson had a respectable 23% strikeout rate but control was a bigger issue, as he had an 11.3% walk rate.
The Cubs seemed to fall out of favor with Thompson in the spring, as he was designated for assignment and then outrighted off the team’s 40-man roster. The result was a 2025 season spent entirely in the minors, as Chicago didn’t select Thompson’s contract back to the active roster even when the team was hunting for bullpen reinforcements. Thompson’s 4.50 ERA over 64 innings at Triple-A Iowa didn’t really help his case for a promotion, but he had a strong 29.5% strikeout rate and his walk rate was a more manageable 8.9%.
Thompson selected minor league free agency at season’s end. He is out of minor league options, so that means the Reds will have to DFA and outright Thompson when and if they bring him to the active roster and then want to send him to the minors. Now that Thompson has been outrighted, he has the right to elect free agency if he is ever outrighted again, though he would have to forfeit any guaranteed salary in that circumstance.
There’s not much risk for the Reds in bringing in Thompson as a low-cost depth option to at least check out during spring camp. The split contract also gives the team a bit more flexibility in moving Thompson to the minors at least on the financial side, apart from the out-of-options hurdle. Thompson is also arbitration-controlled through the 2027 season.
Loved him with Kel and on SNL…
Oooooweeee, what up with that?
Great signing, not a lot of pitchers with mlb success just floating out there for nothing
“MLB success”
3.64 ERA in 227.1 MLB IP seems reasonably successful.
But Chris Flexen and his 3.09 ERA is out there too.
That was Flexen’s ERA last year. For his career it’s 4.83, a mark Thompson has been under all four of his MLB seasons.
Maybe you’d like both of them more if they were big bunters.
Diminishing returns. He wasn’t considered for a call up when the Cubs sorted out the bullpen earlier in the year.
Maybe you can make a better reply? I don’t know.
I made a facts-based reply and added a joke based on your username. Like Thompson, I’d say I was reasonably successful.
“Facts” that he’s had an ERA under 4 every MLB season when he hasn’t? Didn’t want to embarrass you but that’s factually wrong, dude.
Could be a sneaky good signing. If he can stay healthy.
I think he might be good for them. The Cubs have a habit of sometimes turning against their own farm system products, of giving up on them at what seem almost like arbitrary points, and then seeing them succeed elsewhere. This could be one of those times.
First Keegan. Next up, Kel?
Cubs never liked this guy because his stuff is mediocre and his command is poor but he always seemed to get good results for a low leverage reliever.
Keegan dominated AAA for most of the first half. I was surprised they didn’t call him up while their pen was struggling. Then he fell off a cliff and started walking everyone again in the second half. Don’t know if it was an injury or what, just checked his stats a few times over the course od the season. Always liked his potential but not enough zip on the heater to be an impact arm.
Ok depth move
Seems like a good value. The more concerning thing is that it was announced that team payroll will remain at the same level as last year. We will lose some salary with Martinez & pagan but also need to replace at least pagan and that would cost at least what we paid pagan last year. With arbitration raises it also means we won’t be able to try for Austin hays mutual option. We could probably sign andujar back and maybe Josh naylor since we need a left handed bat and keep payroll about the same as last year but don’t expect to do anymore than win 84 games, squeak into the postseason and exit in 2 games. Same payroll as last year then expect about the same talent on the field and the same result. Yes some guys like Marte & EDLC might show some more improvement but that would be offset by the guys coming off the books.
No schwarber if we he payroll is the same. Maybe we can trade singer to an equally priced and equally effective left handed bat since we have other starting pitchers.
No surprise on that payroll announcement. It’s what they have proved they are. Apparently they will remain 30 million under water, even as the window is closing on this bunch.
Good start on filling the pen.
They’ll need some bullpen candidates and he has a decent history.
Eatly signing means to me that DJ sees some possible upside to this guy. Maybe pans out maybe not- bu worth the risk.