2:20 p.m: The Cubs have announced the claim.
2:10 p.m: The Cubs “add” Slugger Franmil Reyescorresponding Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic. Reyes was selected for action by the Guardians on Saturday. Since the trade deadline has expired, the Cubs have presumably demanded Reyes of waivers. Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that Reyes was indeed claimed by waivers. The Cubs had a few open positions in their 40-man roster, meaning no corresponding move is needed in that regard.
Reyes, 27, has an impressive track record as a power hitter, although it’s here in 2022 that he suffers an unfortunate faint. He made his debut with the Padres in 2018, then went to Cleveland in 2019 in a three-team trade involving six other players. From his debut through the end of the 2021 season, he hit 92 home runs and completed 9% of his plate appearances. His 29.5% strikeout rate was definitely high, but he still managed to hit .260/.325/.503, a production that was 19% above the league average as measured by wRC+.
However, this season has been an absolute nightmare in comparison. Reyes has slammed in 37.1% of his plate appearances, walked in just 5% of them, and hit just nine home runs. His overall batting line for the campaign sits at a paltry .213/.254/.350, wRC+ of 69. Cleveland fielded him as the designated batsman and ultimately decided it could no longer withstand that meager performance from a supposed starting ground to deliver more potency. He was voted into the minors last week and was drafted into action a few days later.
For a rebuilding Cubs team, it’s a logical step to give Reyes a chance and hope he returns to his former form. He’s making $4.55 million this year, leaving about $1.5 million left to cash out for the remainder of the campaign. He can be held by arbitration for two more seasons and likely won’t need a big raise this year given his poor performance. The Cubs do not have a dedicated batsman-designated with a free agent impending Willson Contreras spend most of the time there. If Reyes recovers successfully in any way, he could take on DH duties. He’s capable of playing in the outfield on the corner, despite having trotted out just 26 games on the turf in the last three years.
There are reasons to be optimistic that Reyes could turn things around. Despite this year’s strikes and general fighting, he still ranks in the 92nd percentile among MLB hitters in barrel percent, 93rd in average exit velocity, 88th in hard hit percentage, and 86th at the maximum exit velocity. If he can reduce strikeouts just a little, he’ll still crush the ball with enough force to be a useful pickup that will either stay with the Cubs or be traded in the future.