Rumors swirl: Cubs may pursue pitcher Dylan Cease. Despite a down year, his elite metrics hint at a bounce-back, making him a potential rotation boost.
With the World Series in full swing, this is the time when offseason rumors start to pick up.
For Cubs fans, we got our first offseason rumor from Chicago’s very own Bruce Levine. Levine went on Inside the Clubhouse and talked about the team’s potential interest in San Diego Padres pitcher Dylan Cease.
He said his "MLB sources have confirmed the Cubs will have interest in Cease this offseason." The 32-year-old is coming off a down year on the mound, but his metrics suggest a bounce-back season for him in 2026.
Cease finished 2025 with a 4.55 ERA and a 1.327 WHIP. Those two numbers were a major decline from his 2024 campaign (3.47 ERA and 1.067 WHIP). However, the right-hander still ranked toward the top of the league in several metrics.
His expected ERA (3.47) was 108 points lower than his actual ERA (4.55), and his expected batting average against (.222), chase rate (31%), whiff rate (33.4%), and strikeout rate (29.8%) all ranked in the 80th percentile or better.
So, it’s clear Cease got a bit unlucky on the mound this past season. His strikeout numbers (215) were still at the top, and he showed up in the postseason by tossing 3 ⅔ shutout innings against the Cubs.
If the North Siders are actually in on the 29-year-old in free agency, he would be a nice boost to an already solid rotation. Cease has struck out over 210 batters in five straight seasons, and his 162 starts since the start of the 2021 season are the most in baseball.
Now, it’ll be interesting to see how much the Cubs are willing to give Cease in free agency. Spotrac predicts Cease will sign a six-year, $158 million deal this offseason. That’s likely something Chicago’s front office will not be willing to offer the veteran pitcher.
But Cease could be looking to sign a one-year prove-it deal this offseason following a mediocre 2025 campaign. That’s where the Cubs could come in and offer a very generous one-year deal with potentially a player option for the 2026 season.
That could work in both the Cubs and Cease’s favor for this upcoming year. Cease could likely get more money next offseason -- assuming he posts better numbers in 2026 -- and Chicago would sign one of the most durable pitchers in baseball, who has two top-5 Cy Young finishes since 2022.
So, we shouldn’t put it past the Cubs to potentially sign Cease to a shorter deal this offseason.