Maton split between the Cardinals and Rangers last season. He joined St. Louis on a one-year, $2 million deal and pitched well through the first half of the season. After 38 1/3 innings of a 2.35 ERA, the Cardinals sent him to Texas at the trade deadline for minor league pitchers Mason Molina And Skylar Hales. Maton’s ERA rose to 3.52 with his new team, but he increased his strikeout rate to 36.7% and earned three saves in 23 appearances.
Chicago becomes Maton’s eighth team in ten seasons in the big league. He was drafted by the Padres in 2015. Eye-popping strikeout numbers helped the righty zoom through San Diego’s system, and in 2017 he reached the major leagues. Maton was decent contributors with the Padres in his first two seasons, although he missed time in 2018 with a lat strain. After spending half a season between the Padres and Triple-A El Paso the following year, Maton was dealt to Cleveland for cash.
Maton flashed the swing-and-miss advantage he first showed in the minors at the big league level with Cleveland. He posted a 33.3% strikeout rate over 23 games in the shortened 2020 season, then pushed that to 34.3% in the first half of 2021. Maton was back on the road at the 2021 trade deadline, leading with Yainer Diaz to Houston for Myles Straw. The deal turned out to be a big win for the Astros, not to mention Diaz’s contributions. Maton compiled a 3.67 ERA over 157 innings with Houston through 2023. He was phenomenal during the 2021 playoffs, allowing just one earned run in 12 games. Maton made three postseason finishes that year, including two in the World Series.
Maton hit the open market after the 2023 season, landing in Tampa Bay on a one-year, $6.5 million deal. He struggled with the Rays and was signed to a deal with the Mets in early July. Maton put up 28 2/3 innings of a 2.51 ERA in New York, but stumbled in the postseason. The veteran was bowled over in the playoffs for six earned runs in 6 1/3 innings, including four home runs.
Velocity is not Maton’s strong point, as his fastball barely reaches 90 miles per hour. The veteran has found success by leading the way with his curveball and mixing cutters and sinkers. Maton has used the hook as his primary throw in two of the past three seasons. Last year he threw it 38.2% of the time and it recorded a healthy run value of +10. Maton’s cutter, curveball and sweeper all had whiff rates above 32% last season.
Maton excels at limiting hard contact at every stop. He’s limiting hitters to a career-high 29.9% percentage. Maton ranked in the 98th percentile or better last season in number of hard-hit businesses, barrel velocity and average outflow velocity.
Of Brad Keller And Andrew Kittredge Hitting free agency, Chicago was clearly in need of a righty at the back of the bullpen. Daniel Palencia will likely resume closer duties after battling injuries late last season, but Maton should factor into the mix in addition to the late inning Porter Hodge. FanGraphs’ RosterResource tool The Cubs’ payroll for 2026 is approximately $177 million. The club has topped $200 million the past two seasons, so there could be more room to add the bullpen. Lucas Klein And Jordan Wieken They don’t have much big league experience, so pursuing an experienced southpaw could make sense.
Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images
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