Austin, now 34, played in the major leagues from 2016 to 2019. He suited up for the Yankees, Twins, Giants and Brewers without being able to profile himself as a regular player in the big league. He hit 33 home runs in 583 at-bats over four seasons, but also struck out at a 36.9% clip.
Milwaukee placed him on waivers in November 2019. He opted for free agency and signed with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. Since then, when healthy, he has been mashing pretty consistently for that club. He played just 65 games in 2020, but hit 20 home runs in his 269 at-bats. In 2021, he racked up 28 home runs in 107 games and 439 at-bats.
Then came an injury, as he only played a total of 60 games in the 2022 and 2023 seasons due to various ailments. According to him, he underwent shoulder surgery in September 2023 Sanspo Sportsbut was back on form in 2024. Last year he hit another 25 home runs in 445 at bats. He struck out 19.8% of the time while drawing walks at a 10.1% clip. His .316/.382/.601 line translated to a 197 wRC+, indicating he was 97% better than the average NPB hitter.
This year he only played in 65 games. According to Yahoo Japanhe was struggling with pain in his right knee. The BayStars decided not to bring him back until 2026. However, he still hit well on the field. He launched 11 home runs in just 246 at-bats, with an 18.3% strikeout rate and a 10.6% walk rate. His .269/.350/.484 line may only look decent at first glance, but NPB has had some issues with dead balls lately, so that line actually translated to a big 147 wRC+.
The Cubs are clearly intrigued by the big offensive numbers. It’s a bit of a risky choice, in that Austin hasn’t played in the Majors since 2019 and has had some health issues. But $1.25 million is barely above the league minimum, which will be $780,000 next year. The Cubs are also giving up a roster spot, but they came into today with a 40-man count of 33, so it’s not like they’re in a pinch at this point.
Chicago already has a first baseman in place Michael Busch but he’s a lefty swinger who needs a platoon partner. He’s coming off a stellar 34 home run season with a .261/.343/.523 line and 140 wRC+. However, he only slashed .207/.274/.368 against lefties for an 81 wRC+.
The Cubs also have a number of left-handed bats in their designated hitter mix. Seiya Suzuki was the primary DH in 2025, but he could take over right field with the departure of Kyle Tucker. The Cubs would then have guys like Moises Ballesteros And Owen Caissionboth lefties, battling for DH time.
Last year the Cubs gave 40-year-olds Justin Turner $6MM to be their right-swinging first base/DH type. He did his job with the platoon advantage, hitting .276/.330/.429, but otherwise hit just .141/.232/.155. That led to a combined .219/.288/.314 line and 71 wRC+ for the year.
Presumably the Cubs are hoping that Austin can be a younger, cheaper and more successful version of their Turner asset. It might not work out, but they’re barely paying him more than the league minimum, as mentioned, so it’s not that big of a risk financially. If he can produce anything like his NPB stats, he’s a steal.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported that the Cubs signed Austin to a big league deal. Jon Heyman of The New York Post had the salary of $1.25 million. Photo courtesy of Michael McLoone, Imagn Images
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