Cubs reportedly signing Edwin Escobar out of Japan |
There it is, the Cubs' first free agent signing of the season and it is a pitcher from Japan. However, it isn't the pitcher fans were hoping for, and it is probably a pitcher many haven't even heard of, as Japanese lefty Edwin Escobar has signed a contract with the Cubs.
Granted, this doesn't seem like a move that will move the needle in terms of the Cubs' win-and-loss record, but it does add some depth to the bullpen, and he is a lefty. After the Cubs elected to part ways with Brandon Hughes, they didn't have a true lefty reliever, so at the very worst, Escobar could be that lefty, depending on how he performs. The 32-year-old has been around for a while and was once a very well-regarded pitcher who landed in the top 100 prospect list as a Boston Red Sox farm system member. However, despite the hype surrounding him, Escobar never really had an opportunity in the bigs, first reaching the majors in 2014 while with the Red Sox and then again with Arizona in 2016. Knowing that he may not have a guaranteed role on American soil, Escobar left for Japan to make some good money and hasn't been back in the States since. In the process, he has turned himself into a very reliable reliever with plenty of success and has posted ERAs of 2.17, 3.26, 2.42, and 3.33 over the past four seasons. That comes out to a combined 2.93 ERA, which is a good mark no matter what level of baseball you are playing. What stands out, even more, are the overall purifies in those numbers as Escobar strikes out close to one batter per inning and limits the walks and homers, which is all you can ask for from a reliever. While this deal hasn't been publicly made official, nor have the terms been announced, the source this is coming from is the most reliable source for Japanese baseball, so you can safely assume that Escobar will be a Cub soon. Escobar doesn't have much out there regarding scouting information or anything like that, but from what you can find, there is some intrigue about him. Once a guy who sat around 93 MPH, Escobar has been hitting 96 MPH consistently in Japan, which has led to his increased strikeout rate over the past few seasons. Typically, most Japanese pitchers are around 93 MPH, with the rare cases of pitchers throwing harder, so having a guy at 96 from that side of the globe is always worth looking into. Any time you can post the numbers Escobar has posted the past four seasons, it is worth a look to see if that can translate into big-league success. After all, he would be one of many pitchers to struggle in the US, head to Japan, and then come back and find success in the States. Miles Mikolas comes to mind for the Cardinals. He went to Korea for a few seasons to learn more about himself before coming to St. Louis and becoming a reliable middle-of-the-rotation starter for them. While there isn't much on Escobar right now, he is currently playing winter ball in his native country, Venezuela, so I'm sure more things and more highlights will get out soon. Considering that Escobar isn't a well-known name from the Japanese circuit, you have to wonder if Jed Hoyer did some digging on him during the season when he went to Japan to scout. If that is the case, Hoyer probably had a chance to see this guy pitch in person, and he must've liked what he saw to offer him a contract. The kicker to this whole thing is that Escobar has been a long-time teammate of Shota Imanaga, whom the Cubs are looking at as a possible rotation addition. You have to wonder if the Cubs are hoping to use him to their advantage to potentially bring Imanaga in should their top targets not choose the Cubs in free agency.
