Cubs DFA veteran starter Jameson Taillon amid career-worst season on heels of 3-HR meltdown in loss to Pirates
The Chicago Cubs are done with Jameson Taillon.
The Cubs announced on Monday that they're designating Taillon for assignment and replacing him on the roster with right-handed minor-league pitcher Andrew Wantz.
By being DFA'd, Taillon will likely hit and almost certainly clear waivers, setting him on a probable path to free agency. Taillon's due what's left on the final season of a four-year, $68 million contract, and no team is likely to take on that remaining salary via trade or waivers given his performance in Chicago this season.
Meltdown against Pirates was final straw
Taillon, the No. 2 pick in the 2010 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, is in the midst of his worst MLB season at 34 years old. Through 15 starts, Taillon has a 5.92 ERA and 1.355 WHIP with 68 strikeouts and 27 walks in 76 innings pitched.
His ERA is the worst of his career and he's allowed 25 home runs, tied for the most by a pitcher in the National League. He allowed three home runs and seven earned runs in an 8-7 loss to the Pirates on Sunday. The game was the third this season in which he's allowed three-plus home runs.
A 10-year veteran, Taillon would have the option to reject an assignment to the minor leagues in favor of free agency if he clears waivers.
The Cubs, meanwhile, are in a long-shot race in the NL Central and in the thick of the NL wild-card race. Chicago entered Monday at 59-46, seven games behind the first-place Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central and at the top of the NL wild-card standings.
Wantz joins the 40-man roster from Triple-A Iowa and projects to provide bullpen depth in Chicago. In four-plus MLB seasons since 2021, Wantz has a 4.20 ERA and 1.175 WHIP in 120 innings pitched. He pitched all but 1 2/3 of those innings with the Los Angeles Angels.
Wantz allowed five earned runs in 1 2/3 innings in a single appearance this season with the Tampa Bay Rays, who designated him for assignment following that outing in a 14-3 loss to the Angels on May 30.
