Cubs Land Nicholas Castellanos in Last-Minute Trade for RHPs Alex Lange, Paul Richan

As Ken Rosenthal was first to report, the Cubs have landed Nicholas Castellanos, to whom they have long been tied, in a trade with the Tigers. Bruce Levine had previously tweeted that the two teams were close to a deal that would have sent Double-A catcher Jhonny Pereda to Detroit.

This trade instantly improves the Cubs’ lineup against left-handed pitching and gives them a hitter who can drive in runners without homers. Castellanos leads MLB with 37 doubles and that gap power is going to play very well in the heart of the order in Chicago.

As Craig Mish reports, the Cubs sent minor league righty starters Paul Richan and Alex Lange to Detroit. That’s richer than the initial reported offer, but it sounds as though the Cubs wanted Detroit to kick in a little cash to cover the remaining $3+ million Castellanos is owed. According to Patrick Mooney, the Cubs will pay their new outfielder about $2.5 million after the Tigers offset $500,000 in the deal.

Lange, the Cubs’ first-round pick in 2017, had a 5.82 ERA across 86.2 innings for High-A Myrtle Beach and Double-A Tennessee this season, but his numbers after a promotion were actually much better. Richan posted a 3.97 ERA over 93 innings with Myrtle Beach and had really been coming on strong with 86 strikeouts and just 18 walks.

This is definitely a win-now move for the Cubs, since neither pitching prospect was expected to have an impact in the next couple seasons. In order to make room on the 40-man roster, righty Oscar De La Cruz has been designated for assignment.

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