Chicago Cubs MLB Trade and Roster Rumors: Cubs, Alex Cobb Share Mutual Interest
The Chicago Cubs are going to be quite busy this winter as they look to replace starting pitchers Jake Arrieta and John Lackey along with closer Wade Davis.
The team is expected to do their due diligence and reach out to the top pitchers in the free agent market, but a number of pundits believe that long-time Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Alex Cobb seems destined to join the Cubs.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times' Gordon Wittenmyer, the Cubs have already spoken with Cobb's several times, although they have yet to discuss contract parameters. Wittenmyer added that sources close to Cobb has told him that the veteran pitcher is interested in joining the Cubs because of the presence of manager Joe Maddon and pitching coach Jim Hickey.
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Maddon managed Rays from 2006 to 2014, while Hickey was part of the Rays' coaching staff from 2006 to 2017. Hickey has been Cobb's pitching coach since the pitcher made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut in 2011. He joined the Cubs last month.
In an interview with MLB Network Radio, Cobb revealed that he doesn't mind reuniting with Maddon and Hickey in Chicago.
"I don't hide the fact that I have the most respect for [Cubs manager] Joe Maddon and what he did for me coming up as a player — not so much as a pitcher on the mound, but as a professional athlete and professional baseball player," Cobb said, via the Chicago Sun-Times. "It had to deal with the stresses that come with a big-league lifestyle. There's nobody better in the game to control and deal with people as he is," he continued.
"He's not only a good pitching coach but a real close friend of mine," Cobb said of Hickey.
The Cubs still have to negotiate terms with Cobb, but their chances of signing him appear to be quite high.
