Cubs acquire All-Star Kevin Gausman from Blue Jays

The Chicago Cubs acquired right-hander Kevin Gausman from the Toronto Blue Jays on August 3, sending Triple-A outfielder Brett Bateman and Class-A infielder Ty Southisene to Toronto, per ESPN reporting. The move comes two days ahead of Monday's trade deadline as the Cubs sit 6.5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Central.

Gausman, 35, carries both proven October experience and immediate concerns heading into his first Cubs season. According to ESPN's reporting, the All-Star starter has a 3.83 ERA in 14 career playoff games, including a role in the Blue Jays' World Series run last year. Over his five-year, $110 million contract with Toronto, he has compiled 20.1 WAR, per ESPN's data.

His 2026 regular season performance tells a different story. Gausman is 5-10 with a 4.38 ERA and 127 strikeouts in his season with the Blue Jays, according to ESPN. More troubling, he carries a 6.47 ERA over his past eight starts. On June 19 at Wrigley Field, his soon-to-be home ballpark, Gausman lasted just two innings while giving up seven runs on seven hits and four walks, per ESPN's reporting. His last start with Toronto on Saturday showed improvement: one run on nine hits in 5 and 2/3 innings.

Gausman's splitter remains a weapon. He is the career leader in strikeouts via the splitter (490) in the Statcast era and has thrown the third-most innings in baseball since 2021, per ESPN. But recent decline in his breaking ball has contributed to the uptick in home runs this season. His contract expires after this year, making him an impending free agent.

The Cubs send away Bateman, a 24-year-old eighth-round pick from 2023 who was hitting .312 in 81 games for Triple-A Iowa, per ESPN. Ty Southisene, 21, a fourth-round pick in 2024, was hitting .311 at two levels of Class-A and combined for 31 stolen bases this season, according to ESPN.

Gausman joins Matthew Boyd and Shota Imanaga near the top of the Cubs rotation, which has also been bolstered by recently acquired lefty David Peterson from the Mets. The Cubs have a makeup game scheduled at Wrigley Field on Thursday against Toronto, and that could serve as Gausman's debut with Chicago, per ESPN reporting.