Total Posts So Far:

30.

Total Raised for Make-A-Wish Illinois So Far This Year:

$17,248 (It’s unbelievable to me how generous you all are every year – even when the goal was only $10,000, you blew past it!)

News and Rumors Since the Last Check-In:

Obviously the overnight hours are mostly quiet, but the White Sox picked up Huascar Brazoban from the Mets.

Most Interesting Tidbit Since the Last Recap:

It’s definitely the report about how much the Angels are asking from the Red Sox for Zach Neto. If true, the implications for the Cubs’ efforts to land a controllable starter from the Angels would be not so great.

Current Thoughts About the Chicago Cubs’ Trade Deadline Strategy/Execution:

Gotta redux the last update, because it’s unchanged:

A huge box has been checked, and one of the baseline requirements of this deadline. At an absolute minimum, the Cubs had to add a good starting pitcher and two good relievers. The starter is the hardest part, and whether Gausman winds up the only starter the Cubs add, they at least have him in place now. The day before the deadline, too, so they have some space to work with.

Current Tiredness Level:

5 out of 10.

Not all that bad when you consider it’s the morning and I’ve been up all night after grinding away all day. Stomach definitely starting to hurt, though, as it always does at some point on day two.

The #BNBlogathon dragging has begun. pic.twitter.com/Zom8EmMmfs

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 3, 2026

Current Beverage/Stimulant of Choice:

I should probably go back to water …

Current Emotional Status:

Enjoying some Captain America in the background while I surf the web and type. ‘Winter Soldier’ is pretty clearly one of the best MCU movies.

Random Thought Passing Through My Mind:

It’ll be time for a shower soon. I can’t sleep, but I can pretend that I just woke up and I’m taking a morning shower to start my day. If I time it right, and the sun is starting to come up as I dry off, boom, brand new day.

More Blogathon Miscellany:

Why We Do the #BNBlogathon to Support Make-A-Wishhttps://t.co/WWlDS5wnyD

— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 3, 2026

A wee hours #BNBlogathon chat for the real sicko no-sleepers. Keep me awake. https://t.co/JwCKtAB6p7

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 3, 2026

To show a little better why we support the mission at Make-A-Wish, I wanted to share a story with you from the wonderful folks at Make-A-Wish Illinois. It really highlights the great work that they do, and why I’m proud to have had a chance to support them. The service they provide is so important and so impactful.

And, what Make-A-Wish Illinois does can hit very close to home for we Chicago Cubs fans.

Here is Kaila’s wish to meet the Chicago Cubs:

That may yet prove the case when the bell rings tomorrow, but a report out of Boston has me wondering:

“With two days until the deadline, the Sox continued to face a significant asking price from the Angels in their ongoing talks about shortstop Zach Neto. The Angels seek shortstop Franklin Arias, a source said, to headline a package that would include other prospects.”

To be sure, I don’t much care about what happens with Angels shortstop Zach Neto or the Red Sox’s quest to acquire him. But when I see the Angels asking for a package led by Franklin Arias, one of the five-ish best prospects in all of baseball, I’m thinking maybe they aren’t being so realistic in their asks just yet. Neto is a good player, but he’s been a 3-ish win guy the last couple years, and comes with three years of arbitration control after this season. Very valuable? Yes. A guy for whom you’d trade a top-five overall prospect AND more? I certainly wouldn’t. I don’t think any team would.

Which, in turn, makes me wonder about what kinds of crazy asks the Angels might have for the Cubs if they’ve been trying to land Reid Detmers or Jose Soriano. Neto is worth more than those guys, yes, I’d agree. But so much more that Arias is a reasonable ask relative to whatever the Angels want from the Cubs?

Suddenly, I’m having flashbacks to last summer, when we desperately wanted the Cubs to acquire a controllable starting pitcher … and none changed teams through the deadline. It turned out that sellers simply never lowered their extreme prices on those types, and teams like the Cubs didn’t blink.

Having traded Ty Southisene and Brett Bateman to the Blue Jays for Kevin Gausman, the Chicago Cubs farm system was down a couple prospects in their top-30 at MLB Pipeline. That means two open spots:

RHPs Brody McCullough + Jace Beck enter the #Cubs' Top 30 Prospects list after the club deals a pair of players for Kevin Gausman.

Scouting grades, stats and more on the hurlers with 2027 big league ETAs: https://t.co/4BrkDZpCCP pic.twitter.com/AAC1AeCDOT

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 3, 2026

Farm system imbalance fixed! The Cubs now have 17 top-30 position prospects, and 13 top-30 pitching prospects.

I kid, of course, as the system is still VERY heavily weighted to the positional side, but it’s nice to see a couple pitchers getting the bump. Jace Beck, a breakout this year after the Cubs picked him up from the Mets in the offseason, enters the list at number 28. McCullough, long a compelling pitching prospect who just couldn’t get healthy, is just ahead at 27. Each is 26 and a starting prospect, though probably more of a back-half of the rotation type if all goes well. McCullough, currently pitching well at Double-A, probably projects more as a starter than Beck, who recently got the bump to Triple-A.

A bit more on Beck from Pipeline:

“Beck mostly misses bats with his fastball, which he throws two-thirds of the time. It sits at 95 mph and touches 98 with plenty of carry and a good amount of armside run, and it gets on hitters quickly thanks to the elite extension in his delivery. His heater is really his only weapon, however, because his upper-80s splitter and low-80s curveball rate as fringy and his upper-80s cutter grades as below average.

Beck’s huge 6-foot-9 frame creates plenty of natural extension, but he also has trouble keeping his long limbs in sync and repeating his low three-quarters delivery. He has little history of throwing strikes but has improved his control this season. While Chicago has given him some run as a starter, he projects as no more than a fastball-heavy reliever — albeit one who might help in the big leagues in the near future.”

And a bit more on McCullough:

“McCullough’s fastball operates at 92-95 mph and touches 98, missing more bats than expected thanks to its combination of carry and cutting action. He complements his heater with a tight low-80s slider that works against lefties and righties. He rarely uses his fading mid-80s changeup and almost never utilizes his upper-70s curveball.

McCullough’s herky-jerky delivery with good extension creates deception without harming his ability to land his fastball, slider and changeup in the zone. He has good feel for his craft and a knack for sequencing his offerings well. Despite his injury history and advanced age of 26, he’s a starting pitching prospect in a system lacking in them.”

The Chicago White Sox pick up another pitcher, after earlier acquiring Luis Castillo:

White Sox acquiring RH reliever Huascar Brazobán from Mets for Class AA RHP Gabe Davis and Class AAA RHP Zach Franklin, sources tell @TheAthletic.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) August 3, 2026

Huascar Brazobán has had a unique path to becoming a very good reliever for the Mets, which makes him the rare 36-year-old who comes with 3.5 years of team control. Yet the price tag was not too steep: Franklin is a 27-year-old reliever and hasn’t yet figured out Triple-A, and Davis is a 22-year-old righty getting creamed at Double-A.

That said, Franklin has nasty stuff and Davis was only just drafted last year, so I’m sure the Mets are happy to make the move while Brazoban’s value is at its peak, even if they are giving up some late-30s years of team control.

The Mets have moved Brazoban, Freddy Peralta, and A.J. Minter already this trade season, but still have Brooks Raley, Luke Weaver, and Clay Holmes, among other possible pieces to sell off.

But maybe I’m too close to it. Maybe my time following Southisene and Bateman as prospects, including their strong 2026 campaigns, has me regarding them too strongly.

The kindest take you’ll see on the deal probably comes from Baseball America, where the profiles on Southisene and Bateman sound about right to me. Among the comments:

The 5-foot-7 Southisene profiles as a hit-over-power middle infielder with plus speed. He has strong contact skills and rarely strikes out. His in-zone whiff rate is the lowest in the Cubs’ system, and he makes good swing decisions, though he is passive at times. Southisene doesn’t project to hit for much power. He produces fringe-average exit velocities and his batted ball angles are poor. Southisene has played primarily shortstop this season, but profiles best at second base due to below-average arm strength. He profiles as a potential contact and speed-oriented bench bat ….

“Bateman is an undersized outfielder who has played primarily center field in his minor league career. At the plate, he combines an advanced approach with solid contact skills. His contact, in-zone whiff and chase rates are all above-average. His average and 90th percentile exit velocities have ticked up this year, though they are still below-average for his age. Bateman projects as a depth outfielder.”

A potentially good infield utility bench guy and a potentially good fourth outfielder. Both with good defense, both with good speed. Usefully guys to have in an organization, acquired for a rental player.

Similarly, MLB Pipeline, while acknowledging it would probably be hard for Blue Jays fans to be too excited about any realistic return for Gausman, thinks this was a fine package:

“Southisene hasn’t homered in 156 Minor League games with the Cubs since being drafted in the fourth round in 2024, but fits the Blue Jays’ style of hitting prospects with a high-end contact and on-base approach. This season between Single-A and High-A, he’s batting .311 with a .431 on-base percentage and has stolen 31 bags on 37 attempts. Still just 21, he’ll immediately become one of the Blue Jays’ most unique prospects.

Bateman, 24, brings a similar profile, rarely hitting for any sort of power, but constantly making contact. In Triple-A this season, he’s hitting .312 with a .431 on-base percentage and 20 steals. Depending on which moves are coming between now and Monday’s 6 p.m. ET Deadline, Bateman could even be a candidate to join the Blue Jays soon for his MLB debut.”

But not all the takes look that rosy for the Blue Jays.

For example, Keith Law:

“This feels like a very light return for two months of Gausman, even the 2026 version who’s down from his peak performance. Brett Bateman bounced back after he was beset by a broken hamate bone in 2025 and bottomed out at a .307 slugging percentage. This season, he’s hitting .312/.431/.422 with better contact quality too. He could be the strong side of a center field platoon, or a quality fourth outfielder who can handle all three spots against right-handed pitching. He’s an above-average runner with probably 40 power, enough that he should hit in the .270-280 range with some walks thanks to his strong contact skills. Ty Southisene, brother of Atlanta prospect Tate Southisene, has zero power — literally, no pro homers in over 700 plate appearances — and probably has to move to second. He’s very small, so there’s no projection here for him to get stronger.”

And from Stephen J. Nesbitt:

“But is this really all the Jays could get? …

Bateman, 24, is an outfielder with speed and a knack for getting on base, but he has just six homers in 1,370 plate appearances in the minors. It’s below-average contact quality with a penchant for drilling the ball into the ground. He’s slashing .312/.431/.422 this season at Triple-A Iowa with 20 steals, nearly as many walks (60) as strikeouts (65). But, again, almost no power: three homers in 81 games. That profile only plays if he can truly play center field in the big leagues.

Southisene, a fourth-round pick out of high school in 2024, has even less power: zero homers in 706 pro plate appearances. He, too, is having a nice year on paper — .311/.431/.381 across Low A and High A — but has just seven extra-base hits. He started the year ranked as the No. 19 prospect in the Cubs farm system by The Athletic’s Keith Law. At 5-foot-7 and 170 pounds, Southisene probably winds up at second base. He doesn’t project as a regular.
It’s not nothing, but you’d want more for a starter with Gausman’s track record.”

No one seems to be arguing with what the Cubs got in the deal, for what that’s worth.

Total Posts So Far:

24.

Total Raised for Make-A-Wish Illinois So Far This Year:

$17,098 (It’s unbelievable to me how generous you all are every year – even when the goal was only $10,000, you blew past it!)

News and Rumors Since the Last Check-In:

Well that was a busy evening! The Cubs acquired Kevin Gausman, the Braves got Tyler Mahle, the Yankees got Luis Garcia Jr., and the Cubs lost to the Yankees, but that feels like eons ago and I don’t feel like worrying about it at this moment.

Most Interesting Tidbit Since the Last Recap:

Certainly it’s the Kevin Gausman trade, which not only dramatically improves the Cubs’ rotation immediately, but it also allows them to be patient in trying to acquire a second starting pitcher. Which is reportedly exactly what they may try to do.

Current Thoughts About the Chicago Cubs’ Trade Deadline Strategy/Execution:

A huge box has been checked, and one of the baseline requirements of this deadline. At an absolute minimum, the Cubs had to add a good starting pitcher and two good relievers. The starter is the hardest part, and whether Gausman winds up the only starter the Cubs add, they at least have him in place now. The day before the deadline, too, so they have some space to work with.

Current Tiredness Level:

2 out of 10.

Still extremely alert, and, frankly, got quite a boost from the trade. It generates a lot of energy, seeing it unfold, breaking it down, thinking through the next steps, and so on and so forth.

The Cubs really did help me out:

Cubs are just waiting until 1am to make their first big move because they want to help me get through the #BNBlogathon. Buncha classy folks.

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 2, 2026

Current Beverage/Stimulant of Choice:

Dr. Pepper Zero and Coke Zero, because I am very health conscious and those are health foods.

Current Emotional Status:

Well, you could probably tell if you watched on the most recent live stream. Had just a little bit of energy:

Whew. Ok. The first trade is in the books. Shall we discuss new Cub Kevin Gausman? #BNBlogathon https://t.co/d6oLCmqU1M

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 3, 2026

Still waiting on Josiah Hartshorn news, by the way.

There's so much attention on it now, I'd think yes. BUT, sometimes minor league injury info (or non-injury info) is kept under wraps. In another world, if there weren't a microscope on deadline-related things, we might not hear about an injury pull for days. https://t.co/4ZmmzxLrdC

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 2, 2026

Random Thought Passing Through My Mind:

That chocolate cake reward I just gave myself was daaaang good. Glad I cut it in half, too, so I can treat myself again later.

More Blogathon Miscellany:

Shaw and Ramirez likely have pretty similar value, and I do think it's pretty substantial (but also probably widely varying based on how a trade partner projects their bats going forward). Cubs don't have to trade either, obviously, but the positional squeeze looms post-2026. https://t.co/wqEIiFSssz

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 2, 2026

I was super interested in Mize as a rental option until his velocity fell off a cliff in his last outing. And then the Tigers scratched him from his next outing so no one could see whether it was a blip. https://t.co/aYJNrik73X

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 2, 2026

Very intrigued by Soriano, too, but Detmers has an ENORMOUS edge in K-BB, similar overall contact quality, and much better expected stats. Detmers gets dinged by the models on his fastball, but it gets results. We've seen that profile before … https://t.co/0g22yPFpsC pic.twitter.com/BV8lfAQTrF

— Brett Taylor (@Brett_A_Taylor) August 2, 2026

The full release from the Cubs:

“The Chicago Cubs today acquired right-handed pitcher Kevin Gausman from the Toronto Blue Jays for minor-league outfielder Brett Bateman and minor-league infielder Ty Southisene. The Cubs 40-man roster currently stands at 40 players.

Gausman, 35, is 5-10 with a 4.38 ERA (62 ER/127.1 IP) and 127 strikeouts in 23 starts for the Blue Jays this season. Among qualified American League starting pitchers in 2026, Gausman ranks fifth in chase rate (34.4%), 11th in whiff rate (27.0%) and 12th in walk rate (6.7%). He has held opponents to a .212 average (39-for-184) with 57 strikeouts and a 39.8% whiff rate on his splitter, the second-highest whiff rate amongst splitters in the A.L. this season. The righthander has registered 11 quality starts in 2026, tied for eighth in the A.L., and became the first pitcher in major league history to record at least 21 strikeouts and no walks in their first two starts of a season.

The six-foot two-inch, 200-pound Gausman has appeared in 384 career major league games (345 starts) with Baltimore (2013-18), Atlanta (2018-19), Cincinnati (2019), San Francisco (2020-21) and Toronto (2022-26), going 117-123 with a 3.85 ERA (872 ER/2,038.1 IP) and 2,081 strikeouts. His 2,081 strikeouts rank fifth among active major league pitchers, while his 2,038.1 innings are sixth. After signing a five-year contract with Toronto in Dec. 2021, Gausman won at least 10 games and made at least 30 starts in all four of his full major league seasons with the Blue Jays, including his second career All-Star selection in 2023. Following the 2023 campaign, he finished third in the A.L. Cy Young award voting.

In 14 career postseason games (eight starts), Gausman has gone 2-5 with a 3.83 ERA (24 ER/56.1 IP), including 2-3 with a 2.93 ERA (10 ER/30.2 IP) in six games (five starts) during Toronto’s run to a World Series appearance in 2025. He made two starts against the Dodgers in the World Series.

Gausman made his major league debut with Baltimore in 2013 during his second professional season and spent the 2013-18 seasons with the Orioles, prior to being traded to Atlanta as part of a six-player trade on July 31, 2018. In 2021, Gausman was named an All-Star for the first time in his career and finished sixth in the N.L. Cy Young Award voting, setting then career-best marks in innings pitched (192.0), wins (14), quality starts (20), ERA (2.81), strikeouts (227), opponents’ batting average (.210), and WHIP (1.04).

The Centennial, Colo. native was selected by Baltimore with the fourth overall pick in 2012 out of Louisiana State University.

Bateman, 24, is hitting .280 (316-for-1,129) with 42 doubles, five triples, six home runs, 112 RBI, 218 walks and 83 stolen bases in 314 minor league games across four seasons with the Mesa Cubs (3 games), Myrtle Beach (29 games), South Bend (79 games), Tennessee/Knoxville (122 games) and Iowa (81 games). The left-handed hitter was selected by Cubs in the eighth round in 2023 and is ranked as the organization’s No. 21 prospect according to MLB.com.

Southisene, 21, has recorded a .275 average (157-for-572) with 13 doubles, seven triples, 71 RBI, 104 walks and 72 stolen bases in 156 minor league games over two seasons with the Rookie League Cubs (one game), Single-A Myrtle Beach (112 games) and High-A South Bend (43 games). The righty was selected by the Cubs in the fourth round of the 2024 draft and is currently ranked as the organization’s No. 13 prospect by MLB.com.”

As a funny aside about the “swap,” a really crazy thing might happen this week:

Yes, that’s a one-gamer between the Cubs and Blue Jays – a makeup from earlier in the season – that just so happens to fall on normal rest for Kevin Gausman. And with Jameson Taillon now on the Blue Jays …

Is it possible we get Gausman versus Taillon on Thursday at Wrigley Field? That’d be pretty crazy, right? Yeah, you might’ve predicted it a couple weeks ago, but not like this!

It’s debatable whether the teams would want things to go down this way, though. On the one hand, sure, the pitchers might have some good game plans available to take down their former mates, but the same would be true of the opposing lineup. Throw in the emotional nature of these things, and I could see it cutting either way.

There’s also the travel time baked into a midseason trade – the logistics of travel, itself, plus temporarily (very quickly) relocating your life. The Cubs may want to give Gausman an extra day or two, if they feel that sets him up for success.

Freddy Peralta went to the Rays. Kevin Gausman went to the Cubs. And now Tyler Mahle goes to the Braves:

#Braves Acquire RHP Tyler Mahle: pic.twitter.com/4AT7z43hRb

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 3, 2026

Mahle, 31, has struggled to stay healthy in his career, but has periodically been excellent. His results this year with the Giants have been rough, but I don’t doubt the Braves believe they can at least help him get results closer to his average-ish peripherals.

Molina, 24, is an optionable swing guy, who can throw in the upper-90s and was at one time a top-30-ish system prospect with the Rays. I can’t say I’m super familiar with him, but it sounds about right as the price tag for a Mahle rental.

The Braves, like the Cubs, are both highly-likely to make the playoffs, and highly-unlikely to net a first round bye. So Mahle is, for them, about creating additional depth to ensure they can win the NL East, and then have more options in the postseason to get through the extra round.