Cubs reel in starter Edward Cabrera in trade with Marlins
Chicago acquires high-octane right-hander after his 2025 breakout season.
The Chicago Cubs landed a big fish—no pun intended—on Wednesday, acquiring right-handed pitcher Edward Cabrera from the Miami Marlins in exchange for three players.
Miami will receive outfield prospect Owen Caissie, along with minor-league infielders Cristian Hernandez and Edgardo De Leon.
Cabrera, 27, is a former top prospect who has long tantalized evaluators with elite raw stuff but whose career has been slowed by injuries. That narrative shifted in 2025, when the right-hander enjoyed a breakout campaign, making a career-high 26 starts while going 8–7 with a 3.53 ERA across 137 2/3 innings—also a personal best.
The power righty struck out 25.8% of opposing hitters while trimming his walk rate to a career-low 8.3%, a significant improvement from the 13.3% mark he carried into the season. He generated a 46.6% ground-ball rate and maintained premium velocity, averaging 97 mph on his four-seam fastball and 96.8 mph on his sinker.
Cabrera is under team control for three more seasons and is due for a raise in 2026 after earning a base salary of $1.95 million in 2025. He is scheduled to reach free agency following the 2028 season.
Injuries remain the central concern in Cabrera’s profile. The right-hander has appeared in just 89 games over parts of five major-league seasons, having dealt with both elbow and shoulder issues. Still, his ability to stay relatively healthy last season gives the Cubs reason to believe his long-awaited upside may finally be sustainable.
The Marlins’ return is headlined by Caissie, who has developed into one of the premier power-hitting outfielders in the minor leagues.
Acquired by Chicago during the 2020 offseason as part of the trade that sent Yu Darvish to the San Diego Padres, Caissie spent much of the past two seasons at Triple-A Iowa. Across 226 games at the level, he slashed .281/.380/.507 with 41 home runs—production that graded 26% better than the average Triple-A hitter.
He made his MLB debut in August 2025 but appeared in just 12 games after missing time with a concussion.
Hernandez adds defensive versatility and athleticism to the deal. The former $3 million international signee spent the 2025 season at High-A South Bend, hitting .252/.329/.365 with seven home runs and a career-high 52 stolen bases.
While his bat remains below average, Hernandez flashes above-average raw power and stands out defensively as an above-average shortstop with the arm strength to handle any infield position, projecting as a utility infielder with speed and glove value.
De Leon, signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2024, brings power upside to Miami’s system. He hit .276/.353/.500 with five home runs in 43 games in the Arizona Complex League in 2025, flashing elite exit velocities and strong underlying impact metrics.
Swing-and-miss remains the biggest question in his profile, and he is most likely to settle in as a corner infielder, with first base his long-term defensive home.
Giving up is a steep price, particularly for a bat with his level of impact upside. The Marlins have already shown an ability to extract real value when dealing big-league-ready outfield talent. Kyle Stowers, acquired from the Orioles, emerged as an All-Star last season, while Jakob Marsee, obtained from the Padres, produced 1.9 WAR in just 55 games.
If Caissie follows a similar path, this is a deal the Cubs could eventually regret.
For the Cubs, the deal represents a calculated bet on upside and durability as they look to bolster their rotation with a controllable arm entering his prime.
If I were to compare this to the Red Sox org, I'd say Tolle (MLB Ready), Dorian Soto (stud IFA signing who is having success w/the bat & can stay at SS long term), and Harold Rivas (OF w/massive EVs & decent success at the lowest of levels). Would I have been ok with sending this to Miami for Cabrerra? No thank you. I'd have been ok to send this to Miami for Thomas White though. I think the Marlins did well for a pitcher who hasn't been under a 10% walk rate in any given year until '25 nor who has ever hit 30 starts in any of his 5 seasons in the Majors. I can definitely see the upside, of course. Good luck to the Cubs in this deal. I saw Cassie play live in his first Minor League game in Myrtle Beach and I could see during batting practice that this guy was a Major Leaguer. He looked different from all the other hitters. PCA and Matt Mervis were on that club, and you could see the difference between them and the other guys in the batter's box. Cassie and PCA looked extremely different, in the way they moved, in the way they swung. Mervis looked like someone with potential. I think he (Cassie) is ready to make the adjustments to bring his Strike Out rate down and become a potential All Star. This could be a good deal for both sides.