Back to the Chicago Cubs Newsfeed

Cubs free agent target: Sean Manaea

The Cubs could use a lefthanded starter.

We’ve looked at several in this series: José Quintana, Andrew Heaney, Carlos Rodón.

A bit under the radar, but someone who might be able to contribute to a 2023 rotation, is Sean Manaea.

Manaea was a first-round pick (34th overall) of the Royals in 2013 and eventually traded to the A’s for... our old pal Ben Zobrist, in 2015. Then he got too expensive in Oakland and they shipped him to the Padres before 2022.

Manaea had shoulder surgery and missed most of 2019, and hasn’t been quite the same pitcher since as he was before, though he did have a decent year in Oakland in 2021.