The most notable Jesús Luzardo trade rumors from this offseason had the Chicago Cubs as the primary suitors. But according to a report from The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, the Cubs backed out of a potential deal due to concerns regarding his medicals.
Luzardo, 27, spent significant time on the injured list last season with elbow tightness and a lumbar stress reaction. The latter ended his season in June after just 12 starts. Per Rosenthal, the Cubs had concerns with his elbow and back.
The Miami Marlins did not want to risk another injury that would tank his trade value, so they decided to deal him in the offseason. The centerpiece of the deal was 19-year-old shortstop Starlyn Caba, a consensus top 100 prospect and a top-five Phillies prospect at the time. Caba, who is assigned to Low-A Jupiter, is currently on the 7-day injured list with a left thumb sprain.
Some clubs are more risk averse than others. The Cubs clearly did not like what they saw. Luzardo probably would have garnered more widespread interest if the injury concerns were not there. The price would have also been a lot steeper. Dave Dombrowski, when asked by Rosenthal to comment on the situation, said that the Phillies’ training staff at the time was confident that they can keep him healthy.
“I’ve had plenty of players where one club hasn’t taken a player because of medicals and another club has, and the player is fine,” Dombrowski told Rosenthal. “Everybody has their own standards, how they read certain injuries. Our (doctors and athletic trainers) — and knock on wood, because you never know what happens — have been very good at analyzing guys for us. And they have turned guys down at times, too, for us. But they felt they would be able to keep (Luzardo) healthy.”
The risk has so far paid off for the Phillies. Through five starts, he has a 2.08 ERA. He has been their best player by far. The Phillies, who have lost five straight, badly need another stellar outing out of him on Saturday against the same team that rejected him.
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