Cubs Give Up on Former Dodger Zach McKinstry, Trade Him to AL Central Team

On Monday, former Dodger Zach McKinstry was traded by the Chicago Cubs to the Detroit Tigers for minor league pitcher Carlos Guzman, who had a 4.16 ERA in High-A last season. McKinstry, who clearly wasn’t going to make the Cubs Opening Day roster, was out of options, so the Cubs elected to get something out of him rather than designating him for assignment. Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic was among those to report on the deal.

The Cubs acquired McKinstry from the Dodgers at last year’s trade deadline for RHP Chris Martin. Many Dodger fans wondered if giving up McKinstry for a reliever with a 4.31 ERA was worth it, but very quickly, Martin made the Dodgers look good.

Martin turned out to be one of the better Dodger relievers down the stretch, making 26 appearances, and sporting an incredible 1.46 ERA. He was lights out in the postseason, making two scoreless outings, before signing with the Boston Red Sox in the offseason on a two-year, $13.5 million deal.

As for McKinstry, he never really got it going in Chicago, hitting just .206 with four home runs and 12 RBIs in 171 plate appearances. He had an OPS of just .633, but entered spring training with an opportunity to make an impact. However, after hitting just .079 this spring with an OPS of .327, the Cubs decided to give up on him, and send him to Detroit.

Still just 27 years old, McKinstry will hope to find some success in Detroit, a team sure to be bad in 2023. But at this point, the former Dodgers prospect has been unable to figure things out at the big league level.

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