Giants acquire pitching prospect Cory Abbott from Cubs

The Cubs are trading right-handed pitcher Cory Abbott to the Giants, reports Russell Dorsey of Bally Sports. Cash considerations are going the other way, per Robert Murray of FanSided.

Abbott was selected by the Cubs in the second round of the 2017 draft and was well-regarded among Chicago farmhands almost immediately. Baseball America has ranked him between No. 8 and No. 23 in the system since 2018. Primarily working as a starter, he climbed the ranks of the minors and was selected to the club’s 40-man roster in advance of the 2020 Rule 5 draft. Last year, he threw 17 1/3 innings for the big league club with a 6.75 ERA, 14.6% strikeout rate and 13.4% walk rate. He was much better in 96 Triple-A innings, however, striking out 29.8% of batters, though he still had a high walk rate of 12.2% and a 5.91 ERA.

Abbott was designated for assignment last week and will now head out to his new team on the West Coast. For the Giants, there’s almost no risk in throwing some cash to the Cubs and seeing if Abbott can find another gear to make good on the promise he showed as a prospect. He’s still only 26 years old and has options. The club recently put Alex Cobb on the injured list, which dinged the rotation slightly, though he’s not expected to be out for an extended period of time.