The Los Angeles Angels traded a number of players away during the regular season. Starting pitcher Reid Detmers was among the trade candidates, but he ultimately was not moved before the deadline in early August. The Chicago Cubs were among Detmers' potential suitors, but they reportedly faced an “astronomical” asking price from the Angels, according to Peter Appel of Just Baseball.
“The asking price for Reid Detmers was astronomical for every team, including the Cubs, and talks never got close with anyone. Angels hoped someone would overpay; if not, they were content to keep controllable, key big-league pieces like Detmers and (Zach) Neto,” Appel reported Wednesday.
Detmers still has multiple years of team control remaining on his contract, so the Angels are not in a rush to move him. The 27-year-old enjoyed a breakout 2026 season. After dealing with inconsistency throughout the first few years of his big league career, Detmers turned in a strong 3.36 ERA to go along with 211 strikeouts across 185 innings of work during the '26 campaign.
Article Continues BelowThe Cubs will look to make roster upgrades this offseason. Acquiring a starting pitcher or two will likely be among Chicago's offseason goals. Perhaps the ball club could revisit a potential deal for Detmers. Of course, it remains to be seen if the Angels' asking price will still be “astronomical.”
The Cubs are surely going to be mentioned in rumors for starting pitching trade candidates during the offseason — regardless of whether or not they pursue a potential deal for Reid Detmers once again.