When the Dodgers faced a roster crunch after making their deal with Kirby Yates official, there were players far more deserving of a DFA than Ryan Brasier (looking right at you, Michael Grove). But the veteran — entering the second season of a two-year deal with LA — got the bump anyway. The Dodgers parted with a guy who was, at one point, yet another reclamation project success story for LA.
The Dodgers had reportedly tried to shop him before they let him go, but it felt highly unlikely that he would just pass through waivers unclaimed, or get snapped up on waivers at all. The team still had the opportunity to try to find a deal that would work for them after he was cut.
Sure enough, on Tuesday night, Jeff Passan reported that LA had made a trade that will send Brasier to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for a player to be named later or cash considerations. The Cubs will get a veteran who pitched a stellar 38 2/3 innings for a 0.70 ERA over half a season with the Dodgers in 2023 (and who LA probably shouldn't have gotten rid of in the first place).
The Chicago Cubs are acquiring right-handed reliever Ryan Brasier in a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers, sources tell ESPN. Brasier, 37, was DFA'd last week but should get leverage innings for Chicago.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 5, 2025
Dodgers trade reliever Ryan Brasier, DFA'ed to make room for Kirby Yates, to Cubs
After a quiet start to their offseason, the Cubs got busy in December, when they signed starter Matthew Boyd and catcher Carson Kelly, and pulled off blockbuster trades that landed them Kyle Tucker and got them off the hook for some of Cody Bellinger's contract. Just last week, they made another deal with the Astros to get Ryan Pressly in their bullpen.
This was all after the Cubs' desperation to get rid of Bellinger stymied any movement on the free agent market for a few months, and seemed to keep them out of the conversations for any major free agents. Clearly, they've found a way to get the best of both worlds.
Brasier probably won't have to go very long without seeing the ex that dumped him; the Cubs and Dodgers are set to meet in Tokyo in just over a month and Brasier could appear in the late innings. Hopefully, for the Dodgers' sake, he won't immediately make them regret letting him go.