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By Jon Paul Hoornstra
Contributing Sports Writer
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David Peterson is a shadow of the All-Star pitcher he was in 2025 for the New York Mets. He lost his place in the starting rotation in April, carried a 6.09 ERA and a negative WAR through June 23, and was charged with six of the Mets' NL East-worst 44 losses.
Overnight, he became the best hope for the Chicago Cubs' beleaguered pitching staff.
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The Cubs acquired Peterson, 30, in a 1-for-1 trade with the Cubs for minor league first baseman/designated hitter Cole Mathis.
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Mathis, 22, had an .860 OPS in 25 games at High-A South Bend.
Chicago can immediately plug Peterson into a starting rotation that lost Ben Brown (neck) and Edward Cabrera (hamstring) to injuries over the previous two days — injuries that threatened to further sink the Cubs' hopes of climbing back into playoff position.
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The Cubs are 43-37 and seven games behind the first-place Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Central division. If the season ended today, they would be the NL's third Wild Card team.
For all his struggles in 2026, Peterson offers hope of helping the Cubs return to October. His 3.85 FIP is almost perfectly in line with his 3.91 career average, and suggests he might benefit from the Cubs' defense — a better unit than the one behind him in Queens.
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Regarded as a ground-ball machine, Peterson is coming off a 2025 season in which he set career highs in innings (168.2), strikeouts (150), and starts (30).
If the Cubs ultimately shift Peterson back to the bullpen, it's a role he has held down before. Just two years ago, the Mets reached the National League Championship Series. Peterson made four of his five postseason appearances in relief in 2024, going 1-0 with a 2.92 ERA in October.
For now he'll bolster a starting rotation that was down to three pitchers — Shota Imanaga, Colin Rea and Javier Assad — after the injuries to Cabrera and Brown. A fourth pitcher, Matthew Boyd, is set to come off the injured list June 25.
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