Trade Profiles: Paul Maholm

We all know Paul Maholm. He is one of the best and definitely most consistent pitchers we've had in the Burgh for all long time, and is pretty high on record leader boards for Pirates lefties all time. Paul was a fan favorite and still might be for the bandwagon fans that don't realize that he's now a Cub. I've always liked Paul Maholm and never thought he got the credit he deserved or any run support which hurt his win-loss record. I was happy however that we didn't agree to that $9 million option this offseason. The thought of having Maholm back warms my heart but let's look if we want him back.

Maholm has been up and down all year for the Cubs after some outstanding years in the Burgh (especially against the Astros). This year Maholm sports a 7-6 record with 65 punch outs a 4.33 ERA and 1.33 WHIP. However Paul has been heating up. In his last four starts he has only given up 2 earned runs in 22.1 innings with 16 strikeouts. Sounds like last year's Paul Maholm. Maholm signed a one year deal with Chicago for $4.25 million (same as Vargas' salary) with a club option for $6.25 million next year, ironically the same money he made with the Pirates last year. The one drawback that I don't like is his inconsistency this year. He had the best year of his career last year but isn't following up this year. He's an upgrade over Correia but I feel he's the same basically as Erik Bedard.

Would I like to have Maholm back? Absolutely I would. Great clubhouse guy and a loyal former Pirate and I still follow him on twitter as one of my favorite Pirates of my generation. His stats however indicate he may not be an upgrade over what we already have, especially since he's still pitching in the same division and not playing for a team/fans that hate him. There would be no change. For these reasons I think he's sort of a plan B or C for the Pirates and a Maholm homecoming, while it'd be fun and a fan's (like me) favorite move, is not very likely.