Cubs Sign Free Agent Right-Hander to Deal

The Chicago Cubs have signed right-handed pitcher Sam McWilliams to a minor-league deal, per The Athletic.

McWilliams, who has never pitched in the Majors, last pitched in the Cincinnati Reds’ organization in 2022 before he stepped away from the game to take a job as a sales representative with Blast Athletics.

Per The Athletic, the 28-year-old had jobs in Mexico and the Dominican Republic before deciding to give baseball another shot.

McWilliams was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the eighth round of the 2014 MLB draft out of Beech High School in Hendersonville, Tenn.

He spent 2014 and 2015 with the Phillies’ organization with their Gulf Coast League team, where he went a combined 2-5 as a starter.

From there, McWilliams was included in two trades that bounced him around pro baseball.

The Phillies dealt him to Arizona in late 2015 for Jeremy Hellickson and in two seasons advanced to the Diamondbacks’ High-A affiliate.

The D-backs traded him in May of 2018 to Tampa Bay as a player to be named later in a deal for Steven Sousa Jr. With Tampa Bay he advanced to Double-A. But, in late 2018 he was selected by Kansas City in the Rule 5 Draft.

After finishing with a 15.43 ERA in nearly five spring innings with the Royals, they returned McWilliams to the Rays, where he advanced to Triple-A Durham. He selected free agency in November of 2020.

The New York Mets signed him to a Major League contract for the 2021 season, but he was designated for assignment in May after just seven games at Triple-A Syracuse.

The Padres claimed him and then outrighted him two weeks later, where he finished the season at Triple-A El Paso before selecting free agency and signed with Cincinnati before the 2022 season.

McWilliams is 34-45 with a 4.41 ERA for his minor-league career.