Hey, hey! Jed Hoyer did it, he signed a star free agent from Japan. That's right, the newest member of the Chicago Cubs is none other than 34-year-old Tyler Austin!!!!
Fun fact, Austin and Shōta Imanaga were actually teammates in Japan, where they both played for the Yokohama Bay Stars and now they're reunited on the Cubs. Austin, a former New York Yankees prospect that bounced around MLB from 2016-19, has been playing in Japan for the past five years and he's become a pretty good hitter in the NPB.
Austin, a right-handed batter, has been a two-time All-Star with the Bay Stars and won the 2024 batting title as well. In 2024, Austin had a slash line of .316/.382/.601, with 25 home runs in 106 games.
I mean, for a bench bat this seems like a low-risk move with some upside for the Cubs. Austin hit .219/.292/.451, with 33 home runs in 583 plate appearances in MLB with the Yankees, Minnesota Twins, San Francisco Giants and Milwaukee Brewers combined.
Purely looking at his stats on paper, both in his limited time in the majors and during his time playing in Japan, Austin kind of seems like another Patrick Wisdom type. Lots of power, but a lot of strikeouts coming with it. That being said, Austin did cut his strikeout rate the past two years to below 20% after it was in the 30% range during his first three years overseas.
Maybe the Cubs are bullish on Austin's change of approach at the plate. You want guys with power to pull the ball more often than not and apparently Austin has been shifting his focus to that specific area.
We know the deal here though and that's Austin most likely coming in to be a platoon bat at first base behind Michael Busch, while also serving as a backup option at DH for the Cubs in 2026. During his original stint in MLB, Austin posted a 132 wRC+ against left-handed pitching as he slashed .253/.345/.539, and hit 18 of his 33 career home runs off lefties.
Streamer projects a pretty decent 2026 season for Austin with a slash line of .244/.306/.434, 11 home runs and a 103 wRC+. You'll take that production from one of your bench bats. According to several reports, Austin will have a base salary of $1.25 million.
