The Chicago Cubs say goodbye to a former first-rounder, as left-hander Luke Little has been claimed off waivers by the Kansas City Royals . Little had been designated for assignment by Chicago three days prior.
The Cubs had overhauled their pitching staff at the trade deadline. They acquired Clay Holmes , Kevin Gausman , Braxton Garrett , and Ryan Zeferjahn . The influx of talent added to bolster a beat-up pitching staff squeezed Little off the 40-man roster.
Little still has one option remaining entering the season, but that has since been burned. With that in mind, the Cubs elected to cut ties instead of holding onto him as an out-of-options player next season.
Luke Little is not related to former Cubs first-rounder Brendon Little .
The Cubs drafted Luke Little in the fourth round of the 2020 MLB Draft out of San Jacinto College.
The 6'8″ left-hander had become somewhat of a social media sensation before going pro. Little had been touching triple digits in bullpen sessions during the pandemic, video courtesy of Rob Friedman (a.k.a. Pitching Ninja) , leading to the Cubs taking a flyer in that year's draft.
Little debuted for the club in 2023 and looked promising the following season. In 2024, he pitched to a 3.46 ERA across 30 appearances.
Despite possessing a fastball that averaged close to 96 MPH for most of his career, Little struggled with consistency. He's only seen three MLB appearances since that 2024 season, allowing two runs in 3.2 innings.
Little will now try to resume his career with the Royals .
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