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Cubs Still Searching For Another Starting Pitcher

(CBS) After letting right-hander Jason Hammel walk in free agency and with two rotation members set to become free agents after 2017, the Cubs remain on the hunt to add another starting pitcher ahead of the start of this season.

"We definitely want to find another starting pitcher," general manager Jed Hoyer said on the Spiegel and Parkins Show on Wednesday. "We've done some of the things we set out to do this winter. We got a complement for (Albert) Almora in center field in Jon Jay. We bolstered the back of the bullpen with (Wade) Davis and and (Koji) Uehara, but the area we haven't completed yet is finding some additional starting depth. We'll keep on looking for that."

The issue of adding a starter is pressing for the Cubs in part because right-hander Jake Arrieta and right-hander John Lackey are on track to be free agents after the 2017 season. Arrieta is expected to command a lucrative long-term deal that the Cubs may not be willing to offer, knowing they'll need to pay up for their young core of position players in the coming years. Additionally, it's possible the 38-year-old Lackey retires after 2017.

With Hammel leaving, the team's No. 5 rotation spot is open. Left-hander Mike Montgomery has the inside track right now to fill it.

The Cubs missed out on a target when right-hander Tyson Ross agreed to a one-year deal with the Rangers last week. They've scoured the trade market too but haven't encountered a deal to their liking yet.

"As far as trades, we get asked about our young guys all the time," Hoyer said. "We have a lot of really good young players. Some people think we have redundancies or too much depth.

"A big part of why we had such a good regular season and why we won the World Series is we had a lot of good players and we didn't run out empty at-bats all year. When guys got hurt, we had good players to step in. And I've said it on your show too many times that you're probably tired of it, but depth is really underrated, and we're not looking to get rid of our depth just to add something that will help us this year. Making sure that we maintain that position-playing depth really allows us to have injuries and withstand that from a position-playing standpoint. We don't necessarily have the same luxury on the pitching side, and that's something we need to fix."

Listen to Hoyer's full interview below. He also reflects on the Cubs' trip to the White House on Monday.

Jed Hoyer on the Spiegel and Parkins Show

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