Former Brewers starter becomes surprising 2025 trade candidate for Milwaukee's arch-rival

Starting pitching is a coveted asset this time of year. With only a handful of viable starters on the trade market, the price that contenders will pay to add a reliable arm to their rotation, especially one that has playoff experience, often doesn’t correspond to the true value of the player they are acquiring. For this reason, and several others, the Milwaukee Brewers are reportedly exploring their options when it comes to their own starting pitching depth, with the possibility of them trading away one of their two veteran southpaws, José Quintana or Nestor Cortes, prior to this Thursday's deadline.

However, starting pitching sales generally don't come from teams that are leading their divisions — the luxury of being able to part with one of their proven starters is one that the Brewers have only because of their incredible depth of rotation options. Rather, it's generally the teams at the bottom of the standings that are the ones shipping rotation talent away to contenders in exchange for prospect capital. One such team is currently benefiting from the services of a former Brewers' rotation mainstay, and could continue to benefit from his recent performance if they elect to flip him for long-term talent ahead of this year's deadline.

Adrian Houser has emerged as likely trade candidate, Chicago Cubs reportedly interested

When the Brewers shipped Adrian Houser and Tyrone Taylor off to the New York Mets in exchange for pitching prospect Coleman Crow back in December 2023, it appeared as if Houser was past his prime. Back-to-back seasons with an ERA above 4.10 seemed to suggest that Houser's 2021 season was the outliers. A rough season for the Mets in 2025 nearly confirmed that Houser would be at best a back-end of the rotation option for the rest of his career.

Then came 2025, and with it a change of scenery. Well, actually multiple changes of scenery. Houser began the season in the Texas Rangers organization, where he made eight starts for the team's Triple-A affiliate, the Round Rock Express. He posted a 5.03 ERA for the Express, and in mid-May, Texas released him without ever making an appearance for the big league club.

However, a few days after his release from the Rangers' organization, Houser signed a deal with the Chicago White Sox, and since making that decision, his season has turned around on a dime. The White Sox didn't send Houser down to Triple-A, but rather had him starting games in the majors right away. From May 20 to today, Houser has made 11 starts for the South Siders, and posted a 2.10 ERA while collecting six wins on the last-place White Sox.

Now, with teams on the lookout for starting pitching help, Houser's name has commonly surfaced in trade rumors, and one Brewers' rival seems to be closely monitoring the 32-year-old right-hander.

As reported by many MLB insiders, including Patrick Mooney of The Athletic, the Chicago Cubs are interested in acquiring Houser at the deadline. The Cubs desperately need starting pitching help, and Houser could be a cheap, albeit slightly underwhelming, addition. Houser's underlying metrics reveal that he's due for some regression over the next few months. For one, his expected ERA is nearly two runs higher than his actual ERA. He's not missing bats, but rather just benefiting from missing barrels. Even still, his hard hit rate ranks in the 15th percentile of all major league pitchers, according to Baseball Savant.

While the Cubs would likely add another starter if they do choose to go the Houser route, don't expect the former Brewers starter to replicate his impressive last few months down the stretch. Houser may end up being a serviceable middle-of-the-rotation starter for whichever team ends up acquiring him, but it's highly unlikely that he continues to be a sub 2.50 ERA pitcher over the next two months.