According to Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Cubs have designated right-handed pitcher Matt Festa for assignment. This transaction opened a roster spot for right-handed pitcher Ryan Pressly, who the team officially acquired via trade earlier on Tuesday. Festa was acquired by the Cubs earlier in the offseason but will now return to waivers. Last season, Festa logged 23 2/3 innings of work with the Mets and Rangers and posted a 5.70 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. Across 40 innings at the Triple-A level last summer, the 31-year-old posted a strong 2.70 and a 1.20 WHIP while tallying 48 punchouts. Fantasy managers should expect Festa to spend most of the 2025 campaign at the minor league level, given his lack of prolonged success in the major leagues.
Cubs Acquire Matt Festa, Designate Miles Mastrobuoni For Assignment
According to Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports, the Chicago Cubs have acquired right-handed pitcher Matt Festa from the Texas Rangers in exchange for cash considerations. In a corresponding move, the Cubs designated infielder Miles Mastrobuoni for assignment. Festa was initially designated for assignment by Texas earlier this week but will now look to compete for a spot on the Cubs Opening Day Roster. Last season, Festa posted a 5.70 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP across 23 2/3 innings of relief in the majors. Mastrobuoni was deployed as a depth option in the Chicago infield last season and held a .191/.245/.224 line across 50 games. If Festa were to earn a spot on the roster, he would likely see time as a low-leverage relief option.
According to the team, the Texas Rangers have designated right-handed pitcher Matt Festa for assignment. This transaction opened a spot on the roster for right-handed pitcher Chris Martin, who the Rangers acquired on Monday evening. Last season, Festa spent time in both the major and minor leagues. In 23 2/3 innings in the big leagues, Festa held a 5.70 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He struck out batters at a modest 24.0% rate and generated a solid 34.3% hard-hit rate. Across 40 innings at Triple-A, the 31-year-old posted a solid 2.70 ERA and 1.20 WHIP with 48 punchouts. If Festa can find a new club, he would likely open the season in Triple-A given his struggles in the majors last summer.
Free-agent right-hander Matt Festa signed a minor-league deal with the San Diego Padres on Friday that includes an invitation to major-league spring training. Festa comes over to the Friars after parts of four seasons with the Seattle Mariners. In 2023, he threw nine relief innings and gave up four earned runs on four hits (one homer) while walking 12 and striking out 13. The 30-year-old was designated for assignment in August and has a career 4.32 ERA (4.77 FIP), 1.32 WHIP, 44 walks and 102 strikeouts in 93 2/3 innings covering 89 appearances (one start) at the big-league level. Festa isn't anywhere near the fantasy radar and will most likely be a mop-up middle reliever out of San Diego's bullpen if he's pitching in the big leagues at any point in 2024.
Seattle Mariners reliever Matthew Festa will make the start against the Astros on Wednesday as the opener for a bullpen game. While Festa does have a nice 1.69 ERA, he's thrown just 5 1/3 innings over four outings in the big league this year and can be avoided in all fantasy leagues, as he will likely only go an inning or two.
