CHICAGO — Former Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Joc Pederson has agreed to a free-agent deal with the Chicago Cubs, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.
Pederson, an All-Star in 2015, figures to platoon in left field, taking over for Kyle Schwarber, who was non-tendered and signed with the Washington Nationals.
Like Schwarber, Pederson is a power-hitting left-handed hitter with a low batting average and high strikeout totals. But he never reached his potential in Los Angeles because of an inability to hit left-handers, and is considered below average defensively.
Pederson has a .191 career average against lefties, and of his 130 career home runs, 121 have been hit off right-handers. He averaged 25 home runs and 57 RBIs per year between 2015-19, but struggled in 2020, hitting .190 with seven home runs and 16 RBI in 121 at-bats in the pandemic-shortened season.
Cubs President Jed Hoyer was unavailable for comment.
