ST. LOUIS -- The Chicago Cubs are banking on the character of the man more than what the numbers say when it comes to their new pitching acquisition, left-hander Cole Hamels.
"We were looking beyond his recent struggles, and looking at the pitcher, overall, and the man, overall, that he is," Cubs president Theo Epstein said Friday.
Hamels, 35, was acquired from the Texas Rangers earlier in the day for pitcher Eddie Butler, a minor league pitcher and a player to be named. Hamels has an 11.12 ERA in four July starts spanning 17 innings. He is 5-9 this season with a 4.72 ERA in 20 starts.
"Sometimes you have to take a little bit of an educated gamble on a guy and look past the recent performance," Epstein said. "But I think the thing is his stuff is still there, his velocity is the same as has been for years. It's been a command and execution issue."
Hamels will report to the team on Saturday and make his Cubs debut sometime next week.
Ten years ago, World Series MVP Hamels and the Philadelphia Phillies beat Joe Maddon's Tampa Bay Rays in five games. Now he'll attempt to help a Cubs team vying for its second championship in three years. Chicago might point toward Hamels' road splits this season as a reason for optimism. His ERA was 2.93 away from Globe Life Park, although Epstein made no mention of it.
"Home-road splits in terms of analysis only go so far," he said. "You're taking what is already a small sample, a partial season, and dicing it into even smaller parts, so you can really get out of control crafting your own narrative. ... More than anything, it's trusting Cole Hamels for who he is."
Epstein said the team might do some more maneuvering before Tuesday's trade deadline. They've already acquired two pitchers from the Rangers, including reliever Jesse Chavez.
"We pursued more traditional top-of-the-rotation-type fits, but that's proving really difficult at this deadline," Epstein said.
Maddon indicated the team would stick with a five-man rotation, but Epstein walked back the idea, saying they had to discuss the situation internally and inform affected parties before announcing anything. Mike Montgomery or Tyler Chatwood likely will head to the bullpen unless the team chooses to use a six-man rotation, which isn't likely right now. Either way, Hamels will get his chance to establish himself with his new team.
"He's a proven excellent starter in this league for a long time," Epstein said. "He's been through the wars and is the type of guy that could get rejuvenated, coming from the situation he's in now, into a pennant race and this clubhouse and Wrigley Field. Really betting on the person. You acquire someone in a pennant race, in a market like Chicago, I think you have to pay attention to makeup."
One reason the Cubs need Hamels is the uncertainty of right-hander Yu Darvish, who has been out since May with an elbow impingement. Darvish threw 23 pitches in the bullpen on Friday.
"In the first 10 pitches I had some discomfort, then I looked into altering my mechanics and then the pain went away," Darvish said through his interpreter.
Darvish used the phrase "severe pain" to describe the feeling he had after his first few throws, but Epstein said it's not a concern. The good news is he got through the bullpen session and even threw some more afterward.
"You can be misled parsing every sentence [from Darvish]," Epstein said. "The bottom line is it was a very positive day. He got through a little discomfort and ended up feeling really good."
Meanwhile, third baseman Kris Bryant had a cortisone shot after an MRI reaffirmed no structural damage to his shoulder. He is out indefinitely.