Chicago Cubs upgrade bullpen by acquiring Brandon Kintzler

The Chicago Cubs made yet another move prior to the MLB trade deadline on Tuesday, upgrading their bullpen with Brandon Kintzler.

We knew the Chicago Cubs weren’t done. Theo Epstein loves himself some trade deadline madness, that’s for sure. Prior to Tuesday’s deadline, the Cubs have reportedly acquired Washington Nationals righty Brandon Kintzler.

Kintzler comes over from the Nationals after having his most stellar month of the year. In 13 appearances during July, Kintzler pitched 13.1 innings and gave up just three runs. His ERA on the month was an impressive 2.03. In those 13.1 innings, Kintzler also struck out 10 batters.

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Cubs fans should be relatively familiar with Kintzler, as he spent his first six Major League seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers. Following his stint in Milwaukee, Kintzler played for both the Minnesota Twins and the Nationals. Now, he gets a chance to win a World Series in Chicago.

One of the major aspects of the team which Cubs fans have loathed all season long, amidst their rotation, is the ineptitude of Tyler Chatwood. By now, we know how bad he has struggled with walking batters — so much so, that he was sent down to the bullpen and is no longer a part of the rotation.

Just like that, too, the Cubs found someone who Cubs fans should like a whole lot better than the recently-demoted Chatwood. In Kintzler, the Cubs are getting a guy who doesn’t regularly walk batters. Obviously, this should be a welcome sight at Wrigley, after seeing some ugly moments from Chatwood this season.

In 42.2 innings pitched this year, Kintzler has only walked 13 batters. Even more impressive, though, is the fact that he only walked one over the entire month of July — startling, right? The 33-year-old should come as a breath of fresh air to the Cubs who need someone they can count on coming out of the pen.

While Chatwood should do much better as a reliever — the key word is should — it is Kintzler who is already familiar with his role. It is Kintzler who should have an even more rejuvenated second half of the season now that he is a member of one of the best teams in all of baseball.

Epstein made this move count, and Cubs fans should be thrilled with how the trade deadline unfolded. The team kept their major pieces intact and now look set to give it everything once more as they aim for another title run.