Chicago Cubs: Three key players for the postseason

Craig Kimbrel will need to be a cornerstone of the Chicago Cubs’ bullpen if the team is going to find success in the postseason.

The Chicago Cubs signed veteran reliever Craig Kimbrel in 2019 to stabilize their bullpen. Kimbrel’s struggles in 2019 and to begin the 2020 season, however, have left fans questioning if Kimbrel can be trusted to be a late-inning reliever for the team in the 2020 postseason.

If the Cubs are going to advance far in the 2020 Major League Baseball postseason, then Kimbrel will need to be a valued reliever as the team begins their 2020 National League Wildcard series against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday.

The good news for the Cubs is that Kimbrel has regained his future hall of fame form as the veteran was electric for the Cubs during the final month of the regular season.

The ideal gameplan for how Cubs’ manager David Ross should handle the pitching staff during the postseason should be the following:

For Kyle Hendricks or Yu Darvish Starts, the chances are likely that both starting pitchers will take the Cubs into the 7th inning, meaning the Cubs would likely need between 6 outs from their bullpen in order to secure the victory. Under that scenario, Kimbrel would pitch the eighth inning and Jeremy Jefferies would pitch the ninth inning.

If the Cubs are forced to play a Game 3 against the Marlins, or in the event that they advance past the Marlins and the format becomes a best of 5 five for the divisional league series and best of 7 for the league championship series and World Series, then the importance of Kimbrel is heightened. The reason being is that the Cubs’ starting rotation for those scenarios would extend beyond Hendricks and Darvish. Instead of needing 6 outs from the bullpen in order to secure a victory, they likely will need anywhere from 9 to 12 outs.

For Kimbrel, this would mean that he may be asked to pitch multiple innings given the experience that he has in the postseason. If that is the case, it will be crucial that the Kimbrel that Ross turns to is the Kimbrel that was on for the mound for the Cubs in September and not the erratic Kimbrel we had seen prior.

Who are your three key players for the Chicago Cubs postseason run? Sound off in the comments section with your thoughts.