3 pieces the Chicago Cubs need to acquire to contend
By Jason Parini
Relief Pitching
The Chicago Cubs need to work on their bullpen a little bit if they want to win.
While teams can never truly have enough pitching, the Cubs are especially in need of some bullpen help before they’re ready to contend. The Cubs have had a solid 1-2-3 punch so far in the starting rotation, led by Justin Steele.
They currently have the second-lowest ERA of any starting rotation in baseball with a 3.31 ERA, trailing only the Tampa Bay Rays (2.94).
Steele posted another impressive outing on Friday and has a 5-0 record with a 1.45 ERA and 0.95 WHIP. He’s followed by Marcus Stroman with a 2.18 ERA and Drew Smyly’s 3.05 ERA.
Fortunately, Jameson Taillon and Hayden Wesneski have pitched well in recent starts despite inconsistent performances to start the year. Additionally, the rotation could hopefully get a boost in the coming weeks with the return of veteran Kyle Hendricks.
Given his injury and struggles in recent seasons, it’s hard to know what to expect when The Professor returns.
All that being said, the Cubs bullpen has been mediocre thus far, posting a 3.56 ERA. Heading into this weekend’s series, they were 17th in MLB with a 3.96 ERA.
The Cubs pen has been up and down and in every direction in between. Mark Leiter Jr. has been the only truly dominant reliever thus far, posting a 1.13 ERA in 14 innings with a 0.938 WHIP.
Adbert Alzolay and Michael Rucker have looked solid as well, with 0.804 and 1.154 WHIPs, respectively.
Yet somehow, the Cubs rank 2nd in WHIP across all of MLB bullpens with a 1.13 WHIP.
Though the pen has given up a significant amount of earned runs, they continue to strikeout batters and have posted the lowest hard-hit rate of any team in MLB. They’re fourth overall in Brls/PA%.
All that said, the Cubs have quite a bit of moves to make before becoming a contender. They’re in need of bullpen relief from top to bottom and still have not found a dominant closer.
It’s likely that if the team is still in a good spot come July, they could make some moves at the trade deadline to add an arm or two and will undoubtedly look to boost the pen in the 2023-24 offseason.