The Cubs bullpen, for the most part, has been surprisingly good considering how many injuries they've suffered to this point. Almost every single Cubs reliever has an ERA under 3, including guys like Trent Thornton who were picked up mid-season for dirt cheap. Looking at Chicago's bullpen, one guy clearly stands out, and not in a good way. Phil Maton was signed to a multi-year, $14.5 million dollar deal in the offseason, but has continued to be Chicago's least trustworthy arm out of the pen.
Through nearly 18 innings, Maton has given up 15 earned runs, with his season ERA sitting at a 7.64. There were signs of improvement for Maton in early May, as after starting the season with a 14.40 ERA through 6 outings, he went the next 5 innings without allowing a run. Since then, he's been back to his old ways, consistently giving up runs in crucial situations.
Craig Counsell must address Maton's latest blunder
Maton's latest outing in the series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals has a lot of Cubs fans blood boiling. Maton recorded 2 outs, while giving up 3 hits and a run. At the time he entered the game, Chicago was down 5-4 in the 8th inning. With the Cubs offense finally getting back on track, the game was far from over. After Maton gave up the run in the 8th, the Cubs were able to put a run on the board in the 9th, but they ultimately fell short, losing 5-6 in the series opener.
Had the Cardinals not scored this insurance run, Friday night's game could have very well gone into extra innings and Chicago could have continued building their next win streak. Instead, Maton was tossed into yet another high leverage situation, and once again showed he cannot be trusted in close games. Chicago is paying him 8 million dollars to consistently blow games, and until he figures it out, he should not be pitching in close games. Counsell must address the problem and relegate Maton to low leverage situations until he gets on track, especially with the rest of the Chicago bullpen consistently performing well.
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