4 days Ago
After a busy winter, the Chicago Cubs are living up to expectations early on this season. Despite a bit of a slow start, the Cubs are playing some great baseball of late and have put themselves in first place in the National League Central. This offseason, Chicago was extremely aggressive in trying to improve a team that had won 83 games the past two years.
So far, the results have been very good. Kyle Tucker is looking like an MVP candidate in the National League and has completely changed the offense all together. The lineup has helped carry the squad for the most part this season, with the starting rotation also doing well.
However, a recent elbow injury to Justin Steele will be a challenging obstacle to overcome. The left-hander was a top-end starter for the team, and replacing that production is going to be hard to do. Furthermore, while the lineup and starting rotation have been good, the team does have some early concerns about their bullpen once again.
However, one player who is still a free agent could be the answer. Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report recently spoke about David Roberston still being on the market in free agency and listed the Cubs as a potential candidate to sign him. “Or maybe he's just biding his time until some team with a rickety bullpen gets desperate enough to offer him at least that much.
There are already quite a few teams well on their way to meeting that description.” Even though Chicago is playing some excellent baseball this year, the bullpen is still a looming concern. Last year, the unit wasn’t very good and that was one of the main reasons why they missed the postseason.
However, the Cubs were proactive this winter in trying to improve the unit with the notable addition of closer Ryan Pressly. Despite trying to make upgrades, the unit has been one of the worst in the league so far. This season, Chicago’s bullpen has a team ERA of 5.
23, which ranks 26th in the league. Even though this team is a contender, those numbers have to improve. Adding a pitcher the caliber of Robertson makes a lot of sense for the franchise and wouldn’t have to be a long-term commitment.
The right-hander was one of the best setup men in baseball last year with a 3.00 ERA for the Texas Rangers. While age could be considered a concern, he pitched excellently last campaign and didn’t show any indication of slowing down.
If Chicago wants to have a long postseason run, the bullpen has to be better than it has been so far. Recommended Articles.
