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Chicago Cubs Shake Up Bullpen, Add Embattled Veteran

The Chicago Cubs announced a flurry of bullpen moves on Friday, with the highlight being the addition of reliever Jorge López to the roster. Chicago also recalled Ethan Roberts, placed Keegan Thompson on the injured list and designated Vinny Nittoli for assignment.

The Cubs bullpen has had some issues this season. Adding López now will give Chicago’s front office an idea of just how many bullpen arms it needs to add at the deadline, if they add at all.

Chicago Cubs Shake Up Bullpen

Cubs Add López to Bullpen

López will return to the majors following his infamous meltdown and release from the New York Mets in May. Soon after his release, the Cubs advantageously signed him to a minor league deal, hoping to get great value from a talented arm.

In three outings with Chicago’s Triple-A affiliate, López tossed 2 2/3 innings with one strikeout and three hits. He last appeared in a big league game a little less than a month ago, so the Cubs likely didn’t care too much about results in the minors.

In Queens, López started the season strong but faltered late in his short tenure. Overall, the 31-year-old tossed 26 1/3 innings across 28 games and posted a 3.76 ERA (103 ERA+). He used a heavy sinker to generate a lot of ground balls, but did not strike as many batters out as the Mets would have liked. That said, the sinker could play well during the warm windy days in Wrigley and with a great defensive Cubs middle infield.

Ethan Roberts Returns

Roberts, 27 next week, will appear in the majors for the first time since 2022. The righty made his debut that season and struggled in nine outings. Across 7 2/3 innings, he posted an 8.22 ERA (53 ERA+). Unfortunately, he missed all of 2023 and parts of 2024 due to Tommy John surgery.

Despite the injury and small-sample struggles, Roberts could make an impact on the big-league roster. In 13 1/3 innings in Triple-A this season, Roberts allowed no runs and posted an 18:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Cubs will likely go slow with Roberts and use him in low-leverage, middle-relief situations.

Keegan Thompson to IL

The Cubs will be without Thompson for a couple of weeks due to a right rib fracture. It’s unclear how he suffered the injury or how long he will be out. No matter the status, losing Thompson is a big deal for the Cubs bullpen.

Thompson, 29, has appeared in 13 games this season and pitched to a 3.50 ERA (121 ERA+). Though his walk rate is high, so are his strikeout and whiff rates. He picked up one save this season and likely was set to earn more high-leverage innings as the season went on.

Vinny Nittoli DFA’d

The Cubs signed Vinny Nittoli to a major league deal and added him to the roster on Thursday. Just one day later, the Italian-American will head back to DFA waivers after being let go by the Oakland Athletics earlier this month.

Nittoli didn’t throw a pitch for the Cubs, but performed well in Oakland. He allowed two runs on eight hits with five strikeouts in eight innings of work. This followed a solid showing with Oakland’s Triple-A affiliate earlier this season (2.70 ERA in 23 ⅓ innings).

It’s possible that the Cubs will hope Nittoli passes through waivers and can serve as bullpen depth in the minors. Chicago has placed 15 pitchers on the injured list this season, so the team clearly knows the importance of having depth.

 

Photo Credit: © Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

Ryan Giglio

Ryan Giglio

A passionate sports fan all his life, he became a writer for Last Word on Sports in 2023. His favorite teams are the Mets, Nets, NY Giants and Jets.

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