Chicago Cubs sign Manny Corpas and Andy Sonnanstine

The Chicago Cubs added two right-handed relievers in former Rockie Manny Corpas and former Ray Andy Sonnanstine, and both pitchers were given non-guaranteed split contracts. The Cubs recently traded set-up man Sean Marshall to the Cincinnati Reds for Travis Wood and two prospects. Corpas could end up being a set-up man and is recovering from Tommy John surgery. He hasn’t pitched since 2010, while Sonnanstine is a former 3.5 WAR starter who appeared in just 15 games last season. He will most likely be a long reliever on the Cubs next season and hasn’t been successful since winning 13 games and posting a 3.91 FIP in 2008.

It wasn’t too long ago when Manny Corpas was once regarded as a closer-in-waiting with upside and talent. Injuries have derailed his career since, and his last productive season was in 2008. He was worth 0.9 WAR and had a 3.96 FIP in a career-high 79.2 innings. Corpas was able to succeed in Coors due to a 49.4 groundball rate in his career, and he owns a career FIP- of 83.

There is definitely still talent left in Corpas, but he is obviously not the safest bet to produce. The Cubs basically gave him nothing, and the organization is hoping that he can get healthy and become the quality set-up man he should be. Corpas once saved 19 games in 2007 and was worth 1.4 WAR with a 3.60 FIP. He only strikes out about 6.5 hitters every nine innings, but he is still a successful pitcher who played quite well in 2007.

It should be noted that Manny suffered through 16 meltdowns in 2008 and had just 25 shutdowns on his way to a -1.27 WPA. The previous year, he was terrific with 30 SDs and just 7 MDs with an overall WPA of 2.82. He was worth 0.5 WAR in 2009 and 2010 in just 33.2 and 62.1 innings respectively, and it’s only a question of health for Corpas. This was a good signing for the Cubs, as they don’t exactly have the best bullpen out there. Finding cheap talent in the form of a 29-year-old former closer is exactly what the Cubs should be doing in their rebuilding process, because cheap stopgaps will be the guys filling out the bullpen for the most part.

Andy Sonnanstine is an interesting player to look at, because he went from being a successful starting pitcher for the Rays to a forgotten player after just one year. As a rookie, Sonnanstine was worth 2.1 WAR, and he topped out as a sophomore with a 3.5 WAR. However, there were signs that Sonnanstine was a definite overachiever; no matter how much people talk highly of his mental approach to baseball.

Although Sonnanstine walked just 1.72 hitters per nine, he also struck out just 5.77 in the same span in 2008. He didn’t induce very many grounders and had a lucky HR/FB ratio of 8%. While Sonnanstine wasn’t the luckiest guy in the world, his .302 BABIP was indeed right in-line with his career average of .306. Sonnanstine is a pitcher who doesn’t generate enough strike outs, because hitters can make easy contact on his pitches. Sonnanstine’s career average of 1.32 home runs per nine is unacceptable for a pitcher who strikes out under six hitters in the same time span.

However, there is still the chance that Sonnanstine ends up reviving his career and becomes a decent pitcher again. He’ll have his shot as a long reliever, and that’s really where he should be at this point. His career WPA of -5.66 and Clutch score of -2.61 (6 career shutdowns, 7 meltdowns) tells the story of a pitcher who will struggle in high-leverage situations. Sonnanstine’s relative endurance make him best suited for this job, and the amount of money given shows that this was a worthy risk made by the Cubs.

Although Manuel Corpas has the better chance of being a successful reliever at this point, there is always the chance that Andy Sonnanstine ends up becoming a league-average starter again. Both deals were very low-cost, and the Cubs are bringing in cast-offs with a solid MLB track record this offseason (see Jason Jamarillo). These two moves are right in line with their plans, and I have to commend the new regime for taking two very worthy “risks” (they are split contracts, after all) on Corpas and Sonnanstine.

Be sure to check out all of Call to the Pen’s transaction breakdowns for the 2011-12 offseason.