The Chicago Cubs pitching has struggled this season. On Saturday, they made some moves to shake things up.
Heading into Saturday’s slate of action, the Chicago Cubs pitching staff had been a disaster. After seven games, the Cubs ranked dead last in baseball with a 7.85 ERA and a .321 batting average against. The bullpen has been even worse thus far, as Cubs relievers have posted an 8.54 ERA, allowing 34 hits and 21 walks in their 26.1 innings. Given the Cubs excellent offense to start the season, Chicago’s 1-6 start can be laid directly at the feet of the pitching staff.
Something needed to be done to shake things up. The Cubs did just that on Saturday, when they optioned Carl Edwards Jr.to AAA, and placed Mike Montgomery on the Injured List. Right handed pitcher Jen-Ho Tseng was designated for assignment.
Source: Edwards optioned to Iowa
— Gordon Wittenmyer (@GDubMLB) April 6, 2019
In their place, the Cubs have brought up left handed reliever Kyle Ryan and former top prospect Allen Webster. Ryan has a lifetime 3.87 ERA and a 1.336 WHiP in 128 major league innings, with 44 walks and only 70 strikeouts. However, Ryan has not pitched in the majors since an eight game stint in 2017, and his stuff is not going to set the world afire. He does have a proclivity to keeping the ball on the ground, with a 54% ground ball rate against.
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Webster was once a consensus top 100 prospect in 2013, but saw his star fade. He has been unable to find success at the major league level, posting a 6.13 ERA and a 1.589 WHiP, striking out 79 batters with 67 walks in 123.1 innings. Webster’s command and arsenal have gotten away from him since those previous heights, with Chicago regarding him more of a reclamation project.
The biggest shock is that Edwards was sent to the minors. He had struggled in the early going this year, allowing six runs on three hits an five walks in 1.1 innings, but had a strong track record of success prior to this season.
Over the previous three seasons, Edwards had become a key part of the Cubs bullpen. In his 154.1 innings, he had posted a 3.03 ERA and a 1.063 WHiP, striking out 2013 batters. However, the Cubs need something to shake them out of this malaise, and sending Edwards to the minors may be exactly the wake up call they need.
The Chicago Cubs needed to shake things up. With the moves they made on their pitching staff, the Cubs have done just that.