The Chicago Cubs had a lot of work to do with their bullpen this offseason after facing so many struggles in 2024.
The relief pitching staff’s inability to hold onto leads was a major reason why the team disappointed as much as they did last year.
A few players were traded during the campaign and others the Cubs opted to release, moving on from veterans to give younger players a shot.
It was the right decision to make, as a few of the moves paid off.
Porter Hodge emerged as a reliable late-game option. Nate Pearson took his production to another level after being acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays.
This past winter, the team made trades with the Houston Astros, New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians to add Ryan Pressly, Cody Poteet and Eli Morgan to bolster the relief corps.
Things certainly look better now than they did last season. But, nothing is set in stone yet, as jobs are still up for grabs during spring training.
One pitcher to keep an eye on is Daniel Palencia, who has been bringing the heat early in camp.
He made his MLB debut in 2023, appearing in 27 games. 10 more appearances were made in 2024, and the production was not great.
In 43 innings, he registered a 5.02 ERA. He did strike out 49 batters, an encouraging number, but control remained a major issue.
Palencia walked 26 batters for a brutal 5.4 BB/9 ratio.
If he could ever figure things out with his control, he would be a huge contributor at the Major League level, especially with the uptick he is showing in camp this year.
Despite his stature, measured at just 5-foot-11, Palencia is a legitimate flamethrower.
In his first outing this spring, he fired more than half of his pitches at 100 mph, something very few pitchers accomplished last year.
“Those flamethrowers were [Mason] Miller (an absurd 16 times), Ben Joyce (five times), [Michael] Kopech (twice), Jhoan Duran (twice), Robert Suarez (twice), Trevor Megill and … Palencia,” wrote Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated.
There is tantalizing potential for the Chicago coaching staff to work with.
Guys who throw that hard will always receive a chance to prove themselves at the Major League level.
To this point, Palencia has not taken advantage of those opportunities with his underwhelming production. But those strikeout numbers are hard to ignore, and a few tweaks would almost certainly turn him into a useful reliever.
