Chicago Cubs’ bullpen is taking on a whole new look

The Chicago Cubs’ trade for Aroldis Chapman gives them a borderline unhittable flame-thrower, but also a wide variety of options in relief work…

The polarizing addition of Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs’ bullpen has certainly caused a commotion among fans, but it was a move the Cubs simply had to make.

With Chapman now in the fold, the Cubs figure to see significant improvement all across the board in their relief pitching efforts. Joe Maddon won’t have to use Chapman strictly as a closer, though it’s probably the primary role he will play.

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Hector Rondon, though not always consistent, has been one of the Cubs’ best pitchers this season with a 1.95 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 37 innings of work. Rondon gave up a home run in the ninth inning in his latest appearance against the Milwaukee Brewers, and just in general it seems like the Cubs’ bullpen has been too willing to give up baserunners this season.

But now, their strength is in their number, which was added to by not just the Chapman trade but also the Mike Montgomery move.

In those two trades, the Cubs gave up probably the top prospects they would be willing to trade at this point in Dan Vogelbach and Gleyber Torres.

Considering the investment in Chapman and Montgomery, you can expect the Cubs are going to be leaning heavily on those guys to do some big time work against the big bats they will see in the National League playoffs and potentially in the World Series.

Let’s take a look at what each guy brings to the table…

Next: Chapman