Chicago Cubs News: Perez inks deal; Montgomery gets starting nod?

Baseball is almost upon us. In nine days, the Chicago Cubs will have pitchers and catchers report to Mesa, Arizona. Something that we have all been waiting for since November 2nd.

Since winning the World Series, the Chicago Cubs have reeled in multiple arms. Bullpen arms, I might add. However, Saturday had the front-office signing 25-year-old right-handed starter, Williams Perez — a former Atlanta Brave.

The fact that the Cubs went out and found themselves a once top 20 prospect on a minor league deal is huge. With Jason Hammel still floating around the free agency pool, that door has officially closed and locked.

No, Perez hasn’t put up eye-popping numbers but there is room for improvement – especially under pitching coach Chris Bosio.

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Bosio has been known to transform subjects into big league worthy arms. For instance, Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks are two names that come to mind. Arrieta won the N.L. Cy Young in 2015 while Hendricks nearly made it back-to-back years in which a Cubs pitcher won the award.

And yes, Jon Lester pitched excellent as well. Moving forward, the fifth spot in the starting rotation is up for grabs. Adding Perez spices things up a tad with Mike Montgomery looking to join his fellow postseason heroes on the frontlines.

Right now, Montgomery should be the favorite to receive the nod. However, other pitchers invited to Spring Training have the opportunity to outshine the competition. Hopefully, they make it tough on Joe Maddon.

Unknown fifth?

I mean that in a good way. Who knows, maybe Pierce Johnson surprises everyone and rebounds from his consistency issues while with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs. Something that makes baseball unpredictable and great all at the same time.

This league will surprise you, there is no doubt about that. Either way, I cannot wait until Cactus League play is underway. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to hibernate for at least a month until it’s time.

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