Chicago Cubs: Let’s not forget about the value of Steve Cishek

Amidst a campaign marred by injuries and underwhelming performance, Steve Cishek stood as a diamond in the rough in the Chicago Cubs bullpen.

The Chicago Cubs brought Steve Cishek in at the beginning of this season, on a two-year contract valued at $13 million. One year in, the side-arming right-hander has undoubtedly lived up to expectations, as he inevitably led the teams’ bullpen in overall production, while also seeing the most action of any reliever on the club.

For the Cubs, the importance of getting what they had hoped for when signing Cishek played a significant role, as they lost big-name offseason acquisition Brandon Morrow midway through the season, for the remainder of the year. It meant that Cishek was one who needed to step into an expanded role. Once he did, Cishek certainly relished the opportunity, making the most of it in helping the club back to the playoffs.

Although Cishek finds himself on the wrong side of 30, he still found a way to have one of his best seasons of his entire career in 2018. In fact, outside of the limited time he spent with the Tampa Bay Rays, Cishek did post a career year, garnering hope for himself as well as the Wrigley faithful for another strong year in 2019.