Chicago Cubs: Shoring up the bullpen in the FanSided Mock Winter Meetings

Chicago Cubs: New roles for members of the bullpen

With this mock move in the books, there is a game of musical chairs going on in the left field bullpen at Wrigley Field.

Prior to joining the Cubs, Brandon Morrow excelled as the Los Angeles Dodgers’ setup man. Heading into 2019, he’ll re-assume that mantle with Chicago, sliding out of the ninth-inning role. He’ll pair with fellow right-hander Pedro Strop to handle the seventh and/or eighth innings of close games manager Joe Maddon needs locking down.

That means Iglesias gets his first taste of closing for a team win championship aspirations. The Cuban right-hander has a tremendous safety net in place beneath him, though, in his two aforementioned teammates.

Should he stutter, both Morrow and Strop can slot back into the closer’s role, where both have experienced tremendous success. But, for now, it makes the most sense to have Strop available in those high-leverage spots leading up to the ninth and, with the other guys in the pen, Morrow should be spared from throwing too often.

This is just the first move of the week for us in the FanSided Mock Winter Meetings – but we’re sure to have more as the week continues and our mock offseason continues.