Chicago Cubs: Carl Edwards Jr. forced back into old delivery

Chicago Cubs: Out with the new, in with the old delivery

So after being told his new delivery could not be used moving forward, Edwards had no choice but to revert to his old one. His first opportunity came in Monday night’s horrific game against the Atlanta Braves. In his one inning of work Edwards looked sharp, striking out one batter while walking another.

Moving forward, that is the kind of performance the Cubs are going to need out of him. The Cubs bullpen in 2019 is not deep, and it is dealing with injuries. They need him to step up in big moments and pitch as he did back during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. That means he needs to return to being a lights out setup man for the Cubs.

But, for the time being, I don’t trust Edwards to pitch in those big moments and the Cubs should not either. Time and again, Edwards has shown that he can’t be trusted in big moments. Last season he got himself into so much trouble it became a debate as to whether or not he should even be on the Cubs postseason roster if they were to make the playoffs.

It seems like any time he steps into a big spot or gets himself into a jam he loses his confidence. I don’t know if this is a mechanical issue or he loses his control, or he tries too hard, but the Cubs can’t have him out there in those moments.

Maybe, for the time being, to get Edwards’ head right, he needs to only pitch in low leverage situations. They need to build up his confidence, and the best way to do that may be to have him pitch mostly in blowout games in the sixth or seventh inning without any pressure. This could help him focus on his craft and get his head right in the process.

Getting Edwards right could go a long way in determining how the Cubs season will go. If he returns to the dominant, lights out pitcher he once was he could star in the Cubs bullpen. However, if his struggles continue again this season, the writing could be on the wall for Edwards in Chicago.