Chicago Cubs: Mike Montgomery returns, provides immediate relief to bullpen

The Chicago Cubs bullpen received a considerable boost on Thursday with the return of swingman Mike Montgomery, who shined in five innings of relief.

In his first appearance since coming off the injured list, Mike Montgomery looked much more like his old self. He pitched five stellar innings of scoreless baseball for the Chicago Cubs on the way to a 4-1 win over the Miami Marlins. The left-hander surrendered just two walks and three hits while striking out three batters.

Montgomery’s performance was a breath of fresh air after watching the starter Yu Darvish struggle yet again. Darvish only lasted four innings and walked six batters while throwing 97 pitches to 19 batters. Despite striking out seven and allowing just one hit, Darvish showed no command of the strike zone as 47 of his 97 pitches were balls.

Montgomery was much more efficient in relief. He ended up pitching one more inning than Darvish and faced just 18 batters. The reliever showed much more control on the mound as well throwing 44 of his 71 pitches for strikes.

More from Cubbies Crib

• Cubs starting pitching has been thriving on the North Side
• Make no mistake: the Cubs are very much about power hitters
• Cubs are giving pitcher Javier Assad a deserved shot
• Cubs: It’s time to start thinking about potential September call-ups
• Cubs: P.J. Higgins deserves to be in the lineup on a daily basis

It was a great outing for Montgomery who before going on the injured list had really struggled. Although it was a small sample size, up until April 4, Montgomery pitched in four games to the tune of a 16.87 ERA. In one particular appearance against the Texas Rangers, Montgomery didn’t even record an out while surrendering a triple, a home run and walk.

Montgomery’s outing will also go a long way in terms of the Cubs bullpen. By finishing the game and eating all five innings, Montgomery allowed the Cubs bullpen to rest for its big upcoming weekend series with the division rival Milwaukee Brewers. The Cubs bullpen has been hurt and taxed as it is, so any extra rest they can get will go a long way.

Montgomery’s role moving forward

Looking ahead the Cubs could be forced with a decision to make. In his eight starts this season, Darvish has continued to pitch extremely inconsistently, continually putting the Cubs in difficult positions. Based on how Montgomery pitched in his return, the Cubs could consider using a piggyback approach down the line for Darvish’s starts.

That would pretty much entail getting as much as you can out of Darvish, whether that be four to six innings of work, and using Montgomery the rest of the way if possible. This would do a number of things. It would almost ensure a day or rest for the rest of the relievers in the bullpen that would keep them fresh throughout the season. But it would also keep Montgomery stretched out in case he is needed for a spot start at any point during the season.

I would be more inclined to suggest that Montgomery takes over for Darvish in the starting rotation, but I don’t see it happening. Montgomery was great in his 19 starts last season in Darvish’s absence. But the problem is the Cubs won’t remove Darvish from the rotation based on how much they are paying him. The Cubs put too much stock in him to simply remove him from the starting rotation and barring an injury like last season he will most likely continue to start.

For the time being, it is just good to have Montgomery, another dependable left-handed pitcher back in the Cubs bullpen. During his time in Chicago, he has always been a man of many roles and has been someone the Cubs can count on. Whether he is making a late-inning appearance or a spot start, he will be ready to do whatever the Cubs need.