It’s time for the Chicago Cubs to take a long look at Craig Kimbrel

With the 2019 MLB Draft set to begin on Monday, the time has come for the Chicago Cubs to engage in talks with free agent closer Craig Kimbrel.

Craig Kimbrel, who has a first-round compensation pick still attached to his name, will be free of that variable as soon as the annual Major League Baseball Draft concludes on June 5, and a number of teams are likely to reinvigorate contract talks with the former Red Sox closer. Make no mistake: the Chicago Cubs need to be among the interested suitors.

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Not only has the team struggled to find a reliable closing option (just 11 for 22 in converting save opportunities, according to MLB.com), but Pedro Strop‘s persistent hamstring issues are a bit of a question mark even as he draws closer to a return, and Brandon Morrow‘s timeline for return is still totally unclear.

For a bullpen with the third-worst save percentage in the league and in desperate need of more arms, the time is now to swing for an elite closer.

In consideration of…

Did you know that as of May 29, the Cubs ranked 11th in terms of bullpen ERA, with a better mark than teams like the Minnesota Twins and the Los Angeles Dodgers? Yet they rank just 22nd in terms of bullpen fWAR.

How is it that the Cubs’ bullpen has, by general statistical measures, outperformed their counterparts on two of the best teams in baseball, but still proving less valuable?

The answer is simple: both teams possess elite closing options.

Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen has a somewhat uncharacteristic 3.52 ERA, but he has converted 15 of 17 save opportunities, and manager Dave Roberts still feels totally comfortable bringing him in for multiple innings to try to lock things down.

In Minnesota, closer Blake Parker has a 1.96 ERA and has converted all eight of his save opportunities, while Taylor Rogers has also notched four saves to go along with a 2.38 ERA and an 11.9 K/9.

Of course, both teams score a lot (the Twins lead the league in runs scored) but so do the Cubs. Thus far, the clear difference between all three teams has been the ability to close out tight games. The Twins are 8-5 in one-run games, while the Dodgers are 9-5.

The Cubs, on the other hand, are 9-8 in one-run games. The need for a shutdown closer is real, and what better option is there than Kimbrel?

Kimbrel might gamble on himself

Especially given that we are already close to one-third of the way through the 2019 MLB season, there is a chance that Kimbrel decides to take a one-year deal in order to re-enter free agency in the offseason.

If this turns out to be the case, there is no reason that Theo Epstein, Jed Hoyer and yes, Tom Ricketts, should not throw $20 million to bring him to the North Side.

Sure, Kimbrel’s dominance is not what it was during his heyday in Atlanta, and he certainly has struggled in the postseason. But he is still the career leader in ERA+ (211) and has never posted a K/9 worse than 13.2 in a single season.

Strop is more of a setup man, and the situation surrounding Morrow is too tenuous to take a chance that he will return and remain effective. Joe Maddon has done all he can managing limited arms, and now the onus is on the front office. It comes down to a simple truth: Once the draft pick is no longer attached to his name, the Cubs should get aggressive in the hunt for Kimbrel.