Cubs are betting heavily that Jeremy Jeffress can keep anchoring the pen

Just two weeks in, it is easy to say Jeremy Jeffress has been the Cubs’ go-to guy.

Cubs fans have not been able to sit still in the later innings of games so far. The bullpen has overall struggled and the last few innings have been quite stressful as the opponent has been able to claw back into games that looked like easy Cubs wins. Relievers are posting a 7.30 ERA, 6.77 FIP (worst in baseball as of Friday), and 5.98 BB/9 collectively.

One of the new bright spots of the Cubs bullpen has been veteran Jeremy Jeffress. The former Milwaukee Brewer was brought in on a one-year deal after struggling in 2019. His overall career resume however is good with a 3.12 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 3.61 FIP in 398 games. In 2018 he made an All Star appearance and posted a 1.29 ERA and 0.991 WHIP in 73 games.

So far, so good for Jeffress as a Cub in 2020. In six games he has a 0.00 ERA, 2.70 FIP, 0.17 WHIP and four strikeouts vs. one walk in 6.0 innings. He got the save in the dramatic 8-7 win against the Reds on July 27th and has three holds. His energy has been great and gives Cubs fans something to enjoy. While things look very good so far, can he maintain it the rest of the way? There are several factors to look at.