Chicago Cubs: 3 critical keys to success heading into 2022

Chicago Cubs: 3 critical keys to success – #2: Restocking the bullpen

Even if, for whatever reason, Hoyer and Ricketts whiff on Correa, re-stocking the bullpen with proven arms is critical for Chicago.Luckily for the Cubs, there are still several avenues they can take to find a good two to three bullpen arms. In fact, there are at least five they should already have on their radar for multiple reasons. Regardless, adding adequate bullpen arms after dismantling the three-headed monster the Cubs had last year will work wonders in improving  this ballclub.

Before the deadline, the bullpen showed flashes of downright dominance, ranking among the best in MLB. Keeping in the mind the offense wasn’t that much better in the first half than in the second, along with the starting rotation seemingly in shambles from day one, the bullpen really acted as the glue that kept the team together and at the top of the standings for so long.

Ultimately, the bullpen wore out as the season went on. The key components of the offense and bullpen were traded away in a frenzy of moves that left the team as a shell of its former self and the losses started to pile up. But what about if the Cubs had adequate offense for the entirety of the season? How much less pressure would the bullpen have had on it if the Cubs had Stroman and Miley rather than Trevor Williams and Jake Arrieta?

This is why increasing the run production, coupled with strengthening what was your biggest asset in the bullpen, pair up perfectly as two first steps toward returning to October.