Craig Counsell is probably begging for the Cubs to make this roster move

I've been watching this Chicago Cubs team long enough to know that they love acquiring cast-off relief pitchers and transforming them into trustworthy bullpen options.

Guys like Julian Merryweather, Mark Leiter Jr., and Jorge López are some recent examples of the Cubs dusting off a DFA'd reliever and turning their careers around in the pitching lab. With pitching guru Tyler Zombro spearheading the work to fine-tune these kinds of projects, the Cubs could have even more success on this front in the near future. And another candidate just became available.

The Brewers have designated Joel Payamps for assignment

On Thursday, the Brewers announced that their former setup man Joel Payamps had been designated for assignment after an ugly start to his 2025 campaign. The 31-year-old owns an 8.35 ERA in 23 games for the Brewers this year, with 16 strikeouts and 25 hits allowed in 18 1/3 innings of work.

Those numbers don't exactly inspire confidence, but it's what Payamps did in 2023-24 that makes him intriguing. When Counsell was still his skipper in 2023, Payamps was the team's main high-leverage option behind closer Josh Hader, and he reached a career-high 70 2/3 innings pitched with 77 strikeouts, 27 holds, and a 2.55 ERA. Payamps wasn't as good last year, with a 3.05 ERA in 59 innings, but he was still a go-to option for Pat Murphy.

Payamps' Baseball Savant page is full of blue this year, and he's seen major regressions in nearly every area of his game. But nobody is more familiar with Payamps' pedigree than Counsell, and with Zombro in the fold, the Cubs may know what they have to return him to his former glory. Chicago is always in need of bullpen arms, and now more than ever with Porter Hodge on the injured list. If all it takes is cash or a low-level prospect to take a flier on Payamps, the Cubs should seriously think about floating an offer to Milwaukee.