Craig Counsell makes surprising Edward Cabrera comparison ahead of Cubs playoff run

The Chicago Cubs reinstated Edward Cabrera from the IL over the weekend, but he didn't make an appearance during the weekend series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Cabrera has moved to the bullpen, and it would seem the Cubs are wanting a soft landing for his first appearance, but Craig Counsell envisions a larger role for the 28-year-old during the playoffs.

Talking about Cabrera's return over the weekend, Counsell pointed to the success that Roki Sasaki had out of the bullpen during the playoffs with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“A great example from last year is what Roki Sasaki did the last month, into the playoffs,” Counsell said. “That could happen. That’s a roadmap to how this could be really successful. Is that the best result? That was a pretty darn good result. But that’s what you keep yourself open to.”

As was the case with Cabrera this season with the Cubs, Sasaki's first season with the Dodgers last year was marred by ineffectiveness.

The stuff was certainly there, but the command often alluded him. It led to Sasaki being moved to the bullpen, and he was dominant, posting an ERA of 0.84 through nine appearances. He tallied three saves, finished five games, and struck out six.

Edward Cabrera following Roki Sasaki would be perfect for Cubs bullpen, but feels unlikely

Of course, Counsell wasn't saying that the expectation is for Cabrera to be as successful as Sasaki was last year with the Dodgers, but a suggestion that offers a realization of the potential upside that might be there.

The problem is that there's been very little to suggest that Cabrera could have success out of the bullpen. Looking through his Baseball Savant page, there's been clear regression with the value of his pitch-mix. His fastball and offspeed run value is in the negative percentile, and his breaking pitch value breaks even. That matches his numbers this season, considering he's striking out 20.4% of the hitters he's faced this season, and walking nearly 10%.

The biggest problem with Cabrera this season is that he hasn't missed bats this season with the same frequency he did so with the Miami Marlins. He's getting hit and hit hard, averaging 1.78 home runs per nine innings pitched.

Perhaps Cabrera does defy the odds and becomes a dude in the bullpen during the playoffs, but it's hard to expect the Cubs to count on that as a certainty.

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