Cubs waiver pickup could end up haunting one of their hated rivals this season

Late in the offseason, the Chicago Cubs added another left-handed arm to the bullpen mix, claiming former first-rounder Ryan Rolison off waivers from the Chicago White Sox.

Rolison got his first taste of big-league ball in 2025 as a member of the Colorado Rockies and the results... well, they weren't great. A 7.02 ERA, 6.75 FIP and a WHIP north of 1.700 across 31 appearances. Nothing he threw really stood out and his fastball averaged just 92.9 MPH.

Now, you can't draw a straight line between velocity and success, but it doesn't hurt matters. So, honestly, when the Cubs claimed him, nobody thought much of the move. Another arm in the mix and we know Chicago loves taking the quantity-based approach in camp, like most other teams in the league.

Ryan Rolison could be the Cubs' latest bullpen success story

But given what we've seen from Rolison in Cactus League action so far, we might have another buy-low reclamation project-turned-success story on our hands. Rolison has, all of the sudden, ran his fastball into the mid-90s, hitting 96.3 MPH this week against the Royals, which has enhanced the effectiveness of his offspeed and breaking offerings.

Looking at the depth chart, Caleb Thielbar and Hoby Milner entered the spring as Craig Counsell's top two lefty relief options - and assuming both are healthy, they'll be on the Opening Day roster next month. But a big spring from Rolison could shake things up, potentially opening the door for him to crack the 26-man, as well.

The good news, though, is there's no pressure to force the issue. Rolison can be optioned this year, so the Cubs could stash him at Iowa as a next man up - something you already know you'll need over the course of the season.

You hope Milner and Thielbar deliver results for Craig Counsell, but you have to hedge your bets, at least to a degree, with the latter, who is entering his age-39 season. At that age, you never really know how things will go. It's too soon to get too excited about Rolison (he's pitched just twice so far), but nobody is upset to see him lighting up radar guns and getting outs this spring.