No matter what Jed Hoyer does, Daniel Palencia will make or break 2027 Cubs bullpen

Look, I can admit when I'm wrong. This spring, amidst several other bold (and ultimately very incorrect) predictions, I said that Daniel Palencia would hit the 40-save mark, something only two other pitchers in Chicago Cubs history have achieved.

OK, so I was very wrong.

Injuries quickly erased the high expectations that accompanied Palencia after he locked down ballgames for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic. An oblique issue and a flexor strain cost him significant time, limiting him to just 32 appearances. During many of those, he just never looked quite right and he wasn't nearly as lights-out this time around.

So, first off, he has to stay healthy in 2027. That will go a long way toward him looking more like the guy who got big outs down the stretch in 2025 and entered the 2026 campaign as Craig Counsell's go-to arm in the ninth inning. One thing he could do to really give himself a bit of a buffer, though, is continuing to develop a reliable third pitch.

Daniel Palencia needs to round out his arsenal to be at his best for Cubs

Primarily, he's a two-pitch guy. Big-time velo on the four-seamer and a wipeout slider. He also throws a split-finger, but used it just 5.5 percent of the time. In 2025, he went to it even less frequently, but got great results. This year, though, it was a totally different story, with opponents batting .500 against it and slugging north of 1.200.

He also re-introduced a sinker this season, but I'd personally like to see him continue to develop that splitter. If he can have two swing-and-miss options to pivot to as he works off his triple-digit heater, I think there's still a path to him re-establishing himself as one of the league's top late-inning relievers.

All this being said, though, in no world can the Cubs simply hope and pray all of this comes to fruition and Palencia becomes the anchor of the bullpen. Jed Hoyer has to invest heavily in a new-look bullpen that's built on strikeouts because, without that, Chicago will be overmatched as they look to get back in the fight in the National League Central.

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