2 Cubs relievers who will begin the season in Triple-A and 1 who won't

2 of 3

The Chicago Cubs finally appear to have the makings of a solid bullpen with several young arms looking to make the Opening Day roster this season.

Pitching development has gone from the organization's biggest weaknesses to one of its most important strengths. The rewards of this redirection have already begun to show on the big-league rotation in the form of Justin Steele, Jordan Wicks, and Javier Assad. However, there is also a group of relievers set to take the next step and compete for a long-term role in the bullpen. Here is where three of those arms will likely begin the 2024 season.

Triple-A: Daniel Palencia

With the additions of Hector Neris and Yency Almonte, Daniel Palencia will likely begin the year in Triple-A. It's a shame because I think Palencia has some of the best potential out of any reliever on the 40-man roster right now. He's only 24 years old, is under team control for years to come, and features a blistering fastball that regularly touches 100 mph. However, control was one of Palencia's major issues as his walks per nine innings pitched was 4.45 last year.

But Palencia only had about half a season of work last year with 28.1 innings pitched and a 4.45 ERA. The velocity is elite and if he can develop his secondary pitches and keep the walks down, Palencia should become a decent setup man down the road.

MLB: Luke Little

I am riding high on Luke Little going into this season and I hope my expectations are met. With the Cubs needing a lefty in the bullpen, Little has the opportunity to build on his brief success last year and become a legitimate weapon. Standing at 6'8, Little is already an intimidating force on the mound before he even winds up to toss.

Little may only feature two pitches, but they are both very effective. His four-seam fastball sits in the upper 90s and his sweeper made some batters look absolutely foolish last year. His stint in the majors only lasted seven games but he struck out 12 batters in just 6.2 innings pitched.

Spring Training will be a chance for Little to show manager Craig Counsell that he belongs on the active roster and I don't doubt he'll do exactly that. Across 140.1 career minor league innings, Little sported an excellent 2.50 ERA with 14.43 strikeouts per nine innings pitched. Like Palencia, Little does have an issue with walks but the ceiling is very high for this guy as he's only 23 years old.

Triple-A: Keegan Thompson

It was only two seasons ago that Keegan Thompson looked like a mainstay on this Cubs pitching staff. Out of the bullpen in 2022, Thompson tossed 36.2 innings with a dazzling 1.47 ERA and 42 strikeouts. Although those numbers jumped when he was inserted into the rotation, Thompson still had some great moments and he started half a season's worth of games that year (17).

But just as soon as Thompson's success came, it went away as the 28-year-old struggled out of the gate in 2023. This led to a demotion down to Triple-A Iowa in May where he stayed for the majority of the season and his stats got pretty ugly (8.10 ERA). After an IL stint, Thompson returned to MLB in August but still wasn't his old self. All in all, Thompson posted a 4.71 ERA in 28.2 innings for the Cubs last year.

It's hard to gauge if/when Thompson will get another shot but he'll need to perform in Spring Training to even be in that conversation. But with the additions to the bullpen and younger guys coming up through the system, Thompson's long-term future doesn't look great.

More Chicago Cubs News

feed

Home / Chicago Cubs News