6 homegrown pitchers on the Chicago Cubs active roster

3. Justin Steele

The third home-grown starter is Justin Steele, who is having a Cy Young-caliber season in his first full year in the majors. The 28-year-old has a 2.80 ERA in 138 innings pitched, which is the second lowest in the league behind only San Diego Padres hurler Blake Snell. Steele is the uncontested ace of the Cubs' pitching staff and his performance is extremely welcome considering the lack of quality starting pitchers in recent years. Again, this kind of performance hasn't been seen in a Cubs pitcher since the Mark Prior and Kerry Wood days.

4. Adbert Alzolay

Not only are three starting pitchers currently home-grown, but closer Adbert Alzolay is as well. Not only is Alzolay finally finding success in his role, he's doing it at a very high level. Since becoming the designated closer earlier this year, Alzolay has converted 21 saves in 22 attempts and he has led the league in the category since July 1st. Even though he failed as a starter, Alzolay is turning into one of the most reliable closers in the game. The Cubs still have three more years of club control over the 28-year-old so he has the opportunity to collect a hefty amount of saves for Chicago.