The Rundown Lite: Happ Helping Pressly, Unexpected Bullpen Successes, Miller Returns, Devers Shocker
I’m writing this from an alcove in a building adjacent to Kettering Labs at the University of Dayton, where my son is attending a mechanical engineering experience. It’s a nice campus and the event is really well organized, at least for the parents. Maybe that will give me a reason to actually keep this article succinct.
Happ providing advice to Pressly
Ryan Pressly‘s implosion against the Giants on May 6 stands out for obvious reasons, but his season wasn’t looking good prior to that. His 2.08 ERA over 13 innings in as many appearances masked one of the worst strikeout rates in baseball, and he had actually walked more batters (7) than he’d struck out. That’s not sustainable for a high-leverage reliever.
In 15 innings pitched over 16 outings since that awful outing, Pressly has allowed only one unearned run and has punched out 14 batters with just three walks. It’s an incredible turnaround fostered in part by Ian Happ. Pressly went to the Cubs’ de facto captain to ask his advice about what hitters were looking for and how they were game-planning him.
“I added a little bit extra to see if he could help me, and he did,” Pressly said. “He pulled me off to the side and he helped me out a lot.”
The result is a revamped pitch mix that includes more of his cutty four-seam and increased sinker usage with fewer breaking balls. You don’t normally see guys with 93 mph heaters leaning into those pitches, but the Cubs have found general success with that strategy across the pitching staff. It helps that Pressly’s fastball gets good glove-side movement to differentiate it that much more from his sinker.
He’s probably not going to maintain a 0.00 ERA the rest of the way, but pitching like this makes the bullpen very potent.
Unheralded relievers leading way
Pressly was the biggest name added to the ‘pen over the offseason, but things are really taking off thanks to several unheralded arms. Just look at what they’re getting from Chris Flexen and Drew Pomeranz, a pair of seemingly washed-up relievers acquired after the start of the season. Daniel Palencia didn’t break camp with the big club, Brad Keller was a non-roster invitee whose velo boost came out of nowhere, and Génesis Cabrera recently joined the team after being DFA’d by the Mets.
The current Cubs bullpen by ERA:
Chris Flexen – 0.00
Drew Pomeranz – 0.00
Daniel Palencia – 1.73
Caleb Thielbar – 1.75
Brad Keller – 2.16
Ryan Brasier – 2.25
Genesis Cabrera – 2.84
Ryan Pressly – 3.54— Tony Andracki (@TonyAndracki23) June 16, 2025
From one of the worst units in baseball to one of the best, the bullpen is the biggest reason the Cubs were able to prevail in three one-run games against the Pirates. The rotation deserves a lot of credit as well, of course, but holding slim leads or allowing the offense to scratch out just enough in the end is huge.
Miller is back, Brentz signs minors deal
Tyson Miller was DFA’d recently, but has returned to the organization after clearing waivers and will continue to pitch at Triple-A Iowa. There’s more to this situation than just an injury or two, but Miller looked good last year and may yet be able to contribute if something goes sideways with one of the guys above.
The Cubs have also added a little depth in former Royals lefty Jake Brentz, who had been pitching for the independent Kansas City Monarchs. His 96 mph fastball led him to 17 strikeouts over 12.1 innings, and he’s got 80 total MLB appearances. He pitched 72 times for the Royals in 2021, posting a 3.66 ERA with a 10.7 K/9 mark. Not bad.
Trade shocker
In a move that left the baseball world gobsmacked, the Red Sox traded Rafael Devers and all of his remaining $250 million-plus salary to the Giants. The return is left-handed starter Kyle Harrison, right-hander Jordan Hicks, outfield prospect James Tibbs, and righty pitching prospect Jose Bello.
Even with Devers routinely making headlines for being unwilling to play different positions for Boston, this trade shocked everyone. Not only did it happen several weeks ahead of the deadline, but there were no rumblings whatsoever about a deal being in the works. Perhaps Craig Breslow learned a little something from Jed Hoyer about how to move in complete silence.
Wow.
And with that, I’m going to wrap up and get back to other matters.
