Jesse Chavez has officially made the Cubs’ Opening Day roster, as the team announced that it had selected the veteran right-hander’s contract. No corresponding move needed to be made, as the Cubs had an open spot on their 40-man roster.
There isn’t much surprise to the move, as it was widely expected that Chavez would crack Chicago’s roster when he signed his split contract earlier this month. Chavez’s first game will officially make it 15 MLB seasons for the 38-year-old, and his second stint as a Cub, after tossing 38 innings for the Wrigleyville team in 2018.
A rough 2020 season with the Rangers meant that Chavez had to settle for minor league contracts in the 2020-21 offseason, with Chavez first signing with the Angels and then with the Braves after Los Angeles cut him at the end of Spring Training. The end result was the first World Series ring of Chavez’s long career, as he eventually made Atlanta’s roster and then pitched 33 2/3 innings in the regular season and 6 1/3 more frames in the playoffs.
Chavez posted a 2.14 ERA during the regular season, and while his 3.69 xFIP/3.58 SIERA indicate some good fortune, the righty helped his case with a solid 27.1% strikeout rate. Most strikingly, Chavez didn’t allow a single homer in either the regular season or postseason, a surprising outcome for a pitcher who has long struggled at keeping the ball in the park.
The bullpen has been a priority for the Cubs this winter, as Chavez joins David Robertson, Mychal Givens, Daniel Norris, Chris Martin, Adrian Sampson, and Robert Gsellman as new relief options to join the club. Chavez figures to pitch in his usual middle relief role, though he also received four pseudo-starts last year as an opener.
Good for Chavez, he was instrumental in turning the Braves bullpen around last year
Though he wasn’t impressive in Spring Training, I hope they were familiar with him enough if they knew he had gas in the tank. I hate to see him turn out to be 2021’s Jake Arrieta and Pete Strop.
What are you talking about? He’s had a great spring.
He’s a good piece for the cubs pen. Happy he made the club.
Chavez Chavez lives to pitch another day! Low key saved the Braves season and started the bullpen turn around.
On June 24, Chavez was selected to the active roster. In 2021 he was 3-2 with a 2.14 ERA in 30 games (4 starts) in which he pitched 33.2 innings.
Quantity does not equal quality.
He’s baseball’s Energizer bunny.
As always, we await developments.
Cubs pen has some legitimacy! Plug in a few successful guys from the farm and it could be top notch!
Maybe if Robertson and Givens both pitch like the high leverage relievers they once were and Wicks can bounce back after missing most of last season.