The Cubs and right-handed reliever Vinny Nittoli are in agreement on a major league contract, reports ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The Gaeta Sports Management client was recently designated for assignment by the A’s and elected free agency over an outright assignment to Triple-A. Chicago will need to open a spot on its 40-man roster once the addition of Nittoli is official.
Nittoli, 33, spent time with the Cubs’ Triple-A club in Iowa last year but never received a call to the big leagues despite pitching well in Des Moines. He’s out of minor league options, so he’ll jump right onto the big league roster this time around, however, as the Cubs hope to catch lightning in a bottle on another DFA reclamation in their bullpen after hitting paydirt on righty Tyson Miller.
A 25th-round pick by the Mariners back in 2014, Nittoli is the embodiment of a journeyman reliever who has persevered through the prototypical minor league grind. He made his MLB debut at age 29 in 2020, more than six years after being drafted as a senior sign out of Xavier, and has spent time in the minors or big leagues with one-third of the teams in Major League Baseball. Even after exhausting all three of his minor league options and logging big league time in each of the past four seasons, Nittoli has just 14 2/3 MLB innings and 52 days of MLB service to his name.
It’s a small sample, but Nittoli has pitched well in that time. He’s held opponents to five runs on 13 hits, five walks and a pair of hit batsmen with 10 strikeouts along the way — good for a 3.07 earned run average. That run-prevention mark in a small sample greatly outpaces the career 4.73 ERA Nittoli has put together in five Triple-A seasons (177 innings). That said, Nittoli’s Triple-A strikeout rate of 30.5% is far better than what he’s managed in the big leagues, while his 8.5% walk rate in Triple-A is right in line with his 8.2% mark in the majors.
The Cubs have now signed Nittoli twice — this time putting him directly on the MLB roster — so they’re clearly intrigued by the well-traveled righty. Nittoli changed up his pitch mix last year, scrapping a 92-93 mph four-seamer for a cutter that sits around 90 mph as his primary offering. With Oakland, he paired that pitch with a slider that averaged 83.2 mph and threw a handful of sinkers and changeups as well.
After an 18-12 start to the season, the Cubs have been reeling for the better part of two months. They’ve followed a 10-18 showing in May with a 9-14 showing in June and now sit seven games below .500 — last in the National League Central. They’re what should be a manageable five games back in the NL Wild Card chase, but given the leaguewide mediocrity in the Senior Circuit, that actually puts them third from last in the chase. They’d need to vault a whopping seven teams to claim the third Wild Card spot, as of this writing.
Chicago’s bullpen has been a major culprit in their struggles. Cubs relievers have a collective 4.52 ERA that sits 24th in the majors. Their 24.4% strikeout rate is a strong mark, landing eighth in MLB, but only the Rangers bullpen (11.9%) has issued walks at a higher rate than the Cubs’ 11.3% — and only four teams (Blue Jays, Rays, Angels, White Sox) have surrendered homers more frequently.
Certainly, making a low-risk bet on a 33-year-old with a strong track record of missing bats in the upper minors isn’t going to magically cure all those deficiencies, but it’s sensible to see the Cubs taking some action at a time when the trade market is still in its infancy. The aforementioned parity in the NL — and things are bunched only a bit less tightly in the AL — has left very few clear-cut sellers with just over a month until the July 30 deadline. Currently, there are nine teams within five games of a Wild Card spot between the two leagues. With few clubs wanting to part with major league help given their proximity to a potential postseason spot, there aren’t many options for teams like the Cubs as they look for ways to upgrade the roster.
Why the hell can’t Jed Hoyer trade for somebody that’s actually worth a crap? Why the hell is the fan base stuck with a bunch of rejects? Why the hell are they playing in a major market, but acting like the most cheapskate damn franchise on the planet? This is a damn joke and it’s an insult to the fans. Screw the Ricketts family and screw the front office.
An A’s reject ought to be an improvement for Cubs bullpen of late.
Because teams will not trade anybody worth a crap right now
Luis Arraez says, “Excuse me?”
Sheep8 – very True, so when Jedd and Hawkins really screwed things up was back in the winter, where for a shaky bullpen they ONLY signed the bum Neris, they put all their eggs in the basket with Neris, Alzolay, leiter, etc, none of whom are/ were true closers.
Awful decisions, awful bullpen construction. Hoyer and Hawkins have done an AWFUL job these past couple years with the Bullpen.
This winter these clowns should be Fired, and Ricketts bring in a fresh set of eyes and fix these major issues.
But Ricketts has no balls, instead he likely gives these idiots 10yr extensions.
So you think Hawkins does do something? Sorry but I’ll need proof. I’m still not positive it was Jed who OK’d the Hendricks pick up because I’m not sure it’s not Ricketts doing. We have a bunch of good arms who are in need of command coaching and not ready for prime time and a bullpen who’s vets are either injured or in the wrong spots. That’s on Hoyer by thinking he can piecemeal a bullpen every year.
Why the hell can’t Jed Hoyer trade for somebody that’s actually worth a crap?
I’m not giving you a hard time here but the answer is simple-Jed Hoyer.
Way to go Jed that ought to do it.
The worst thing that Hoyer could do IMO, is to trade away the farm system – to try to save this years team. It would be like putting lipstick on a pig.
This years team, IS the problem. Their farm system is the hope. They’ve been building and developing it to be the answer down the road.
The problem is 7 years for Swanson, and NTCs for 2 corner OFers that both could be replaced easily by players currently in that farm system (namely Shaw, Triantos, Caissie – and yes I know Shaw and Triantos haven’t been used YET in corner OF spots).
I’d rather have a healthy Tauchman in the lineup, if they could trade either Happ or Seiya.
Tuchman’s OPS his last two months before hitting the IL was well under .700. Suzuki OPS in June was well over .800, Happ’s was just a shade under .800 but yeah, you would rather have Tauchman in the line up over either of these two “easily replaceable players”.
As much as the cry babies keep crying, the Cubs offense hasn’t been the problem. It’s been their inability to hold a lead.
Neither Shaw or Triantos have played above double A and Shaw definitely doesn’t have the arm for corner outfield.
Triantos has been playing CF for Alcantara until he came back Tuesday. If he can do that he can probably handle a Corner spot. But I don’t want him there anyway. Stevens has been moved up from SB and has played some OF but isn’t a preferred option IMO. I’ve been saying all along that the Suzuki signing and Happ extension were bad. I didn’t get it then and I don’t now. This year is sinking fast and the players they need aren’t ready yet. Bad Planning IMO.
The most replaceable thing I can think of, are comments by you ‘dras’. You seem to make a lot of assumptions when your make rebuttals on here. Many of your assumptions are ‘reaches’ to say the least.
Are you still upset about the Cubs cutting Hosmer – because he was the first one to jump over the rail to congratulate someone? Or are you still as upset as you were, when the Cubs cut Tucker Barnhart?
Poor poor ‘dras’. Talk about cry baby’s, lol.
You should try coming up with some new and accurate material.
You’re a bish, moaner and complainer. A kitty cry baby who has the same amount of baseball insight as 9 year old who doesn’t follow sports.
“The players they need aren’t ready yet” but having two above average players holding those positions was “bad planning”? Interesting rationale there.
Frankly, the move the Cubs made in the offseason I was most excited about (getting Counsel) has backfired massively. His line concentration has been poor, so has his usage of the bullpen. It really looks like he needs to have an established back end of the bullpen to manage successfully because his ability to change the look of the pitcher is laughable. To me it seems like Counsel manages off a spread sheet and doesn’t seem to quite grasp the human element of the game.
Hopefully this doesn’t deter the Cubs from trading for TJ McFarland
MLB ready arms are available on the south side of Chicago. Jon Cannon and Chris Flexen are just the kind of innings-eaters the Cubs are gonna need for a playoff run down the stretch. I am willing to send both from Pete Crow-Armstrong. Let’s face it, Pete can’t hit. Not at all. We still like his defense. We can get better players from other teams for Erick Fedde.
What ?
At this point he is our best player
What games do you watch ?
Totally untouchable
Maybe you have no knowledge that PCA is only 22 years old – where is your man Montgomery currently playing?
Lousy backhand there. The Sox could add Fedde and still not get PCA.
PCA is Peter Bourjos 2.0 you can do better than him.
That would be great if PCA racked up 6 WAR his first couple years with Cubs.
Sox fans are always so quick to pass judgement on cubs prospects. “Pete can’t hit” based on what his less than a full seasons body of MLB work? He’s progressed in every level of the minors after struggling at first, and he’s had flashes of total brilliance throughout his time on the big league roster. PCA is nowhere close to being a player you can soundly judge, and trading him for a KBO surprise and a pro typical veteran deadline flip is just utter foolishness coming from a Sox fan. Genuinely curious who you think is better than you’d get for Fedde from other teams, cuz ain’t no way Fedde nets you a top 50 prospect if Dylan Cease couldn’t even do that for y’all
Well, here you go. PCA can’t hit. And I’m a Cubs fan. Can he improve? Yes but it seems they ruined him by asking him to hit for power. That’s not his game. His swing plane changed and he hasn’t been able to get it back. So far, he’s a 4th of’er. But might as well keep playing him,,the season is over anyway.
When he stops tucking the bat behind his ear and leaving it on his shoulder he’ll be fine. He’s always late. That style might work in the minors but it won’t in the majors. Simple Fix. He’ll get there. Kids are stubborn.
I think PCA will hit enough to justify his spot on the team as the starting center fielder. He needs to do the George Brett and plant the bat behind his shoulder to be quicker to the ball.
And for the poster who said “hit bat plane changed” hitting it on the ground does not work in the majors, ask Madrigal. You have to be able to elevate and hit line drives.
From one last place club to another.
Pathetic.
Kinda dude you root for! Hope he does well for the Cubs!
Jed Hoyer has never found success being the top gun in a front office. In the roughly 2 years he was with the Padres, he did have that year where they unexpectedly made strides, yet not one of his draft picks have been any good at all. And with the Cubs, he was the perfect foil for Theo because Jed is slow to make a decision, which was a necessary compliment to Theo’s propensity to shoot then aim. Jed hired a guy who is the same as he is in Carter Hawkins, so it’s a wonder they do any transactions at all! Ricketts is going to have to lower the budget given the problems with Marquee, so it’s only getting worse. Sucks to be a Cubs fan right now.
Sucks worse to be a Sox fan.
Trevor Bauer
Really sucks to be a Trevor Bauer fan.
Unless you enjoy watching his TikTok videos from the Mexican league. BTW, they are actually pretty insightful listening to him describe how he approaches each hitter and why.