The numbers don’t exactly support it, but Cubs reliever Daniel Palencia feels great.
“I feel like I’m in a really good spot right now,” he told the Sun-Times on Sunday. “I’m getting more action, so I’m starting to feel really good.”
That’s true. Since returning from inflammation in his right elbow Aug. 21, Palenica has totaled 7 ⅓ innings in eight games. But he has allowed seven earned runs in that span (8.59 ERA), including two home runs. For the season, which also was interrupted by a strained left oblique in April, he has a 4.50 ERA in 27 games.
It’s a far cry from last season, when he had a 2.91 ERA in 54 games and 22 saves. And in six postseason outings, each at least one inning, he held the opposition scoreless in five.
Where’s that guy?
He might not return this season, so the Cubs will have to make due with the current version, which has been better of late. Palencia has pitched a scoreless inning in his last three outings, though none were high-leverage situations.
“To be honest, I think they just want me to pitch, to get the most chances I can,” Palencia said of his role. “I’m just trying to do my job in any situation right now, no matter what the score is.
“The important thing is the confidence. When I got back the first time, I wanted to be healthy. Maybe I was thinking too much. But right now, it’s just baseball. I feel great.”
Yet, from last season, his strikeouts are down, his walks are up and he isn’t missing as many bats. Palencia said none of it stems from pitching in the World Baseball Classic, where he earned three saves in five scoreless outings (five innings) and struck out nine.
“I don’t think so, because I was good after that,” Palencia said of his start to the regular season. “I think it was, you know, the human body’s not made to play baseball. So it’s going to happen.”
Palencia has been stuck on three saves since May 14. He’s one of 14 Cubs with at least one save. Jacob Webb leads the team with nine. Would Palencia like another shot at closing?
“I love that job, but all the guys have been great for us,” he said. “We are a team. We’re here to support each other. I don’t care who takes the ball. We’re here to win.”