When the postseason rolls around for the Cubs–and they’re within three games of clinching their spot–it is clear that there will be a start for Shota Imanaga, and one for Matthew Boyd. After that, well, who knows?
Rookie Cade Horton has made an impressive case, despite his inexperience, at 10-4 with a 2.70 ERA. It’d be hard to keep him off the mound.
Jameson Taillon has experience in the playoffs. Javier Assad is a mainstay of the rotation, though he was injured most of the season. Colin Rea was consistent in the season’s first half (7-3, 3.91 ERA) but has struggled since (3-3, 4.77).
And the team has Mike Soroka, the Cubs’ main trade deadline pickup, looking sharp as he returns from injury.
So the Cubs could pick a third starter and leave the rest disappointed. Or they could just use everybody–which is, apparently, the plan. And Soroka, who pitched in the playoffs once back in 2019 with the Braves but has been with the lowly White Sox and Nationals in the past year-and-a-half, is ready for it.
Mike Soroka Looked Good in the Bullpen
Soroka left Cubs fans who were already embittered by a lack of movement at the trade deadline doubly disappointed when, in his first start back on August 4, he lasted two innings before injuring his shoulder and needing to hit the injured list.
The Cubs acquired Soroka to be an innings-eater while the likes of Assad and Taillon worked their way back to full health, but instead, he was almost immediately on an rehab assignment, too. But he returned on Monday and appeared in 2.0 innings of sharp relief when he walked two but allowed no hits or runs in the 4-0 win over Pittsburgh.
Soroka has made only 18 out of his 87 appearances in the big leagues out of the bullpen, and he did work as a reliever for the White Sox last year. He was, however, 0-10 for the other Chicago team in 2024.
Cubs Just Need Arms in the Playoffs
Soroka is almost certain not to be a starter in the playoffs for Chicago. But he just wants a role pitching for the Cubs, who kept up the faith in him even as he struggled with the injury since coming to the North Side.
“It’s always more along the lines of proving people right,” Soroka said, via The Athletic. “There’s a lot more people that mean a lot more to me that believed in me, and some people I’ve worked hard with over the last month to get here.
“I’m looking to go let it rip and compete with this team.”
The Cubs don’t have traditional bullpen roles established, especially with Daniel Palencia, the team’s surprising closer, now injured (though with the chance to come back soon). Soroka said that’s not a problem in today’s game where managers are much more open-minded to simply finding the best way to get 27 outs in a game, even if those outs come untraditionally.
“We’ve seen that in baseball,” Soroka said. “The team takes the best arms that they can for that series. It doesn’t really matter (what happened) the rest of the season. There is a track record that matters. But teams like to go with who’s hot. It’s always a bit of an audition.”
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Newest Cubs Starter Already Eyeing Postseason Bullpen Spot appeared first on Heavy Sports.