Cubs Must Improve Closing Out Close Games To Emerge as True Contender

The Chicago Cubs continue to play excellent baseball as May arrives and the team has proved to be one of the best in the National League.

Coming into the season, the thought was that the Cubs were going to be good. But with how they have performed so far, they might be exceeding expectations.

So far, Chicago has emerged as one of the best offensive teams in the league. While there was talent on the team the last couple of years, the addition of outfielder Kyle Tucker has seemingly taken the team to the next level.

Adding an MVP caliber player has made everyone around him better, and some of the young talent has been shining.

While the offense has been on a roll, there are some concerns about the Cubs going forward.

What Should Worry Cubs?

Their starting rotation has become a major concern with Justin Steele out for the year, along with losing Shota Imanaga to a hamstring injury. But the bullpen has been an issue for most of the campaign. The offense has covered up a lot of issues with their production.

Bradford Doolittle of ESPN+ (subscription required) recently wrote about the bullpen and especially closing out games being an area that the Cubs need to improve upon.

“The Cubs have been strong in every other facet, but for them to establish themselves as a true front-runner, the relief leaks will need to be shored up," he wrote.

Even though it has been an amazing year for Chicago, improving the bullpen makes a lot of sense. So far, the team has blown seven of 15 save opportunities this year.

Did the Cubs do enough this offseason to solidify the bullpen?

This winter, they made a significant move to bring in Ryan Pressly to be their closer. With a plethora of experience in the role of a championship contender, this move figured to sure things up in the ninth inning.

Even though Pressly has a 2.08 ERA, his FIP is at nearly 5.00, which is a concern that some regression could be coming. The right-hander has struggled to strike batters out, and he is walking a lot as well.

This generally isn’t a great recipe for success long-term, and could come back to hurt Chicago.

Overall, the bullpen has been lackluster, ranking 21st in team ERA. For a team that wants to be a World Series contender, the unit is going to have to improve.

While the unit does appear to be better than it was in the previous campaign, this is a team with high expectations. Due to injuries to the rotation, the Cubs are going to have to count on their bullpen for more sooner rather than later.

Adding another arm at some point to help in high leverage situations makes a lot of sense for Chicago.