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The Cubs still haven’t announced the signing of free agent reliever Jeremy Jeffress, but that move should be official any time now, especially after the team’s latest roster move.
On Friday, the Orioles picked up right-handed pitcher Travis Lakins off waivers from the Cubs. The move resulted in the 40-man roster going down to 39, which opens up a spot for Jeffress.
Lakins, 25, was only in the Cubs organization for 10 days. He was acquired on Jan. 21, in a small trade with the Red Sox. The righty made his MLB debut with Boston in 2019, and although he wasn’t a highly-touted minor leaguer, Lakins was a top-30 prospect for the Red Sox prior to his big league debut.
In 18 appearances last year, Lakins recorded a 3.86 ERA and 1.41 WHIP, striking out 18 and walking 10 in 23.1 innings. A guy who didn’t put up eye-popping numbers, Lakins has above average stuff that you thought the Cubs wanted to explore.
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But with a bunch of relievers already signed and ready to compete for a bullpen spot in spring training the Cubs felt they could risk losing Lakins in the waiver process and they did.
So, in comes Jeffress, who is another bounce back candidate after a bad 2019 season. And it’s not like the Cubs are making a big commitment to him either, as Jeffress will have a base salary of $850K with $200K in incentives.
Jeffress was an All-Star in 2018 with the Brewers, posting a 1.29 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 76.2 innings.
