The Cubs made several trades in July trying to improve the overall depth of the roster and get the bullpen some help. One move that kind of went under the radar, well the return anyway, was trading Carl Edwards Jr. to the Padres for left-hander Brad Wieck.
The 27-year-old lefty has only pitched in 31.2 MLB innings, allowing eight home runs in 35 appearances. The 5.40 ERA and home rate weren’t anything to get excited about, but the 6-foot-9 lefty did strike out 41 batters in those 31.2 innings.
Since the trade on July 31, Wieck has made five appearances with the Iowa Cubs, limited because he was on the temporarily inactive list for eight days in the middle of August. In his brief time with the Cubs organization Wieck has struck out 10 batters in five innings of work.
A lefty who has a high strikeout rate? Yes, please! And the Cubs are certainly noticing him.
Theo Epstein was on 670 The Score on Thursday and brought up Wieck a few times, pretty much signaling that the left-hander will come up in September.
Wieck is already on the 40-man roster, so no one will be ousted because of him. However, if he is called up then Randy Rosario or Derek Holland might be let go, as Ben Zobrist needs to be added back on the 40-man roster.
So, an unexpected reliever might just be pitching in huge spots during September for the Cubs.
