Hey, remember Eddie Butler? Well, after being on the disabled list for the majority of the season and rehabbing down in Triple-A, the right-handed pitcher is back with the Chicago Cubs.
After Monday’s 7-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks, Luke Farrell was sent to Iowa and replacing him on the 25-man roster is Butler, who last pitched for the Cubs on April 19.
The #Cubs today activated RHP Eddie Butler off of the 60-day DL. RHP Luke Farrell has been optioned to @IowaCubs. pic.twitter.com/5U1UiLDUsE
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 24, 2018
Butler originally went on the disabled list because of a groin injury and didn’t return to action until June 30, with the Iowa Cubs. Although Butler’s numbers haven’t looked pretty in five starts at Triple-A since the injury, he is coming off a solid outing on July 19, when he pitched five innings and only allowed one earned run on four hits.
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At this point the Cubs just need another arm to take some stress off the bullpen. Starters haven’t been going deep and five games in four days after the all-star break has only made that problem worse, forcing Joe Maddon to use position players to save relievers.
So, the addition of Butler gives the Cubs a new long-man in the pen and he’s already shown to be a guy who can eat innings in much-needed situations, like when he pitched seven innings in relief against the Miami Marlins back in March.
Before going on the DL, Butler had a 4.30 ERA in 14.2 innings. His last appearance was against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 19, giving up three earned runs while not recording an out.
Before that he had a 2.45 ERA in five relief outings.
