Welcome back to Chicago Yency Almonte. The Cubs yesterday signed relief pitcher Yency Almonte to a minor league contract. That name should ring a bell for Cubs fans as he pitched on the north side last season, coming over in a trade from the Dodgers. The same deal that landed the Cubs Michael Busch. Almonte pitched to the tune of a 3.45 ERA in 15.2 IP. He accumulated 0.2 bWAR for the Cubs in seventeen games. Additionally, his 1.085 WHIP was also better than the league average. His time in Chicago last season was interrupted by a May 11th shoulder injury that ended his season. His last game for Chicago came on May 7th against the Padres, where he tossed one inning, giving up one hit but zero runs.
In his career Almonte has thrown a total of 223 innings, spanning three teams since 2018. Almonte tossed his best season in 2022 with the Dodgers, tossing 35 innings and registering a 1.02 ERA. He put together a ridiculous 398 ERA+, which makes sense given his low sample size, but does prove just how good of a season he had. The Cubs liked his potential and made sure he was included in the Michael Busch trade from the Dodgers.
Anything to fix the Bullpen
Chicago has hoped to improve their mediocre bullpen from last season. The Cubs ranked 11th in Bullpen ERA and 19th in WHIP. Those numbers may not pass the eye test for Cubs fans as they let many games slip between their figures in late, close contests. Adding an arm like Almonte back into the fold on a minor league deal will give the Cubs more options. I would imagine Almonte spends about half the season in the majors, given his veteran status.
Yency Almonte is a curious case as a pitcher. On one hand, his xERA, xBA, Extension, and Whiff rate all grade out well on baseball savant. However, his walk rate (11.9) Fastball Velocity (93.8), and Barrel rate (8.1) do not. Add to this his injury history, and limited big-league experience and it’s not surprising that the market was not robust for the 30-year-old vet. With that being said he could still be a solid addition for the Cubs. While they have certainly made additions to their bullpen this year including Eli Morgan and Ryan Pressley, you can never have enough bullpen depth. Given the Cub’s struggles in recent seasons with consistent bullpen production, it’s not a bad idea at all to have an intriguing arm such as Almontes as depth.
A Solid Depth signing
This move doesn’t move the needle too much for the 2025 Cubs, but it is a nice depth piece. In a sport where depth is more important than any other on Earth, I can’t see this move backfiring too badly for the Cubs. If it works they have another dangerous arm to deploy out of the bullpen. If it doesn’t, he stays the entire season in the minors and has a minuscule effect on the Cubs 2025 payroll. Low-risk potential nice reward for the Cubs.
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