How Cubs' Bullpen Stacks Up To Other NL Central Contenders Post-Deadline

Image courtesy of Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune

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The 2026 MLB trade deadline is now in the rearview mirror. This deadline will be memorialized by the Dodgers acquisition of two-time reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal and what this means for the future of baseball. There was plenty of action around the rest of the league though, especially amongst the NL Central, where the three buyers, the Brewers, Cubs and Pirates, combined for 12 trades.

To nobody’s surprise, the Cubs made four additions to their pitching staff, the clear weakness of the team. They made the most significant upgrades to their rotation, adding Kevin Gausman from the Blue Jays and Clay Holmes from the Mets. They also added Ryan Zeferjahn, one of the best relief arms on the market, from the Angels. They plucked the change-of-scenery, bounce-back candidate Braxton Garrett from the Marlins as well, although his role is a bit more ambiguous. The front office’s mission was to add two starters and a reliever, and they did just that. The starting rotation could evolve into another strength of this team over the next two months, but it remains to be seen how much one reliever addition will benefit the bullpen, whose 4.65 xERA ranks 26th in baseball.

Speaking of bullpen additions, their divisional competitors made some significant upgrades as well. The Brewers, who were already fourth in team bullpen xERA at the time of the deadline, acquired the Rockies’ best relief arm in former starter Antonio Senzatela, as well as southpaw groundball specialist JoJo Romero from the Cardinals. The Pirates, who also have a bullpen xERA in the bottom third of the league, but still better than the Cubs, completely overhauled their pen. They added one of the best relievers on the market in Luke Weaver from the Mets. They also brought in two former closers in Kirby Yates from the Angels and Camilo Doval from the Yankees. If that wasn’t enough, they added one of the Marlins’ more dependable arms in Lake Bachar. Here is the outlook for each of these teams’ bullpens post-deadline, as we look at how these new arms will fit in with the incumbents.

Ranking NL Central's Best Bullpens After Trade Deadline

Brewers

The Brewers already had a trifecta of relievers already with an xERA under 3.00. Closer Trevor Megill and flamethrower Abner Uribe have allowed three home runs all season, and all three have come from Uribe. Yes, Megill, despite a rocky start to the season, has not allowed a home run. Shane Drohan, a rookie lefty acquired in the Caleb Durbin trade, has enjoyed a breakout season with a 2.39 xERA while limiting walks and hard contact. He has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen this season. He has been used exclusively as a starter of late, but the return of Kyle Harrison may send him back to the 'pen. Fellow southpaw Aaron Ashby is still one of the most consistent left-handed relievers in the game, and has an elite K/9 at just above 12.

Their “lower leverage” arms in Grant Anderson, DL Hall, and Chad Patrick would be amongst their best if they were on almost any other team across the league. That speaks to the depth of this unit, and it just got deeper with the additions of Senzatela and Romero. The unit with the third highest fWAR in baseball is likely to continue to dominate late in games. For what it's worth, their starters have the lowest xERA in baseball. This is why they are in contention for the best record in the league for the second straight season, and have the third highest odds to win the World Series.

Pirates

Likewise, it is a great time to be a fan of Pennsylvania sports. The city of Philadelphia now has LeBron James, and Pittsburgh acquired Luke Weaver and friends. After adding four new relievers, the Pirates are looking to make their first legitimate push for the postseason in a decade. Even though they are below .500 Paul Skenes has not been Paul Skenes this season, with an ERA in the high-threes and a fastball sitting in the mid-90s, but the Buccos are going for it anyway while adding three controllable arms (four if you count Brandon Eisert, who was traded for before the draft, but in the minors currently) and Kirby Yates.

The bullpen already had a knack for missing bats, with Yohan Ramirez, Gregory Soto, Mason Montgomery and Evan Sisk all having a K/9 over 10. In fact, the 'pen as a whole is fifth in baseball in that stat, but they are also fifth in BB/9. Weaver (who may slot into the closer role) and Bachar should provide quality innings while issuing less walks than guys like Ramirez, who has been their most-used reliever to this point. Another name to highlight here is Carmen Mlodzinski, who was bumped from the rotation after the return of Jared Jones. He has impressed to the tune of a sparkling 2.15 ERA as a reliever, but his xERA over 4.00 helps explain why GM Ben Cherington felt pressure to add more right-handers. Overall, this is probably the most improved bullpen in baseball. We will see how far it takes them, but baseball is definitely better when the Pirates are trying.

Cubs

Finally, we have the Cubs, who added one definitive reliever in Ryan Zeferjahn, and one possible reliever in Braxton Garrett. We should have clarity soon on how Craig Counsell chooses to deploy Garrett, but if he can become the next broken starter turned relief ace, it would be a huge win for Hoyer and Carter Hawkins. The Cubs have searched all season to find a high-leverage right-handed reliever to fill the void left by Brad Keller. Ben Brown looked to be the answer, but due to the myriads of injuries, he was needed in the rotation, where hopefully he will continue to shine after returning from his own neck injury. Zeferjahn fills this role and more. With a 33% strikeout rate, and a walk rate just under 14%, he should become that anchor in the back end that the Cubs were hoping Daniel Palencia would be. Speaking of Palencia, who has been hampered by injuries all season, he can step into a more complementary role. Jacob Webb has been a solid low-cost addition, and newly acquired Tyler Ferguson has a 3.52 xERA in 15 games. Although he has been nothing short of awful, the return of Phil Maton will at least provide a bit more depth, and Hunter Harvey might return before all is said and done. As a whole, the right-handed part of the bullpen is something to feel good about.

The main critique of the Cubs’ deadline approach is the failure to land a lefty reliever. We saw Brooks Raley, A.J. Minter, the aforementioned JoJo Romero, Caleb Ferguson, Erik Miller, and Brent Suter all find new homes. The fact that the Cubs will be relying on Ryan Rolison, Hoby Milner, and Caleb Thielbar as their go-to lefties for the rest of the season should rightfully make fans nervous. None of these guys are bad, but a contending team with a properly built bullpen would consider these guys a fine second- or third-tier lefty.

So, is there hope that Braxton Garrett becomes a high-leverage option? Or are they counting on a bullpen role for Justin Steele? The Cubs made a great move for Zeferjahn, regardless of how you feel about Moises Ballesteros, but the bullpen makeover seems like an assignment that wasn’t quite completed, leaving them looking up at their division counterparts.