Episode 108 – Cubs Bullpen: Just Noise or Time to Panic?

I kicked off the episode by celebrating one of the most infamous moments in Cubs history: Lee Elia’s legendary 1983 postgame rant. If you’ve never heard it, do yourself a favor and look it up — it’s a time capsule of frustration, profanity, and peak Cubs lore.

Then I pivoted to the present: the Cubs are 17-12 after surviving a brutal April schedule. Not a single game against a losing team until this series in Pittsburgh — that’s wild.

I talked through why I’m actually encouraged by this start — especially considering we’ve already seen the Dodgers, Padres, Diamondbacks, and Rangers. No cupcake wins in that bunch.

The offense has been carrying the load — leading MLB in runs scored and ranking top five in most categories. Pitching? That’s where it gets interesting.

Let’s talk bullpen:

There’s panic out there, and I get it — but I dug into the numbers and game logs to get a clearer picture of what’s actually happening.

I broke down every blown save so far — who they’re charged to, how they happened, and why that stat doesn’t always mean what fans think it does.

I showed how a single bad outing is inflating ERAs for guys like Porter Hodge and Brad Keller — and why Hodge, in particular, has actually been solid outside of one meltdown.

I walked through game-by-game bullpen usage during the last homestand to separate emotion from results. Some of those wins? The bullpen locked it down.

I compared this group to last year’s disaster — and while they’re walking too many guys and not getting enough strikeouts, it’s not the same situation as 2024. At least not yet.

Where we go from here:

I talked about who I trust in the late innings right now (spoiler: it’s not just Presley), and why the Cubs need to keep cycling through arms until they find the right mix.

I gave Jed some criticism for not doing more in the offseason — but also credit for being aggressive with early call-ups and DFA moves.

I touched on David Robertson rumors, why adding starting depth could actually help the bullpen, and what internal options might emerge.

Finally, I looked ahead to May — the schedule softens up, and if this team keeps doing what it did in April against easier opponents, we might just stay on top of the division.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices