The late-night/early-morning spot for Cubs fans asks who is designated for assignment when the bullpen gets healthy.
It’s Tuesday night here at BCB After Dark: the grooviest spot for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in and join us for a while. The sun has finally gone down. It’s hot out, but it’s cool in here. There’s no cover charge. We have a few tables still available. Bring your own beverage.
BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.
The Cubs beat the Brewers tonight, 5-3 to take a season-high 6 1⁄2 game lead in the National League Central. Pete Crow-Armstrong continued to press his MVP case with a spectacular catch in left-center field to end the top of the eighth and then an unbelievable 452-foot home run to lead off the bottom of the inning. Oh, and PCA and Seiya Suzuki continued their “stepbrothers” routine as Suzuki hit a three-run home run earlier in the game.
I’m almost ready to break out Judy. But not yet.
Last night, I asked you which Cubs prospect would you make the most “untouchable” come the trade deadline. Many of you said everyone is available for the right price and yes, that’s true. But i was kind of getting at who would be the last guy you were willing to trade. My fault for not making that more clear.
In any case, it looks like positional scarcity played a role in your vote as 40 percent of you said you wouldn’t trade right-hander Jaxon Wiggins. Another 24 percent said you wouldn’t part with sweet-swinging catcher Moisés Ballesteros unless there was no other choice.
Remember back in April when I asked if you thought Pete Crow-Armstrong could hit 20 home runs this year? Yeah, that was a typo. I meant to ask if you thought PCA could hit 20 home runs by June 20. My mistake.
On Tuesday nights, I don’t normally do an movie stuff. But I always have time for jazz, so those of you who skip that can do so now. You won’t hurt my feelings.
Tonight we are featuring a bit of fusion with bassist Stanley Clarke and one of those NPR Tiny Desk concerts. This one was released just earlier today.
Featured along with Clarke are Cameron Graves on keyboard, Colin Cook on guitar, Emilio Modeste on sax, Evan Garr on violin and Jeremiah Collier on drums.
Welcome back to everyone who skips all that jazz.
The Cubs have a good problem coming and honestly, it’s one that I never dreamed the team would have. The Cubs have too many good relievers.
Right now down in Triple-A Iowa, injured relievers Porter Hodge and Eli Morgan are rehabbing. They can stay down there for a month, so if the Cubs want to delay things, they can. Hodge has only been on his rehab assignment four tadys and Morgan’s just started today.
But unless someone gets hurt between now and when the Cubs decide to add either Hodge or Morgan, someone is going to have to leave to make room for them on the major league roster. And that’s a problem because they are all doing well. What makes it worse is that with the exception of Daniel Palencia, the presumptive closer, none of them have any minor league options remaining. That means that they have to be designated for assignment before they can be sent to Iowa. And considering that they’re all pitching well, it doesn’t seem likely that any of them would actually clear waivers.
So tonight I’m going to ask you which current Cubs reliever would you DFA to make room for either Hodge or Morgan? Unfortunately our poll software doesn’t allow for multiple answers, so you’ll just have to vote for the one that you would DFA first.
Or maybe you could vote “none of the above.” Because while none of the current Cubs relievers, other than Palencia, have any minor league options, both Hodge and Morgan do. So you could vote “none of the above,” which means that you’d just send Hodge and Morgan down to Iowa officially until an injury opens up a spot for them.
Of course, that would probably only delay the inevitable. The Cubs seem likely to add pitching at the trade deadline, probably a starter and maybe also a reliever. But even if the Cubs add a starter, they’re likely to send either Colin Rea or Ben Brown to the bullpen and then another reliever would have to go.
I think you’re all familiar with these pitchers. They’ve all been very good this season. Yes, even Ryan Pressly, whom gave up those nine runs, eight earned on May 6 and hasn’t surrendered an earned run since. Take out that disaster against the Giants, and Pressly has a 0.94 ERA this year. But Chris Flexen and Drew Pomeranz are even better, having still not allowed an earned run in 2025.
So who is the first Cubs reliever you cut loose?
Thank you for stopping by tonight. It’s been a good night and you’ve made it better. Please get home safely. Don’t forget your card. Recycle any cans and bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow evening for more BCB After Dark.