Chicago Cubs to Bring Back Former Reliever On Minor League Deal

The Chicago Cubs are bringing back a pitcher who had a solid season before getting injured on a minor league contract.

Apr 13, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Yency Almonte (25) throws against the Seattle Mariners during the eighth inning at T-Mobile Park. | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The Chicago Cubs are bringing back a reliever that got off to a solid start last year before getting injured.

Jesse Rogers of ESPN broke the news on Tuesday night that the Cubs agreed to a minor league contract with reliever Yency Almonte.

Almonte pitched in 17 games last season with a 3.45 ERA over 15.2 innings. It isn't a massive sample size, but that is solid production that could prove useful in a bullpen that has been tinkered with this offseason.

The 30-year-old was acquired before the season as a part of the deal that brought Michael Busch over from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Chicago sent over Jackson Ferris and Zyhir Hope in that trade.

With how good Busch has been to start his Cubs career, that trade would already be considered a win-win. Keeping Almonte around makes the deal even better for Chicago, as long as he can get back to that pace he set before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.

The problem with Almonte is that he has always struggled with consistency, which can be brutal for a bullpen arm.

Some season's he will have an ERA that is sub-3.00 or even sub-2.00, but other years he has finished above 7.00.

It is hard to tell just what kind of season that the hurler is going to have. Durability has also been an issue has he has never reached 50 innings pitched in a season.

This feels like a low-risk, high-reward move that the Cubs can afford to make right now.