Chicago Cubs Should Claim Angels Reliever on Waivers

As the Los Angeles Angels and other teams are cleaning house, the Chicago Cubs could find a way to bolster their bullpen.

Tuesday injected chaos into Major League Baseball — and potential opportunity for the Chicago Cubs.

Per ESPN, the Los Angeles Angels placed five players on waivers on Tuesday — starting pitcher Lucas Giolito, relievers Matt Moore and Reynaldo López, and outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Randal Grichuk. The move was reported as a salary dump and the players will be available to all MLB teams on Thursday via waivers.

But that’s not all. Per The Athletic, other players on waivers on Thursday will include Yankees outfielder Harrison Bader, Mets pitcher Carlos Carrasco, White Sox pitcher Mike Clevinger and Tigers pitcher José Cisnero.

How does this impact the Cubs? Because the players must go through waivers, the Cubs will get a shot to claim at least one of them. Their odds may be a bit better than others, given that the waiver order is determined by reverse order of record as of Thursday.

What should the Cubs prioritize? Perhaps relief pitching. And the best reliever of the bunch might be a perfect fit for the Cubs.

Moore is a player the Cubs should be keenly interested in, should he be available. The left-hander and former starter has carved out a name for himself as a quality reliever the past two seasons. With a 3-1 record and a 2.30 ERA in 40 appearances this season, he’s likely to be in demand.

In 2022 with the Texas Rangers he went 5-2 with a 1.95 ERA. He has 34 holds and five saves since the start of 2022.

López (2-7, 3.86) might be worth a claim. The right-hander was traded to the Angels along with Giolito and since he arrived in Anaheim he has a 2.31 ERA in 12 games and 11.2 innings, striking out 19 and walking six. He’s hitting a groove at a good time given the situation.

If Moore or López aren’t there, Cisnero may be worth a claim. The right-hander went 2-4 with a 5.36 ERA in 54 games this season. He struck out 56 in 48.2 innings and walked 20. If the Cubs do claim him, they would be hoping that he would return to being the pitcher he was from 2022-22 with the Tigers. He threw more than 100 innings, struck out 119 and had an opponent batting average close to .200.

This season batters are hitting .275 against Cisnero.

The Cubs will get a shot at some of them. But, on paper, given the Cubs’ need in the bullpen and for left-handed help, Moore might make the most sense.

But he has to get to the Cubs first. And if the doesn’t, they may have to settle for something else.