New Cubs closer Palencia gives assist to Alzolay
The Cubs bullpen has been a roulette wheel in recent years, with different closers and setup men every season. Over the past 10 years, eight pitchers have led the team in saves.
Add a new name to the list, since Daniel Palencia took over the team lead by converting his fifth straight save opportunity in Saturday's 2-0 victory over Cincinnati.
The Venezuela native, who joined the Cubs in 2021 in the Andrew Chafin trade with Oakland, is one of the hardest throwers in team history, with six pitches Saturday that broke the 100 mph barrier. But he's also been erratic and began this season at Triple-A Iowa.
“I think the biggest change for me is the mentality,” he said after the game. “Just going in with confidence and be aggressive all the time.”
Palencia credited former Cubs closer and fellow Venezuelan Adbert Alzolay for helping with the mental part of pitching. Alzolay is now with the New York Mets but won't pitch this year while recovering from elbow surgery.
“Alzolay is like my big brother,” Palencia said. “He always texts me, like, 'Hey, you're doing this' or 'You're not doing this' and stuff like that. I think the biggest change was my mentality — just trusting myself and going in with confidence.”
When Palencia made his MLB debut in 2023, Alzolay piled up 22 saves and looked like he might hold down the Cubs' closer role for several years. But with pitchers, careers literally hang by the thread of an elbow ligament.
“Being here, watching him close (in '23), it was like, 'OK, one day I want to be like him,'” Palencia said. “But you know, stuff happens, that's baseball.”
Palencia also mentioned veteran teammate Ryan Pressly as someone who helps with the mental part of the game. Pressly began the season as the closer but missed time with an injury and has been used in a setup role lately.
Manager Craig Counsell predicted the Cubs will use different people to close, but you generally don't fix what's not broken. Palencia failed in his first save attempt at Miami, but those are the only runs he's allowed in his last 16 appearances.
Hodge deals with hip:
Cubs manager Craig Counsell provided injury updates on two of the team's most important pitchers before Saturday's game.
Reliever Porter Hodge, who last pitched on May 17 against the White Sox, has recovered from the oblique strain that put him on the injured list but is now dealing with a hip impingement, according to Counsell. The hope is he'll be able to throw a bullpen session next week.
“Because of the time he's missed, he'll definitely require some rehab outings,” Counsell said. “So we're looking at a couple weeks still.”
Meanwhile, Shota Imanaga (left hamstring strain) threw a bullpen on Saturday and did some work on the field. If all goes well, he'll head to Mesa to get back in pitching shape while the Cubs embark on a three-city road trip.
“He's got a big day today,” Counsell said, “His next step will be live BP (batting practice).”
Around the horn:
The Cubs finished May with an 18-9 record. … The Cubs have outscored opponents 60-6 in the sixth inning or later over the past 13 games. … Drew Pomeranz started an MLB game Saturday for the first time since Aug. 7, 2019, with the Brewers. Since joining the Cubs this season, the lefty hasn't allowed a run in 13⅔ innings.