CHICAGO -- There was a moment in the middle of the summer when hard-throwing righty Daniel Palencia seized the closer’s role for the Cubs. It was one of the only stretches in which manager Craig Counsell used that job title when talking about one of his pitchers.
Things tend to be more fluid for Chicago’s bullpen and that has been the case again since Palencia returned in late September after a bout with a right shoulder injury. It explains why Palencia was used in the fifth inning of Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the Padres in Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series, and also why veteran Andrew Kittredge is taking the ball to start Game 2 on Wednesday.
“Look, roles are out the window,” Counsell said ahead of the Wild Card Series. “That’s why I’m using the word ‘out-getters,’ because that’s really what happens at this time of year. It’s: ‘How do we get 27 outs?’ That’s all that matters. That’s all that matters.”
In the Game 1 victory, Counsell asked his relief corps to get 14 outs after a solid start by left-hander Matthew Boyd. They answered the bell by retiring 14 Padres batters in a row – a postseason record for most batters faced by a bullpen without allowing a baserunner. Palencia got things rolling with 1 2/3 innings before Drew Pomeranz, Kittredge and Brad Keller covered the final three frames to seal the win.
In the immediate wake of the win, Counsell did not announce his starter for the second game in this best-of-three series. As it turned out, the manager needed to check in with the 35-year-old Kittredge to make sure he was good to go after turning in a clean eighth inning against San Diego’s lineup.
As part of his outing, Kittredge struck out Padres leadoff hitter Fernando Tatis Jr. and induced a flyout off the bat of elite contact hitter Luis Arraez. If San Diego sticks with its usual lineup, Kittredge could see them to start Game 2, followed by Manny Machado. This season, Kittredge has held righties to a .690 OPS and lefties to a .541 OPS.
Game 2 would fall on the normal start day for Cubs lefty Shota Imanaga, who might be set up for a bulk outing behind Kittredge. This way, Counsell could limit Imanaga’s exposure to the meat of the Padres’ order, especially given the left-hander’s recent homer issues. Imanaga has a 5.97 ERA with 12 homers allowed in his last six starts (34 2/3 innings) and has given up 31 homers overall in 144 2/3 frames.
“I think there’s concern, for sure,” Counsell said after Imanaga’s final regular-season start. “We’ve got work to do to put him in a good position to have success [in the playoffs].”
Using an opener is not a new approach for Counsell.
Throughout this season, the Cubs have utilized an opener seven times, with Pomeranz (four), Keller (once), Ryan Brasier (once) and Chris Flexen (once) taking the ball. Kittredge was used as an opener on multiple occasions earlier in his career with the Rays, so the veteran righty has experience with the assignment, too.
Since coming to the Cubs via trade at the Deadline, Kittredge has turned in a 3.32 ERA with 32 strikeouts against three walks in 21 2/3 innings (23 appearances). He picked up five saves this season, including three during the period in September when Palencia was on the 15-day IL. Since Palencia rejoined the bullpen, Counsell has let go of the “closer” label and focused on matchups.
All of the relievers have been on board with the approach.
“I love buy-in from out-getters,” Counsell quipped recently.
And in the Cubs’ Game 1 victory, that buy-in was on full display when Palencia took over in the fifth and retired Tatis and Arraez to strand a baserunner with Chicago trailing, 1-0. In the bottom of the inning, Seiya Suzuki and Carson Kelly launched back-to-back homers to put the Cubs on their way to the win column.
Palencia then retired the side in the sixth in what Keller called “the turning point of the game.”
“He’s been so good for us all year,” Cubs outfielder Ian Happ said of Palencia. “He was out of the dugout waving a towel at one point on those homers. To calm himself down and get back out was big.”
Expect the entire group to be ready for anything in Game 2.
“That group is connected, and today was a great example of it,” Counsell said. “We feel like we can really pitch them in a lot of spots, and that gives us a lot of flexibility.”