Jose Cuas #39

José is 7-4 with a 3.84 ERA (44 ER/103.0 IP) in 119 Major League games (two starts) with Kansas City (2022-23) and Chicago (2023)...recorded 105 strikeouts and two saves across his career...Acquired by Chicago via a trade from the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Nelson Velázquez July 31, 2023...Made his MLB debut on May 31, 2022, less than a year after the Royals signed him to a Minor League contract in June 2021...he previously pitched for the Long Island Ducks of the Independent Atlantic League...Selected by the Brewers in the 11th round of the 2015 draft out of the University of Maryland...played his first three seasons as an infielder...Converted to a pitcher following the 2017 season...in 89 Minor League games was 13-7 with a 2.64 ERA (38 ER/129.1IP) with 121 strikeouts and 17 saves...Graduated from Grand Street Campus in Brooklyn, N.Y.

2023

José was acquired by Chicago from Kansas City July 31, 2023, for outfielder Nelson Velázquez...Appeared in 27 games for Chicago (one start) going 0-2 with one save, six holds and a 3.04 ERA (8 ER/23.2 IP), a 1.31 WHIP, one save and 19 strikeouts...With Chicago, held opponents to a .205 batting average (17- for-83), the lowest among Cubs relievers with at least 20 games...Stranded 16 of 20 inherited runners with Chicago...Allowed just one run in his first 15 games as a Cub Aug. 2-Sept. 5, posting a 0.61 ERA and a .149 opponent average (7-for-47) in 14.2 innings...Aug. 28 vs. Milwaukee pitched 2.0 innings out of the bullpen, tying his longest-career relief outing (also April 6, 2023 vs. Toronto)...Earned his second career save Sept. 23 vs. Colorado...In 45 games with Kansas City went 3-0 with four holds, a 4.54 ERA (21 ER/41.2 IP) and 52 strikeouts.

2022

Cuas began the 2022 season at Triple-A Omaha, where he pitched to a 1.74 ERA (4 ER in 20.2 IP) in 20 appearances before being selected on May 30...He pitched a scoreless inning in his Major League debut on May 31 in Cleveland, with his wife, Anais, and brother, Alex, in attendance...Cuas, a Brooklyn native, fulfilled a lifelong dream on July 29, when he spun a scoreless seventh inning at Yankee Stadium...He appeared in both games of Kansas City’s Aug. 9 doubleheader vs. the White Sox, earning his first career save in Game 1, before allowing the game-deciding run in the eighth inning of Game 2...Cuas recorded fewer than three outs in 24 of his 47 appearances (51.1%) with the Royals...He had 12 consecutive scoreless appearances that covered eight innings from Aug. 26-Sept. 24.

2021

Began the season with the Atlantic League Long Island Ducks, where he appeared in five games and threw 11.0 scoreless innings before signing a minor league contract with Kansas City on June 23...Pitched in two games with the ACL Royals Blue before being promoted to Double-A Northwest Arkansas, where he went 3-1 with a 1.95 ERA (7 ER in 32.1 IP) and 32 strikeouts with just seven walks...Pitched in all three Double-A Central Championship games, recording two saves across 3.1 innings and recording final out of Game 3 with a strikeout to clinch the title...Was promoted to Triple-A Omaha to finish the season, where he threw 5.0 shutout innings over three games...Appeared in 13 games for the Águilas Cibaeñas in the Dominican Winter League, posting a 1.80 ERA in 10.0 innings.