Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register reports that Chicago Cubs reliever, Craig Kimbrel‘s debut with his new team is “imminent”.
Kimbrel, 31, signed a three-year, $43 million deal with the Cubs on June 7 after he and newly-signed Braves starter, Dallas Keuchel, lingered on the open market well into the 2019 season.
The right-hander experienced a slight dip in production in 2018 with Boston, pitching to a 2.74 ERA/3.13 FIP with 1.00 WHIP and a 3.10 strikeouts-to-walks ratio over 63 games (62.1 innings), all significant deviations from his outstanding career numbers and out-of-this-world 2017 (1.43 ERA/1.42 FIP, 0.68 WHIP, 9.00 strikeouts-to-walks).
In four appearances with Triple-A Iowa (3.2 innings), Kimbrel allowed one earned run on two hits (one home run) with four strikeouts and a walk.
Birch notes that “according to multiple sources […], Kimbrel is no longer with the Iowa Cubs”, adding “if all goes to plan, [Kimbrel] will be added to the roster this week”.
We’ll keep you updated as more information becomes available.
