Following a brief stint on the open market, former New York Mets reliever Génesis Cabrera has found a new home.
On Tuesday evening, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that Cabrera reached an agreement on a deal with the Chicago Cubs. After clearing waivers earlier in the day, the left-hander elected free agency instead of accepting an outright minor league assignment from the Mets.
Cabrera, 28, began the year in Triple-A after signing a minor league deal during the offseason. The seven-year veteran allowed seven runs and struck out 12 batters across eight innings with Syracuse before season-ending injuries to A.J. Minter and Danny Young led to his promotion in early May.
In six appearances with the Mets, Cabrera posted a 3.52 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, and an 8.2 K/9 rate across 7.2 innings of work. He was designated for assignment the day after throwing 20 pitches over two scoreless frames in Friday’s extra-inning loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Mets used eight relievers in the 13-inning marathon, which lasted nearly six hours, and needed another available arm for Saturday’s game. As a result, left-handed swingman Brandon Waddell was recalled from Triple-A to take a roster spot from Cabrera, who was out of minor league options.
Cabrera returns to the NL Central after spending his first five seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals. He brings above-average velocity from the left side but has struggled with walks throughout his career, issuing free passes at an 11.3% clip.
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The Cubs have benefited early on from two effective veteran lefties in their bullpen. Drew Pomeranz has struck out 14 across 12.2 scoreless innings, and Caleb Thielbar owns a 2.29 ERA through 23 appearances.
Aside from Waddell, the only other southpaw in the Mets’ bullpen is José Castillo, who was acquired via trade on May 15. They currently have two left-handed relievers with major league experience in Triple-A — Anthony Gose and Colin Poche — and recently re-signed Brooks Raley, who is still working his way back from Tommy John surgery.
