Cubs sign right-handed reliever Vinny Nittoli
On Sunday, the Chicago Cubs unveiled a statue of the Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg
The Cubs signed right-handed reliever Vinny Nittoli, the team announced Thursday. ESPN’s Jeff Passan was the first to report the news.
Nittoli, 33, was recently DFA’d (designated for assignment) by the Athletics. In seven games this season, he’s pitched eight innings, holding a 2.25 ERA and 1.250 WHIP.
Nittoli is another arm the Cubs are looking to stock their bullpen. Their bullpen has easily been their most glaring weakness this season, as they stand 23rd in MLB in bullpen ERA (4.52) with a 1.37 WHIP.
Nittoli has been on a bevy of teams throughout his major league career, predominantly in the minor leagues. He’s appeared in the majors for the Mariners, Phillies, Mets and Athletics.
Ironically, Nittoli signed a minor-league deal with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs in January 2023. In 16 appearances in Iowa, he recorded a 3.48 ERA with 22 strikeouts in from just over 20 innings pitched. The Cubs traded him to the Mets in June after he exercised an opt-out clause.
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Jed Hoyer says Cubs’ woes surprising, could lead to sell-off
MILWAUKEE — Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said ownership is “clearly frustrated” with the way the team has played this season and if its position in the standings doesn’t improve, he said he’ll have to think about subtracting from the roster instead of adding to it ahead of the July 30 trade deadline.
“It has undoubtedly dragged on far longer than we expected or hoped,” Hoyer said of a two-month slump that has seen the Cubs drop to 38-44 entering Friday. “We need to play a lot better. We dug ourselves a hole, and we have to dig out of that hole.
“It’s important we do that in this next 33 days or whatever we have until the deadline. You have to make hard decisions sometimes.”
The Cubs entered the weekend last in the NL Central, 10.5 games behind the first-place Brewers. They’ve lost seven games to Milwaukee in the standings over the last 31 days.
“I am very surprised,” Hoyer said. “Two weeks turned into four, turned into six, turned into eight … It just hasn’t ended.”
Hoyer pointed to the team’s offensive woes as a catalyst for its plummet, but the bullpen has struggled just as much. Chicago ranks 23rd in bullpen ERA, as it’s struggled to close out games and also has dealt with injuries. The latest to go down was middle-man Keegan Thompson, who was placed on the injured list with a rib fracture Friday. The team also designated newly acquired reliever Vinny Nittoli for assignment.
In the corresponding roster moves, the Cubs selected the contract of former Mets reliever Jorge Lopez and called up righty Ethan Roberts, who hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
