Cubs Could Add a Couple of Flame Throwers to Bullpen

Nick Madrigal has taken a lot of the focus from the Craig Kimbrel trade that the Chicago Cubs made back in 2021, but after missing the entire 2022 because of Tommy John surgery, right-handed pitcher Codi Heuer is back in the picture in a big way.

The Cubs saw a glimpse of what the good version of Heuer was on the mound in the final couple of months in 2021, as the righty began his Cubs career by allowing just two earned runs in his first 19 innings. It was a bummer when the news came out in 2022 that Heuer needed Tommy John surgery because it seemed like the team had plans to make him a key figure in the bullpen, potentially competing for the closer's role.

Heuer's recovery from Tommy John surgery was slightly longer than the usual time table, but he made his way back to game action and on Saturday he made his first rehab appearance with the Iowa Cubs in Triple-A. In several cases, you will see pitchers come back throwing harder than they ever have and that's exactly what happened with Heuer in his first game back from the elbow procedure.

The right-hander came in to pitch the sixth inning in game one of Saturday's double header between the Iowa Cubs and the Columbus Clippers and Heuer was throwing gas.

It is great to see Heuer trending back to his 2020 fastball velocity. The righty made his MLB debut in the COVID shortened season and he was fantastic with the White Sox. In 21 appearances, Heuer recorded a 1.52 ERA and 0.89 WHIP, striking out 25 batters in 23.2 innings. The right-handed pitcher averaged 97.6mph on his fastball in 2020.

In 2021, Heuer struggled throughout the year before he was traded to the Cubs, and his strikeout rate went down, as did his fastball that only averaged 95.9mph, nearly a two mile per hour decrease.

Heuer is currently on the team's 60-day injured list, meaning he's not eligible to be activated to the roster until the end of May. So, the next three weeks will essentially be Heuer's spring training, as he ramps up in hopes to make it back to a major league bullpen. If he can maintain that velocity, then the Cubs will definitely welcome that to their bullpen, which doesn't feature too many relievers with that kind of elite velocity.

And speaking of guys who can throw very fast, Nick Burdi continues to light up the radar gun and strike out hitters at a crazy rate in Triple-A.

The Cubs picked up Burdi in the offseason, during the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft. The righty has overcome so many injuries and is now turned into a legit option for the Cubs to call up later in 2023.

On Saturday, Burdi struck out three batters in his one-inning of relief, increasing his total to 19 strikeouts in 9.2 innings this season. Burdi has been consistently sitting in the upper 90s with the Iowa Cubs this year and he also features a nasty slider.

Burdi, 30, was a second round pick in the 2014 draft.