The Chicago Cubs have released 29-year-old pitcher Phil Bickford, who put up good numbers at Triple-A this season with the Iowa Cubs. The former first round pick signed a minor league deal with the Cubs last offseason, got an invite to spring training, but after not making the Opening Day roster Bickford was assigned to Triple-A and now he'll be looking for a new opportunity.
This definitely feels like a situation where the player either has an opt-out in their deal or asked to be released to explore other avenues to making it to the big leagues. Bickford posted a 2.60 ERA in 27.2 innings, striking out 36 batters while only walking six in 20 games.
From April 30 through his last relief appearance on June 26, the right-handed pitcher recorded a 1.45 ERA, giving up a total of three earned runs in 18.2 innings. There's no doubt that Bickford was performing well at Triple-A, but there simply hasn't been a need for the Cubs to add another reliever from the minors since early May.
Entering July 8, the Cubs bullpen has combined to post a 3.26 ERA, ranking third-best in MLB and second in the National League behind the San Francisco Giants. Ever since the wild game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 18, the Cubs have the No. 1 bullpen in baseball with a 2.50 ERA in the last 256 innings pitched by relievers. No other team has a bullpen ERA below three since April 18.
So, Bickford will try to sign on with another team in hopes of getting back to an MLB roster. It just wasn't going to happen with the Cubs this summer despite his good performance in Triple-A.
(Previous Update)
The Chicago Cubs have officially signed former first round pick Phil Bickford to a minor league deal that includes an invite to spring training. The 29-year-old spent the 2024 season in the New York Yankees organization, logging 39 appearances at Triple-A and eight at the major league level.
Jon Heyman reported the signing earlier in the offseason.
Phil Bickford to Cubs. Minors deal.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 23, 2024
It's been a while since Bickford had success over a full season in the big leagues, but the 2015 first round pick did have a great stretch to end 2023 with the New York Mets.
Bickford has bounced around the league since he was the 18th overall selection by the San Francisco Giants back in 2015. The right-handed pitcher was part of a 2016 trade between the Giants and the Milwaukee Brewers, as Bickford and Andrew Susac were dealt to the Brewers in exchange for lefty reliever Will Smith. Bickford only pitched two innings in the majors during his time in Milwaukee, one apiece in 2020 and 2021, respectively. However, the righty finally broke through after the Los Angeles Dodgers claimed him off waivers in May 2021.
The right-hander was outstanding for the Dodgers in 2021, posting a 2.50 ERA in 50.1 innings, striking out 59 batters in 56 games. Bickford extended his success into the playoffs, throwing six shutout innings in October.
Unfortunately for Bickford, he couldn't replicate the results during the next two seasons with the Dodgers and was ultimately designated for assignment near the 2023 trade deadline. He was later traded to the Mets for cash. The overall numbers with the Mets look bad, a 4.62 ERA in 25.1 innings, however the majority of that ERA was inflated by his first few appearances. Bickford finished with a 2.33 ERA over 19.1 innings to close out the year.
Overall, Bickford has a career 4.62 ERA in 189 innings in the majors. He had a 3.40 ERA with a strike out rate of 30% during his time at Triple-A in 2024, so you could see that with a few adjustments he could become a viable option for the Cubs in 2025. It's not exciting, but the Cubs have had success with reliever reclamation projects in recent history.
A low-risk move, see if any predetermined changes work for Bickford and hey if it doesn't work out, then no harm, no foul.
