Cubs add more bullpen depth in the form of Brandon Kintzler

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Just before the trade deadline, the Cubs made another move to bolster their pitching staff, acquiring reliever Brandon Kintzler from the Washington Nationals in exchange for Class-A pitcher Jhon Romero.

It's not an overwhelming move, but Kintzler has been a very solid reliever in the league for years. The 33-year-old right-hander has a 3.59 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 45 games out of the Washington bullpen, including 2 saves.

He saved 29 games last season — 28 with the Minnesota Twins before being traded to Washington at the 2017 deadline. He then re-upped with the Nationals in the offseason on a one-year deal with a $10 million team option for 2019. 

Kintzler appeared in three games for the Nats against the Cubs in the National League Division Series last fall, giving up a run in each of his last two outings. He was saddled with the loss in Game 3 when he walked Tommy La Stella to lead off the 8th inning and Anthony Rizzo eventually drove pinch-runner Leonys Martin home with his bloop single that was followed by a "RESPECT ME!" shout.

Kintzler doesn't strike out many guys — only 105 whiffs in 168.1 innings the last three seasons — but he also hardly walks anybody (only 37 free passes in that span) and elicits a lot of soft contact. Almost half of the at-bats against him end in a ground ball, which is great news pitching in front of the Cubs' stellar infield defense.

He did miss a big chunk of June with a forearm strain, but it doesn't seem like he's had any issues since returning from the disabled list June 28 , pitching to a 1.88 ERA, 0.77 WHIP in 14.1 innings.

Kintzler gives the Cubs another reliable arm in the back end of the bullpen who has some closing experience while they wait on Brandon Morrow's return to health.

Romero, 23, has a 3.27 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 11.7 K/9 in 32 games for Myrtle Beach.

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