Aaron

Civale

Don’t think this’ll happen again — though if you had a nickel for every time it happened this year you’d have two nickels — but Civale will stump future generations on the “starters who won 50 games but also had a save” list. Or at least he will if he manages to win three more games as a starter before his career is over.

The 31-year-old hurler was brought on with a man on second base and one out in the 10th inning with the Cubs clinging to a two-run advantage. Civale made it look easy in this one, getting Jimmy Crooks on a fly ball to center field and Lars Nootbaar on strikes to end it. Don’t expect him to put himself into the mix for saves in the Cubs’ bullpen anytime soon.

Civale, who was acquired from the A’s on Saturday, could have gotten a three-inning save tonight, but David Peterson was allowed to pitch into the seventh in a 9-0 game. It was Civale’s seventh career relief appearance. Five of the other six, along with his only save, came in his late-season stint with the Cubs last year. It’s likely that Civale will get some starts going forward, but with Jameson Taillon back, he’ll likely remain in the pen for now.

Civale leaves the A’s after forging a 5.47 ERA and 58/23 K/BB over 74 2/3 innings over his 16 appearances — 15 of those starts — in his lone season in Sacramento. The right-hander will get a chance to start for Chicago, but fantasy managers would be wise to take a wait-and-see approach before investing in him as anything more than a streamer against the worst lineups.

Rogers reports that the Cubs will trade right-hander Aiden Moffitt in return. The Athletics designated Civale for assignment Wednesday, and it’s not surprising that they found a trade partner, and specifically a trade partner that needs rotation help like the Cubs. The right-hander has been awful after a terrific first nine starts for the A’s, but he’ll get a chance to rebound while playing behind a better club in Chicago. It’s also worth noting that Civale had some brief success with the Cubs last year with a 2.08 ERA in five appearances over 13 innings.

The Athletics’ surprising $6 million investment in Civale over the winter worked out well initially — he started off 5-1 with a 2.70 ERA through nine starts — but it always figured to end badly. He loses his spot now after allowing 31 earned runs over 28 innings while going 0-6 in his last seven starts. He’ll become a free agent after clearing waivers and should quickly land a minor league deal, if he wants one. Jacob Lopez is probably the favorite to replace Civale in the rotation next week.

Civale was bumped from the rotation to both help acquiesce Jacob Lopez’s return and also because of his own struggles lately. Coming in after Lopez retired the first five batters of the game on 12 pitches, Civale had a few easy innings before being hit hard in a four-run fifth. He hasn’t been effective in over a month, doesn’t miss many bats, and should not be considered a serious option in even the deepest of leagues. Pay attention to Lopez’s workload though, as he went from 63 pitches in his first start off the injured list to again, just 12 in this one.

Civale gave up a solo homer to Joe Mack, and a two-run shot to Otto Lopez. Outside of that he was mostly fine, but obviously that’s enough damage — along with an RBI double form Lopez — to make a start mediocre. Civale has had plenty of mediocre offerings since his excellent first month, and his ERA has now ballooned to 5.10. He doesn’t appear to be in danger of losing his role with the A’s, but he should have lost his role with a fantasy team a while ago. He’ll face the White Sox on Friday before the break.

All of the runs came on Josh Lowe’s grand slam. Civale has given up 12 runs in 12 innings and lost all three of his starts since coming off the injured list. Throw in his last two starts before his absence due to shoulder tendinitis, and he’s 0-4 with a 10.29 ERA in his last five starts. That’s after opening up a surprising 5-1 with a 2.70 ERA. He’ll probably stay in the rotation for now and face the Marlins next weekend, but the A’s can’t expect overly much from him.

Civale tossed a scoreless first inning, then gave up a solo homer to Jung Hoo Lee in the second, followed by a double and a base hit to plate a second run in the second inning. Civale gave the A’s two more scoreless frames before departing at 84 pitches after four innings. He scattered six hits in all and struck out five. The 31-year-old right-hander will take a 4.88 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, and a 46/19 K/BB ratio across 62 2/3 innings into a start against the Angels in Anaheim on Sunday.