Frustrated after a rough performance on Saturday, Colten Brewer punched a wall in the Chicago Cubs dugout after being pulled from the game. It would prove to be a costly blow, one that broke Brewer’s hand and put him on the 60-day injured list, according to multiple reporters close to the team, including Taylor McGregor of Marquee Network.
Brewer surrendered three runs, one earned, in Saturday’s 7-0 loss to the Los Angeles Angels, hitting just two outs on 37 pitches, 19 of which were strikes.
This year, the reliever has a 5.66 ERA in 16 games. Despite a strong strikeout-to-walk ratio, he has put a lot of runners on base, posting a WHIP of 1.597.
In a move that may or may not have been a good fit, Hunter Bigge got the call-up from Iowa after Saturday’s game, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network. At Triple-AHis ERA has been under 1.00 this season.
The bullpen has gone through some unique chapters for the Cubs this year. Regular starter Kyle Hendricks was demoted from a starting role to a relief role at one point, but was then brought back into the starting rotation due to staff injuries.
Hector Neris is the team’s closer and other regulars in the reliever role include Mark Leiter Jr. (on the 15-day injured list), Luke Little, Hayden Wesneski, Drew Smyly and Tyson Miller, in addition to Brewer.
The Cubs bullpen has the 19th best ERA in the league, so the Cubs are hoping Bigge’s arrival can get the team back on track. Chicago is 41-49 and in last place in the NL Central.