MESA, Ariz. — Early in camp, the Chicago Cubs’ bullpen looks as deep and talented as it has been in years. There are a number of veterans without options locked in, but there will be some battles for the final few spots.
In Thursday’s Cactus League opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers, two pitchers, Brad Keller and Daniel Palencia, opened some eyes with their performances, though neither is likely to make the team out of the spring. Palencia has options and is likely to be yo-yo’d between Triple-A Iowa and Chicago over the course of the season. Keller is being stretched out as a starter, and at the moment, it doesn’t appear that a rotation spot is within reach for him.
Still, the two looked strong on Thursday, combining for 2 2/3 scoreless innings with no runs allowed while striking out three total batters.
Eight of Palencia’s 16 pitches came in at triple digits and he topped out at 101.3 mph. Palencia wasn’t surprised that he was touching that velocity consistently this early in the spring as he pitched 12 innings in the Venezuelan Winter League.
Daniel Palencia, 101.3 mph ⛽️ pic.twitter.com/JOq2zjfC9T
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) February 20, 2025
His manager, Craig Counsell, wasn’t taken surprised either.
“That’s what he throws,” Counsell said. “That’s an average velocity day for him.”
Velocity has never really been a concern for Palencia. The 25-year-old, acquired from the Athletics in the summer of 2021 for reliever Andrew Chafin, has always had the stuff to impress. It’s the results that have been inconsistent.
Last season, Palencia battled injuries and wasn’t effective when he was on the field. The righty posted a 6.14 ERA in 14 2/3 big-league innings, striking out just 23.2 percent of batters while walking 17.4 percent.
A diet change and more consistent workout regimen helped Palencia this winter. But he said the biggest change was his mindset. Last summer, coming to the ballpark was a drain for him as he put too much pressure on himself and struggled to have fun playing the game he loves. This year he believes a changed perspective will help lead to better results.
“Daniel was a guy last year, and very well could be this year, on the option crew,” Counsell said. “How you handle that is important. We can talk about it and be very direct about it, but you have to learn how to go through it. You gotta figure out how to not add that stress to something you can’t control. In Daniel’s case, it took him a while to learn how to do it. That’s ok. Now, hopefully, he’s in a better place to learn how to deal with that.”
Palencia is a part of a group of young relievers — along with Jack Neely and Luke Little — with impressive stuff who could really take the bullpen to another level if things click. Porter Hodge is the example they can look to as to the type of trust that’s quickly earned when a young pitcher does his job and gets outs on a regular basis.
With Keller, it’s a very different situation. The veteran has an opt-out at the end of camp but is seen as having a lot of potential by Cubs staff members. After averaging 93.8 mph with his four-seam fastball last summer, Keller averaged 96.3 mph in his first spring outing, topping out at 97.9 mph.
Counsell said what Keller did was “a little more than we expected,” and even Keller was a little taken aback by his performance.
Brad Keller with his second strikeout. 97mph again pic.twitter.com/3xP9XxioXi
— Aldo Soto (@AldoSoto21) February 20, 2025
“I’ve thrown that hard in the past before,” Keller said. “I’ve touched 98, even 99 before. To be 100 percent honest, I was kind of surprised coming out of the game when they told me what my velo was.”
Towards the end of last season in Boston and this offseason at Maven Baseball Lab in Atlanta, Keller corrected some mechanical flaws that have helped him unleash another level with his velocity.
“One (drill) that has really helped out is the Kikuchi drill, where you go up on your back leg and sit down on the back leg before you go forward,” Keller said. “A cue I tell myself is drop my belt buckle before I go down. It’s a way to engage my back leg. Because as I go down the mound, I don’t get on my back leg, I drift and spin out of things.”
So is Keller going to be built up as a starter or does a short-burst performance like Thursday’s 1 2/3 innings change the way they think about him?
“When you see that — that’s the right question,” Counsell said. “I had that thought, for sure. But I think taking the longer view — this is a pitcher who had big success in the league at a younger age. I always take note of that. It’s in there. That’s the guy we want.”
From 2018-2020, Keller tossed 360 1/3 innings of 3.50 ERA ball, with 57 of his 78 outings coming as a starter. Rotation depth is always important and Keller could add to it. But if this type of velocity along with the development of a sweeper he’s fine-tuning this spring continues, perhaps at some point in the season he becomes a relief option.
These are decisions that don’t need to be made now. Neither Keller nor Palencia are likely to be a part of the roster that leaves for Japan in three weeks. But that doesn’t mean they won’t positively impact the 2025 Cubs.
A bullpen that performs well for a full season almost always has a few surprises. Whether it’s Keller, Palencia or another name not on the radar, the Cubs will need pitchers who nobody expects to be key pieces to step up this summer.
(Top photo: Michael Owens / MLB Photos via Getty Images)
