The Cubs are signing Ben Heller to a minor league contract, stories Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Put up-Gazette. The suitable-hander is represented by Onyx Sports activities Administration.
Heller, 33, was a Twenty second-round draft decide in 2013, signing with Cleveland for a mere $2,500 bonus. Nonetheless, he shortly started turning heads together with his high-velocity fastball. From 2013-16, he moved up the ranks of Cleveland’s farm system from Low-A to Triple-A, pitching to a 2.77 ERA and a couple of.58 FIP. In 172 1/3 innings, he gave up simply six house runs whereas placing out greater than 30% of the batters he confronted. All of the extra spectacular, these numbers aren’t inflated by a dominant efficiency on the decrease ranges. He pitched to a 0.81 ERA and 1.59 FIP in 22 1/3 innings at Double-A Akron and a 2.49 ERA and three.01 FIP in 25 1/3 innings at Triple-A Columbus.
Because of his age (he was approaching 25 by the point he was promoted to Triple-A) and the truth that he was all the time a reliever, Heller hardly ever earned a lot consideration from prospect evaluators. Nonetheless, he began to generate some buzz when he was included within the bundle Cleveland despatched to the Yankees to accumulate Andrew Miller on the 2016 commerce deadline. Heller made his MLB debut for New York later that yr. Sadly, his outcomes have been poor for almost the primary time in his professional profession. Over 10 appearances, he gave up 5 runs on 11 hits in seven innings, placing out six, strolling 4, and hitting two batters.
Regardless of his poor debut with the massive league squad, Heller continued to thrive at Triple-A in his new group. He put up a 2.73 ERA and a couple of.97 FIP in 62 2/3 innings for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders from 2016-17. Even higher, he seemed simpler in a handful of appearances within the majors in 2017, tossing 11 frames and giving up only one run.
Sadly, Heller misplaced nearly all of his 2018 and ’19 seasons to Tommy John surgical procedure. Since then, he has struggled to seek out constant success. He made simply six appearances in 2020, and the Yankees launched him the next offseason. The Diamondbacks signed him to a minor league contract not lengthy after, however a stress fracture in his elbow saved him out for your entire 2021 marketing campaign.
Since then, he has bounced between the Twins, Rays, Braves, and Pirates organizations. He has a 6.75 ERA in 30 2/3 MLB innings for Atlanta and Pittsburgh and a 3.78 ERA in 78 2/3 innings at Triple-A. He has continued to generate excessive strikeout charges within the minors, however management points have plagued him within the massive leagues. Of the 148 MLB batters he’s confronted over the previous two years, 16.9% have reached on both a stroll or a hit-by-pitch. What’s extra, arm accidents have been an issue once more in 2024; Heller landed on the IL on the finish of August with proper shoulder irritation and didn’t return.
On the finish of the day, Heller is a no-risk, high-reward signing for the Cubs. His four-seam fastball averaged 96.3 mph in 2024 and topped out at 98 mph, whereas his sinker averaged 95.3 mph and topped out at 97 mph. He additionally throws a changeup, a cutter, a slider, and a sweeper. That’s an unusually deep arsenal for a reliever, which supplies the Cubs lots to work with in the event that they need to alter his pitch combine. Presumably, Heller will compete for a spot in Chicago’s bullpen throughout spring coaching.
