Concerns at Closer Slowly Fading for Chicago Cubs As Veteran Settles Into Role

The Chicago Cubs are off to a phenomenal start to the 2025 season, currently holding an NL Central-leading 12-9 record entering Friday's action.

Much of this success has been due to their new-look offense which has been among the MLB's best.

While the offense has been firing on all cylinders, the pitching took a bit of time to catch up, particularly in the back end of the bullpen.

Early on, the team struggled to find any type of consistency when it came to closing out games. The reliever who was supposed to come in and provide stability in that role was former Houston Astros' righty Ryan Pressly, who the club traded for before the start of the season.

A 13-year big league veteran, Pressly has long been viewed as a solid back end reliever, serving as the Astros' primary closer from 2021-23. In that stretch he recorded 26 or more saves each year, and was a pivotal part of the team's 2022 World Series win.

Despite his proven track record, though, Pressly struggled mightily in his first several outings with the Cubs.

The now-36-year-old racked up a 9.00 ERA across his first three outings of the season.

Nobody was more frustrated with this rough start than Pressly himself, who recently touched on his performance so far with Patrick Mooney of The Athletic (subscription required).

“The first couple outings were terrible,” Pressly said. “It was very frustrating. I wasn’t able to get anything for a strike. I was just wild. And that’s not who I am.”

Despite his early struggles, manager Craig Counsell didn't lose faith in Pressly, and neither did the rest of the staff.

They knew that at 36, Pressly would need to adjust his mechanics to maintain his longevity. They also knew that for a veteran pitcher, those new adjustments would take a bit of getting used to.

Cubs' pitching coach Tommy Hottovy touched on this when speaking to Mooney, as well, mentioning how it was all just a matter of Pressly getting comfortable with his new mechanics.

“It was basically just making him a little bit more efficient with how he moves,” Hottovy said. “And then just trusting that once he feels good there, everything will kind of take off. He’s been a guy who’s thrown strikes for his whole career. But sometimes when you have different mechanical cues, it kind of gets you out of whack with where your targets and lines are, so he’s just been working hard to get that back.”

That hard work has paid off.

Over his last six outings, Pressly hasn't given up a single run.

This has lowered his season ERA from 9.00 to 3.00. He's also gone a perfect 4-for-4 in save opportunities, becoming the shut down closer Chicago was looking for when they traded for him.

With Pressly finally begining to settle into his new role with the Cubs, the team has become all the more lethal.