Cubs release Justin Grimm
The Chicago Cubs announced that right-handed reliever Justin Grimm was given his release Thursday, according to Steve Greenberg of the Chicago Sun-Times.
Grimm was competing to keep his spot in the Cubs' bullpen after serving as an integral component of the unit in recent seasons, including a 1.99 ERA three years ago. However, a rough spring performance coming off a down year in 2017 likely prompted the move.
After pitching in 68 games during the Cubs' 2016 championship season, Grimm made just 50 appearances last year while posting a 5.53 ERA. His strikeout numbers also dipped, from 11.1 per nine innings to 9.6, while his walks per nine spiked up to 4.4. So far this spring, he owns an ERA of 9.00 in four innings and has issued more walks than strikeouts.
Grimm lost his arbitration hearing last month and was scheduled to earn $2.2 million this season. By releasing him, the Cubs owe Grimm $530,000 in termination pay, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.
The 29-year-old owns a career 4.70 ERA and 1.376 WHIP with 350 strikeouts in six big-league seasons. He'd been with the Cubs since 2013.