Chicago fortifies its bullpen depth by signing veteran Andrew Wantz and trading for high-upside lefty Antoine Kelly, hoping a change of scenery unlocks his strikeout potential.
The Chicago Cubs continue to add pitching to their organization.
They have been really active in finding different ways to add some depth in the minors. They claimed pitchers Luis Peralta and Doug Nikhazy earlier in the season, traded for Tyler Ferguson, and recently signed veteran relievers Aaron Bummer and Liam Hendriks.
The Cubs have now added two more pitchers to that list.
The North Siders signed veteran Andrew Wantz to a Minor League deal and traded for left-handed reliever Antoine Kelly. Those two pitchers will provide some Minor League depth in the organization.
The Cubs continue to take flyers on relievers at this point in the year. Neither Wantz nor Kelly has really shown much on the mound this year, but Chicago must see some potential in both pitchers.
Wantz was designated for assignment by the Tampa Bay Rays in late May after allowing five earned runs across 1 ⅓ innings in his only big league appearance this year. After clearing waivers soon after, the right-hander elected free agency.
That’s when the Cubs swooped in to sign him to a Minor League contract on Saturday. Wantz was immediately assigned to the Triple-A club, where he will pitch until Chicago gives him another shot in the big leagues.
Wantz has a career 4.20 ERA across 120 innings pitched in his Major League career. His best season came in 2022, when he posted a 3.22 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 42 appearances with the Los Angeles Angels.
Wantz also showed some nice things in his limited Minor League appearances last year. He had a 0.69 ERA and 15 strikeouts across 13 innings pitched as he worked his way back from an elbow injury suffered the year prior.
As for Kelly, the Cubs are banking on his potential upside.
Kelly was a second-round pick by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2019 MLB Draft. He grew up in Chicago and attended high school (Maine East in Park Ridge) and college (Wabash Valley College in Mount Carmel) in Illinois.
The southpaw hasn’t quite lived up to his potential, though.
Kelly struggled in his first few years in the Brewers’ Minor League system before being traded to the Texas Rangers in August of 2022. He was then designated for assignment in July of 2024, and the Rockies claimed him soon after.
The left-hander eventually elected free agency this past offseason, where he signed a Minor League deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. However, his struggles at Triple-A Oklahoma City (5.14 ERA) led the Dodgers to trade him to the Cubs on Saturday.
Kelly has a career 4.78 ERA across 303 ⅓ innings pitched in his Minor League career. He’s hoping a change of scenery can help him reach his full potential.
The stuff is there for Kelly to eventually reach that potential. He has a mean fastball that sits around 95 mph and has plenty of strikeout upside. Back in 2022, the 26-year-old struck out 143 batters across 109 ⅔ innings pitched at High-A and Double-A.
