3 teams that should sign Hector Neris and save their bullpen

The Chicago Cubs designated Hector Neris for assignment on Tuesday. The 35-year-old bullpen ace has already cleared waivers and he is thus eligible to join a contender down the stretch. This season has been a struggle for Neris, much to the chagrin of Cubs fans, but it's hard to deny his resumé. Especially when the risk is virtually nonexistent.

At this point in the season, Neris won't command more than a minimum contract. He can still handle high-leverage innings in the right role. He probably shouldn't be viewed as a full-time closer, as he was in Chicago, but Neris has years of impressive late-season performances under his belt. When better optimized in a set-up role, odds are Neris will look more like his old self.

There are definite red flags when scanning Neris' analytics profile. He is allowing way more hard contract this season and there has been a noticeable spike in walks. Still, Neris has compelling stuff and a decent 3.89 ERA. The Cubs were forced to lean on Neris as their ninth inning go-to with Adbert Alzolary hurt. Most contenders will have better options, allowing Neris to operate with less immediate pressure.

Having won the 2022 World Series with Houston, Neris understands what it takes to go the distance in October. Several contenders are bound to place a call, but these teams represent the most appealing intersection of competitive odds, necessity, and fit.

3. Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles still need bullpen contingencies. Craig Kimbrel has essentially been demoted to middle relief work, while the Seranthony Dominguez experience has been decidedly mixed. Baltimore has all the offensive talent needed to contend for a World Series, but the bullpen is a real concern. Especially with all the injuries stacking up in the starting rotation.

Hector Neris, again, should not be viewed as a full-time closer. It's a bad plan. He can, however, support the back end of the O's bullpen, providing experience and ideally stability in critical late-inning stretches. Before this season from hell, Neris' speciality was his ability to coax soft contact from slugging threats and limit offensive explosions. He has never been particularly suited to do-or-die save opportunities — too many walks, too many lapses — but Neris can absolutely own seventh or eighth innings for Baltimore.

At 35, it's fair to wonder if Neris has simply transitioned into the next phase of his career. Father Time is undefeated, as they say. The Cubs' bullpen put a lot of strain on Neris, but most of the performance issues were self-inflicted. He will have a burden of proof on his next team, even with his impressive track record.

Beyond the on-field value, another incentive for Baltimore is to keep Neris away from other bullpen-starved contenders in the division and elsewhere in the American League. Even if he ultimately settles into a low-leverage, middle-inning role, at least Neris would be in Baltimore threads.

2. New York Yankees

Speak of the devil.

The Orioles probably want to keep Hector Neris away from the New York Yankees. The Yankees probably want to keep Hector Neris away from the Orioles. The top of the AL East standings have been a bloodbath, with New York and Baltimore trading blows (or, perhaps more accurately, trading stumbles). Neither team has been able to gain much separation all season. The Yanks are up half a game as of this writing.

New York needs help in the bullpen, bad. Clay Holmes has been on the New York hot seat after a blown save in the Little League Classic. Mark Leiter Jr. was an intriguing trade deadline addition from the Cubs' bullpen ranks, but he has allowed 16 hits and six earned runs across 8.1 innings in a Yankees uniform.

Neris isn't going to absolve New York of its closer problem, but he's a sturdy, if somewhat uninspiring option to handle mid-to-late inning stretches. New York is engaged is a blatant arms race with Baltimore. The top teams in the American League are separated by the thinnest of lines. What New York lacks in offensive depth, it must account for with impact pitching.

If we want to read the tea leaves and proffer a prediction, the stars are aligned in favor of Neris landing with the Yankees, as Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News points out.

Nothing is final until there's ink on the dotted line, but the Yankees are a clear title threat and Neris would inherit a significant role.

1. Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies' bullpen has been more hit-or-miss since the All-Star break. Jeff Hoffman and Matt Strahm are All-Stars, but there isn't much confidence in Jose Alvarado these days, and Philadelphia did lose for Craig Kimbrel to free agency, for better and for worse. This Phils team is all too familiar with the consequences of a vulnerable bullpen in the playoffs.

Neris can held shore up the Phillies' late-inning situation by committee. It also helps that he is deeply familiar with the organization, having spent the first eight years of his career in Philadelphia. It's a reunion with one of the best fandoms in all of sports. The Phils have the best record in baseball and a tremendous pitching staff top to bottom, which is all the more incentive for Neris to return to his roots.

Dave Dombrowski made moves at the deadline, acquiring Carlos Estevez and Tanner Banks in separate trades. Still, he caught flack for not going further. There is every reason for Philadelphia to push all its chips in. For all his struggles this season, Neris is plenty worthy of a roster spot and a steady diet of appearances. He'd bring a fresh dynamic and more playoffs experience to the National League's most dependable postseason squad.

Neris has not inspired much confidence with his performance this season, but there is a vast contextual disparity between closing games for an undermanned Cubs team and working middle innings for arguably the NL's deepest pitching staff. Every little move helps, and Philadelphia can reassert its presence in the division and the league at large by luring Neris back to town.