‘Absolutely nails’: How Cubs’ Julian Merryweather carved out leverage role

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The bottom of the fifth inning of the Cubs’ 7-4 loss Tuesday seemed like it would never end. First baseman Matt Mervis’ fielding error extended it, and then lefty reliever Brandon Hughes faced four batters without recording an out, marred by uncharacteristic control issues.

Then, right-hander Julian Merryweather tapped in. Mercifully, he struck out Brandon Drury on three straight sliders. The next inning, he retired three consecutive batters and recorded two more strikeouts.

“It’s been feeling good mechanically, physically,” Merryweather told the Sun-Times recently. “Everything’s coming together.”

Merryweather quietly has put together a strong season and gone from the late-inning mop-up guy to carving out a middle-inning leverage role for himself. As the bullpen has gone through growing pains, he often has served as a stabilizing force before or after manager David Ross brings in closer-by-committee staples Mark Leiter Jr. and Adbert Alzolay.

The relatively inexperienced bullpen has gone through rough patches this year to drop to No. 25 in ERA (4.59) entering Wednesday. If it is going to find a rhythm, Merryweather extending his recent consistency likely will be a big factor.

“Julian’s been fantastic, for pretty much the whole season,” Leiter said. “As a relief pitcher, anytime you give up any runs, it’s going to be an inflated situation, especially early in the season. But Merryweather has been absolutely nails for the last two months.”

Many of the Cubs’ offseason bullpen acquisitions haven’t gone as planned. Brad Boxberger has been on the injured list with a strained right forearm for more than three weeks and is nearing a rehab assignment.

Michael Fulmer has gone through high-profile ups and downs. But in his last five outings entering Wednesday, he hadn’t allowed a run. He put on a gritty performance on Tuesday, entering with the bases loaded and recording six outs on five batters.

“We hang out with each other, we see our guys throw bullpens every day, and we know how nasty everyone is,” Merryweather said. “And if the results don’t line up for a week, that’s not going to really [affect] our confidence in each other as a group.”

The Cubs claimed Merryweather off waivers from the Blue Jays in January. Hampered by injury, he’d recorded a 6.75 ERA in 2022. But the Cubs saw potential in the former starter’s stuff. He had a four-pitch mix but has always relied on his hard “gyro” or “bullet” slider and his upper-90s fastball. The Cubs tapped even further into those strengths, especially the slider.

“Identified it as probably one of my better pitches, that I should be using — not majority of the time, most likely — but at least in high-leverage situations, and in spots where I need it, it’s a pitch I’m going to go to. . . . So that’s been the main focus, for sure, just establish the slider and have the other pitches play well off it.”

Last season, Merryweather was still using his fastball (52%) more than any other pitch, according to Statcast. But this year his slider usage (48%) has overtaken his fastball (43%). He also throws a changeup. And he has replaced his curveball with a sweeper slider, favoring its horizontal movement.

Merryweather’s season has likely flown under the radar because of the way it started. He allowed five runs in two-thirds of an inning in his Cubs debut. And for much of April, Ross used him in the ninth inning of games that already had been decided.

“Earning trust is also them defining what they’re capable of doing,” Ross said.

As Ross expanded the situations in which he used Merryweather, the right-hander responded. Since giving up a couple runs on April 12 in the Cubs’ 5-2 loss to the Mariners, Merryweather has posted a 1.37 ERA through Tuesday.