It's official: Cubs sign Jeremy Jeffress
Charles LeClaire - USA Today Sports

It's official: Cubs sign Jeremy Jeffress


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CHICAGO – The Chicago Cubs and right-handed pitcher Jeremy Jeffress have agreed to terms on a 2020 contract. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Chicago’s 40-man roster now stands at 40 players.

Jeffress, 32, is a career 28-11 with 44 saves, 74 holds and a 3.16 ERA (141 ER/401.0 IP) in 392 major league appearances, all but one in relief, covering all or part of 10 major league seasons with Milwaukee (2010, 2014-16, 2017-19), Kansas City (2011-12), Toronto (2013-14) and Texas (2016-17). He has posted a sub-2.81 ERA and issued fewer than 3.00 walks per nine innings in four of his last six seasons. In his career, Jeffress is 23-8 with 36 saves and a 2.83 ERA (89 ER/283.0 IP) in 278 outings against National League competition.

A 2018 N.L. All-Star with Milwaukee, Jeffress went 8-1 with 15 saves, 18 holds, a 0.99 WHIP and a 1.29 ERA (11 ER/76.2 IP) in a career-best 73 relief appearances that season, his last full big league campaign. Jeffress limited foes to a .182 batting average, including a near-identical .183 mark by left-handed hitters and .182 mark by right-handed hitters, while turning in a .530 opponents OPS. He went 3-4 with 12 holds, one save and a 5.02 ERA (29 ER/52.0 IP) last year with the Brewers, limited to 48 relief outings due to injury before being granted his release on September 1.

Jeffress broke into the big leagues with Milwaukee in 2010 but spent the next three-plus seasons in the American League before returning to the Brewers during the 2014 season, going 1-1 with a 1.88 ERA (6 ER/28.2 IP) in 29 relief outings with Milwaukee the rest of that campaign. He went 5-0 with a 2.65 ERA (20 ER/68.0 IP) in 72 relief appearances in 2015 and set a career high with 27 saves with the Brewers in 2016 before being traded to Texas at the trade deadline. He was reacquired by Milwaukee from Texas at the 2017 trade deadline.

The six-foot Jeffress was originally selected by the Brewers in the first round (16th overall) of the 2006 Draft out of Halifax County High School in South Boston, Virginia.

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