Cubs sign righty reliever

Tepera will battle for that final bullpen spot (Tommy Gilligan - USA Today Sports)

by Press Release - Dec 20, 2019, 4:49 PM

CHICAGO – The Chicago Cubs and right-handed pitcher Ryan Tepera have agreed to terms on a 2020 contract. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Chicago’s 40-man roster now stands at 39 players.

Tepera, 32, is 12-11 with 39 holds, 10 saves and a 3.64 ERA (87 ER/215.1 IP) in 216 career big league appearances, all but one in relief, covering all or part of five seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays (2015-19). He has struck out 203 batters in 215.1 innings pitched with a 1.16 WHIP while limiting foes to a .302 on-base percentage. Overall, Tepera has held opponents to a .220 batting average, which features identical .220 marks by both right-handed and left-handed batters, and has held all foes to a .690 OPS, including a .645 mark by right-handed hitters.

The 6-foot-2 righthander went 7-1 with 18 holds, two saves and a 3.59 ERA (31 ER/77.2 IP) in a career-high 73 relief outings with the Blue Jays in 2017, his first full major league campaign. Tepera followed up by posting career-bests with 19 holds and seven saves a season later, going 5-5 with a 3.62 ERA (26 ER/64.2 IP) in 68 relief outings. In 2019, Tepera was limited to 23 relief appearances with the Blue Jays due to a right elbow impingement that sidelined him from mid-May through the end of August. Tepera returned to post a 3.38 ERA (4 ER/10.2 IP) in 11 outings in September.

A native of Houston, Texas, Tepera was selected by the Blue Jays in the 19th round of the 2009 Draft out of Sam Houston State University (Texas).

The Cubs have agreed to a one-year, split contract with pitcher Ryan Tepera that would be worth $900,000 at the big-league level. Tepera has a 3.64 ERA in 216 career appearances with the Blue Jays as well as a minor-league option remaining.
— Patrick Mooney (@PJ_Mooney) December 20, 2019