Cubs DFA Brad Brach to Make Room for Cole Hamels

The Cubs announced Saturday that they have designated Brad Brach for assignment in order to clear a roster spot for Cole Hamels to return from the IL. Brach was signed this winter in an attempt to bolster the bullpen, but immediately faced a challenge when his contract was restructured due to a mono diagnosis.

Cole Hamels officially activated for today’s start Brad Brach DFA. #Cubs

— Kelly Crull (@Kelly_Crull) August 3, 2019

Brach had bounced back from early velocity issues and was throwing harder of late, but he had become a death knell due to his inability to avoid bats. His usage may have had something to do with that as well, but we won’t get into that right now. Between their recent trades for relievers Derek Holland and David Phelps, plus the emergence of Rowan Wick as a reliable righty, Brach had become all too expendable even for the penny-pinching Cubs.