MILWAUKEE — Before every game, there’s a moment when the Cubs’ pitching coaches and starters are walking back from the bullpen to the dugout and the relief pitchers are headed the opposite way to take their spot.

The starters wish their teammates luck as they high-five and send them off the group by their nickname:

“The Unit.”

“They’re just a bunch of big human beings,” left-handed starter Matthew Boyd said. “Like they’re very, very large. [Drew Pomeranz], you’re looking up at him. Danny [Palencia] is built like a fullback. Brad Keller is stacked.

“There’s a bunch of units walking out here.”

They’re big guys who are damn good at what they do.

The San Diego Padres arrived in Chicago for the NL Wild Card Series with the flashy and touted bullpen. Yet it was “The Unit” that carried the Cubs to a series victory, outperforming the glitzy group from out West.

And despite dropping Game 1 of the NL Division Series to the Milwaukee Brewers, “The Unit” could be the X-factor the rest of the way against their northern rival.

[MORE: Cubs share mindset, approach entering pivotal NLDS Game 2 vs Brewers]

“The Padres bullpen should get a lot of recognition,” pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said. “They had a great year, but I think our group is such a working-class, just grinder bunch of guys.”

This isn’t a flashy bullpen built by blockbuster trades like the Padres, Philadelphia Phillies or New York Yankees. It wasn’t formed on the back of big free agent deals like the Los Angeles Dodgers.

These are practically castoffs, forgotten players that have collectively morphed into “The Unit.” They shorten a game and are egoless. They aren’t mad that one guy is the closer or upset when they’re brought in earlier than expected into a game.

They have bought into Craig Counsell’s mantra for his pitching staff as a whole: they’re “out-getters.”

The six-foot, five-inch Pomeranz had a release clause in his minor-league pact with Seattle and was acquired via trade in late April. Caleb Thielbar signed a one-year deal in the offseason after posting a 5.32 ERA with the Twins last year. Palencia had a 6.14 ERA in 10 appearances with the Cubs and a 4.85 ERA with Triple-A in 2024. Andrew Kittredge was an under-the-radar trade deadline acquisition.

“I think as a bullpen as a whole this year, it’s kind of been just kind of our MO, right?” Keller said. “Whatever role we get asked to throw in, we just go out there and try to pass onto the next guy, put up a zero, get out of there as quick as we possibly can.”

Keller might be the poster child of “The Unit.” The six-foot, five-inch, 255-pound right-hander was a non-roster invitee to spring training who morphed into a key high-leverage arm.

“I was questioning for a while if I was going to play again,” Keller said. “Just happy I stuck with it honestly … Really, truly a blessing.”

They can shorten the game, by a lot.

In Thursday’s Game 3 win over the Padres, Jameson Taillon was stellar through four innings. But Counsell turned to his out-getters, and it was clearly the right call. He had a matchup for every pocket of the Padres’ lineup, despite turning them over for the final 15 outs of the game.

The biggest weapon might be the right-hander who was picking up the final outs of games for much of the season, racking up 22 saves: Palencia. The stocky Palencia could double as a multi-sport athlete; a relief pitcher and a running back or linebacker. Counsell has utilized the 25-year-old as a firefighter, bringing him in the middle of the game against the Padres for multiple outs in both Games 1 and 3. That high-leverage usage was despite Palencia missing much of September with a shoulder injury.

In the NLDS, he could be the type of arm that can stymie mid-game rallies.

“I’ve learned to not like be surprised by anything Danny can do anymore,” Hottovy said. “He can do a lot of different things, and as long as he was healthy, we all felt really good about what he could do. And when he’s healthy, he’s a super effective pitcher.”

[READ: Cubs’ Nico Hoerner shoulders blame after NLDS Game 1 loss to Brewers]

But it’s not just those two. Thielbar and Pomeranz can neutralize lefties and have had success against righties as well. Kittredge picked up the save in Game 3 after Keller struggled in the ninth. And that came a day after Kittredge served as the Cubs’ opener in Game 2.

Excluding Kittredge’s first inning in Game 2 against the Padres, the quintet of Kittredge, Keller, Palencia, Thielbar and Pomeranz had a 0.87 ERA and 0.77 WHIP in 10.1 innings. Those all came in the two wins, meaning they covered more than half of the frames in which the Cubs won. That’s how valuable they can be.

And that’s how good “The Unit” is.

“To have the group that we have, and the guys that are willing to fight for each other, that’s ultimately what you want in a bullpen,” Hottovy said. “And I love that they go under the radar, because they are a bunch of guys that either sometime in their career were written off or told they weren’t as good as they once were.

“So, they all have something to prove, and that’s a dangerous group when you have those types of guys.”