How new Cubs reliever Ryan Pressly hopes to form ‘dynamic duo’ with Porter Hodge
Ryan Pressly isn’t looking at Porter Hodge as just some young, hotshot pitcher he’s competing against for the Cubs’ closer job.
He looks at him as a teammate and what they can achieve together, regardless of roles.
“I think we’re going to be a pretty dynamic duo in the back end of the bullpen,” Pressly said during his introductory Zoom press conference on Wednesday.
Yes, Pressly will have pole position to win the Cubs’ closer role out of camp.
Yes, Hodge, the young righty who had a breakout campaign in 2024, will be his stiffest competition after ending the year as the Cubs’ closer.
But regardless of who “wins” the role, they both know they’ll have opportunities in the 9th throughout the course of a long, 162-game season. For Pressly, it’s all about being in and completing as many winning situations as possible.
“I just want to win, honestly,” he said. “However, which way I could do that, whether it be in the 9th inning role or the 8th inning role, it doesn’t matter to me. I just want to win.”
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After all, Pressly was in Hodge’s shoes once and knows what a veteran reliever can do to a team. As a young pitcher coming up in Minnesota’s bullpen, Pressly served as a bridge arm for former All-Star closer Glen Perkins, who racked up 30 or more saves in three straight seasons from 2013 to 2015.
He picked his brain and learned what it takes to be a closer from Perkins.
“He [would say],” Pressly said. “‘It’s just the same game. You’re just pitching at the back end of the game. You just go out there and just get three outs. That’s all that matters. You don’t need to put any more pressure on yourself than it is.’”
While Hodge has 9 career saves, he’ll still benefit from being under Pressly’s wing. Pressly’s bullpen job might not yet be defined, but the mentor role is clear — and he will gladly do that for Hodge or any other young arm.
“Being a bullpen guy, you kind of have to have a different mentality as well,” Pressly said. “So I think I can kind of bring that to that bullpen. I know it’s a very young group down there, and I’m excited to work with all these guys, because I see a lot of talent in that bullpen and a lot of guys that have a lot of explosive stuff that can really contribute to us winning.
“And if we know how to use it and use it the right way, I think this could be a really, really good team that can go deep in the playoffs.”