The Cubs are hoarding veteran relievers like they are squirrels saving nuts for the winter.

In total, the team has acquired the services of 24 arms this offseason and nearly all of them will battle for bullpen slots at the Major League and Triple-A levels.

Of those 24 pitchers, five of them came into the organization on Major League free agent deals while 15 in total were signed as Minor League free agents. The other four guys were brought in via trades and waiver claims.

Alberto Baldonado	Minors FA	Re-sign
Allen Webster	Minors FA	Re-sign
Brad Brach	MB FA	Outside organization
Carlos Ramirez	Minors FA	Outside organization
Christian Bergman	Minors FA	Outside organization
Colin Rea	Minors FA	Outside organization
Conor Lillis-White	Trade for Tommy La Stella	Outside organization
Corey Black	Minors FA	Re-sign
Darling Grullon	Minors FA	International signing
George Kontos	Minors FA	Outside organization
Ian Clarkin	Claimed from CWS	Outside organization
Jerry Vasto	Claimed from KC	Outside organization
Junichi Tazawa	Minors FA	Outside organization
Kendall Graveman	MLB FA	Outside organization
Kyle Ryan	MLB FA	Re-sign
Luke Hagerty	Minors FA	From Driveline
Manuel Heredia	Minors FA	International signing
Matt Carasiti	Minors FA	Re-sign after yr. in NPB
Mike Zagurski	Minors FA	Outside organization
Rob Scahill	Minors FA	Outside organization
Robert Robbins	Minors FA	From Driveline
Rowan Wick	Trade for Jason Vosler	Outside organization
Tony Barnette	MLB FA	Outside organization
Xavier Cedeno	MLB FA	Outside organization

While many fans would have liked to see a big singing of a guy like Craig Kimbrel or a trade for someone like Andrew Miller, this method isn’t quite madness.

A Major League bullpen is such a crap shoot and even some of the best relievers in the league stall out sometimes when you would never expect them to. By signing such a large number of relief options, at least one of the guys listed above is bound to hit and stick around by making an impact on the Major League squad in some capacity.

By signing, claiming, and trading for these types of players, the Cubs have decided to gamble on 24 low-risk players instead of putting all of their eggs in just one or two baskets this offseason.

The method is one that has a high probability of working out well for the Cubs, and there are some players that are more likely than others to stick around with the team. But more on that in the coming days…