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So much for Michael Bowden pitching for his hometown Cubs:
Cubs claimed RHP Jairo Asencio off waivers from Cleveland, designated RHP Michael Bowden for assignment
— keithlaw (@keithlaw) June 1, 2012
Asencio is 28, originally signed by the Pirates. He pitched briefly for the Atlanta Braves in 2009 and 2011 and signed with the Indians as a free agent this past offseason.
For the Tribe, he had appeared in 18 games with a 5.96 ERA and 1.36 WHIP, and 21 strikeouts in 25⅔ innings.
Bowden barely pitched for the Cubs; since his acquisition on April 21 in the Marlon Byrd trade, he had appeared in just 10 games, posting a 7.84 ERA and 1.97 WHIP in 9⅔ innings, with five walks and two home runs allowed.
It seems like a marginal improvement; Asencio is two years older than Bowden. Just another body traipsing through the back end of the Cubs' bullpen. When he makes his Cubs debut he'll be the 37th player used by the Cubs already this year.
So goes the 2012 season.