Sources: Cubs, P Hector Neris reach 1-year, $9M deal

Right-handed reliever Hector Neris and the Cubs are in agreement on a one-year, $9 million contract that includes an option, sources told ESPN, bolstering the back end of Chicago's bullpen with the top reliever remaining in free agency.

Neris, 34, was third among all pitchers in baseball last year with a 1.71 ERA over 68 innings, the best season of his 10-year career.

A $9 million option for 2025 belongs to the team unless Neris reaches 60 games -- he has done so six of his past seven full seasons -- at which point it turns into a player option. With more than $2.5 million per year available in incentives, the deal can max out at $23.25 million for two years.

The Cubs have slow-played the winter, waiting until mid-January to sign their first free agent -- Japanese left-hander Shota Imanaga -- and now striking with Neris, whose deal is pending a physical. Coming off an 83-79 season, Chicago is chasing National League Central winner Milwaukee, which earlier this week signed first baseman Rhys Hoskins to a two-year, $34 million deal.

Chicago had a middle-of-the-pack bullpen in 2023, and Adbert Alzolay emerged as a reliable closer in his first full season with the team as a reliever. Waiver claim Julian Merryweather and Mark Leiter Jr.proved useful as well, and Neris will factor heavily into the Cubs' late-inning mix.

Relying almost exclusively on a fastball and splitter, Neris has grown into a rare sort: the reliable late-inning reliever. Over those past seven seasons, he has averaged 68 innings per season with a 3.14 ERA pitching for Philadelphia and Houston. He is an elite strikeout pitcher, averaging 11.2 per nine innings throughout his career, and has racked up 89 saves.

The Cubs remain in the market for a free agent bat and could potentially reunite with center fielder Cody Bellinger, who thrived in Chicago last year, hitting .307/.356/.525 with 26 home runs, 97 RBIs and 20 stolen bases.