CHICAGO — As trade deadline rumors swirled over the last couple of months, the Cubs were seemingly linked to every available pitcher.

The common thought around the game was the Cubs needed to add depth up and down the entire pitching staff, notably in the rotation.

With the season-ending injury to Justin Steele in April and subsequent missed time from fellow rotation staples Shota Imanaga and Jameson Taillon, the Cubs clearly had a need for a starter.

The Cubs added three new pitchers — Michael Soroka, Andrew Kittredge, Taylor Rogers — but did not take a big swing like many predicted they might.

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Soroka will slot into the rotation and will probably start Monday night’s game against the Reds, manager Craig Counsell said Friday.

The righty — who turns 28 on Monday — has dealt with a lot of injuries throughout his career. The 81.1 innings he has thrown this season are his most in the big leagues since 2019, though he threw a combined 119.1 frames between the majors and minors in 2023.

If the Cubs want to manage his innings, they could opt to move Soroka to the bullpen. He made 16 appearances as a reliever for the White Sox last year and posted a 2.75 ERA with a whopping 60 strikeouts in 36 innings.

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Counsell didn’t want to lay out the full plan for Soroka yet, but acknowledged he could start or relieve for the Cubs.

“He can get outs,” Counsell said. “He’s capable of getting outs in either role.”

Kittredge and Rogers were activated before Friday afternoon’s game and immediately impacted the bullpen.

The Cubs designated veteran Ryan Pressly for assignment Friday, so Kittredge will essentially take his place in the bullpen.

Pressly had a roller coaster season with the Cubs, but spent much of the time in a high-leverage role in the bullpen with five saves and seven holds. Kittredge had seven holds with the Baltimore Orioles this season, but racked up a career-high 37 holds for the St. Louis Cardinals last year.

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Rogers, 34, is in his 10th MLB season and has made his way through the NL Central. Back in 2022, he was part of the trade that sent Josh Hader from Milwaukee to San Diego and spent the second half of that season with Counsell in the Brewers bullpen.

With the Reds this season, Rogers had a 2.45 ERA and 34 strikeouts in 33 innings. He was dealt to the Pirates in the Ke’Bryan Hayes deal earlier this week, but never suited up before he was quickly flipped to Chicago.

He gives the Cubs another left-handed option the bullpen, alongside Drew Pomeranz and Caleb Thielbar.

“What we’re trying to do in the bullpen is just every day, have answers for the other lineup,” Counsell said. “That’s what having three lefties down there provides us. To be able to get them in good matchups as often as we can — especially in important situations — and have an answer in every important situation that we like to go to.”

Lefties are hitting just .198 against Rogers throughout his career. Thielbar has been devastating against lefties this year, allowing just a .094 AVG (6-for-64). He picked up his 14th save against the Orioles Friday and lowered his season ERA to 1.96.

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Pomeranz has been a revelation this year in the Cubs bullpen with a 2.15 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 9.8 K/9 in his first big-league action since 2021.

That trio can pair with righties Daniel Palencia, Brad Keller, Ryan Brasier and Kittredge in the Cubs bullpen to give Counsell a lot of flexibility.

With Cade Horton emerging as an X-factor and Taillon and Javier Assad nearing a return from their respective injuries, the Cubs feel good about their rotation depth as Soroka joins the mix.

“The health of your starting pitching is super important,” Counsell said. “I think we’re trending in a really good direction right there, in that place on the team.”

The Cubs believe Soroka can turn in better results with an improved defense behind him. He has a 4.87 ERA so far this season, but a 3.32 expected ERA.

But that’s not a guarantee and the Cubs will have to monitor workloads for Horton and Matthew Boyd down the stretch after both have dealt with injuries in recent seasons.

If the Cubs are going to win the NL Central and secure a first-round bye in the playoffs, they’ll ultimately need to improve their rotation success — the Cubs entered play Friday ranked 17th in baseball with a 4.05 ERA as a starting staff.