Former Brewers starter shines in first appearance for arch-rival Cubs

The Chicago Cubs continue to lag behind the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central, even as Brew Crew finally gets a reprieve from its brutal 19-games-in-18-days stretch.

Still, that hasn't prevented the Cubs from trying to make up the ground however they can, as they made a few notable roster moves prior to the start of September, including signing veteran first baseman Carlos Santana and demoting white-hot top prospect Owen Caissie for... reasons.

However, the most eye-catching addition they made was Aaron Civale, whom they claimed off waivers from the crosstown Chicago White Sox. Civale, of course, more or less forced his way out of Milwaukee earlier in the season when he resisted a move to the bullpen, and he maintained his performance with the White Sox before they chose to release him.

Well, Civale finally made his Cubs debut on Sept. 1, and the Cubs actually convinced him to appear out of the bullpen for the first time in his career. Naturally, Civale was...downright dominant against the Atlanta Braves.

Aaron Civale's strong debut with Cubs shouldn't bother Brewers fans

Yes, it's very frustrating to see Civale finally submit to reality and accept a role out of the bullpen for a playoff-bound squad, but it's not like he's going to make or break the NL Central race.

The Cubs flopped hard at the trade deadline -- their primary pitching acquisition, Michael Soroka, got hurt two innings into his first start with the team -- and with rosters expanding to 28 in September, it made sense for them to grab anyone capable of handling a starter's workload for the home stretch of the regular season.

The Brewers, meanwhile, made out like bandits in that Civale trade anyway, acquiring castoff slugger Andrew Vaughn from the White Sox in that initial deal. It’s true that he's been slumping something fierce in recent weeks, but Vaughn has still stabilized first base in Milwaukee by slashing .285/.353/.485 in 46 games (188 plate appearances with the team), good for a 133 wRC+ that would rank first on the squad if he had enough trips to the plate to qualify.

Plus, even if Vaughn continues to struggle the rest of the way, it's not like Civale had a place on this roster. The starting five is now set, and Civale certainly isn't good enough to unseat José Quintana at the back of the rotation.

You could probably argue he'd be a better long-relief option than Erick Fedde, but he was already upset at the prospect of moving to the bullpen with the Brewers; asking him to accept mop-up duty could have made things even worse.

In the end, the Brewers are more than happy to have Vaughn on their roster. If Civale benefits the Cubs in any way down the stretch, so be it.