The Cubs have an experienced reliever Drew Smyth about exemptions, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today (X-Link). Smyly has not has been designated for transfer and can continue to play for Chicago until the waiver process is cleared. However, the placement is irrevocable, so Smyly would land on another team if someone makes a claim in the next two days.

In such situations, the team hopes the player will be claimed to offload the salary. That would be a tall order in this case. Smyly plays on a salary of $10.5 million. That leaves about $1.9 million left over. The deal also includes a $2.5 million severance package for a $10 million mutual option for next season. A claiming team would have to cover the entire amount. That’s nearly $4.5 million for one month plus potential playoff work from Smyly.

The 35-year-old left-hander has produced solid results in his first full season as a reliever. Smyly has a 2.84 ERA over 50 2/3 innings. His 20.4% strikeout rate and 10.8% swinging strike percentage are mediocre, but he has held lefties to a .226/.293/.310 slash in 92 plate appearances.

There’s not much downside for the Cubs as they gauge whether a challenger is willing to take on Smyly’s money to bolster their group of left-handed relief pitchers. Chicago is 5.5 games out of a wild card spot and needs to overtake four teams. They have no chance of making the postseason. President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer confirmed last week that the team is on track to exceed the $237 million luxury tax threshold (link via Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic). It’s not clear how far over the threshold they are, but RosterResources’ unofficial estimate of the team’s payroll puts them less than $500,000 over the threshold. If they could cut the rest of Smyly’s salary, that would potentially be enough to get under the CBT mark.

If Smyly goes unclaimed, the Cubs can keep him in the bullpen for the rest of the season. They don’t have to release him or try to send him straight to the minor leagues.