The Chicago Cubs' season came to an end a few nights ago, when they were defeated in the 2017 National League Championship Series by the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cubs figure to face an offseason full of difficult decisions, all with an eye on fixing their pitching staff.

As it turns out, the Cubs made one of those difficult decisions on Saturday, firing pitching coach Chris Bosio:

Bosio had recently completed his sixth season as the club's pitching coach. During his tenure, he'd enjoyed a fair amount of success. It was Bosio who helped unlock Jake Arrieta's upside. It was Bosio who twice helped Jason Hammel get back on track. And it was also Bosio who oversaw the ascent of Kyle Hendricks and Pedro Strop, among others.

Not that Bosio was without his blemishes. He'd been involved in a number of spats and controversies within the past season. To wit, Bosio had a dugout confrontation with Jon Lester that was caught on camera; former Cubs pitcher Brett Anderson seemingly subtweeted Bosio late in the season; and Cubs management was reportedly infuriated by Bosio's suggestive comments about Eric Thames and performance-enhancing drugs. That's a lot of static from a pitching coach, who in most cases seem to live by the motto of being seen but not heard.

The good news for the Cubs is there's a surplus of pitching gurus available on the open market. Here are a few names who are likely to be rumored in connection to the Cubs job:

Jim Hickey . Formerly of the Tampa Bay Rays, Hickey has a ton of experience working alongside manager Joe Maddon from their shared days in St. Petersburg.



. Formerly of the Tampa Bay Rays, Hickey has a ton of experience working alongside manager Joe Maddon from their shared days in St. Petersburg. Dan Warthen . The Cubs know Warthen's work best from the 2015 NLCS, when his New York Mets staff knocked out Chicago.



. The Cubs know Warthen's work best from the 2015 NLCS, when his New York Mets staff knocked out Chicago. Mike Maddux. Most recently of the Washington Nationals, Maddux has a golden reputation and just became available on Friday.



That's without mentioning the likes of Dave Eiland (formerly of the Kansas City Royals), Curt Young (Oakland Athletics), or even Jim Benedict, who used to be the Pittsburgh Pirates' pitcher whisperer before being nabbed (and then fired) by the Miami Marlins. (Benedict, it should be noted, has mostly worked in a roving role the past few years.) So, basically, the Cubs will have their pick of quality pitching coaches. We'll see which one they choose -- and if they can get better results in 2018 than Bosio did in 2017.

As for Bosio, he figures to land a new gig, too. But boy will he face stiff competition.