The Chicago Cubs are slowly getting their roster together to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers in Japan for the Tokyo series on March 18-19.
The Cubs have a couple of interesting positional battles happening in camp that will likely come to a head in the coming days.
One of those battles that has proven to be the most interesting to follow is the fight for the fifth spot in the starting rotation.
Chicago Cubs’ probable rotation
The Cubs have Shota Imanaga and Justin Steele leading the staff as their Ace and number two. Both will be the Game 1 and 2 starters over in Japan.
Following the Cubs, two high-quality lefties are Jameson Taillon, who occupies the third spot, and Matt Boyd in the fourth spot in the rotation. Since the Cubs have the first four spots locked in, the only remaining question is who will occupy the fifth spot?
There are three leading candidates for the job: Colin Rea, Ben Brown, and Jordan Wicks. Brown looks to be the man for the job, even though he’s had a shakey spring.
Brown is the leading candidate
The 25-year-old right-hander has been up and down in his three appearances this spring, with a 1-1 record with a 6.75 ERA, but has nine strikeouts in 8.0 innings pitched.
In a recent episode of Northside Territory, Cubs Insider and columnist with The Athletic Patrick Mooney stated that Brown has the best chance to be the Cub’s fifth starter. When asked by a fan if Brown or Wicks would be the guy, Mooney stated that he “would be shocked” if Wicks made the trip to Japan.
Mooney added that Brown has “flashed” more “stuff” this spring than Wicks has, and that brings more “impact” to the roster.
Brown was impressive in his 15 appearances (eight starts) last season for the Cubs before he went down with a neck injury. In those 15 games, Brown pitched to a 1-3 with a 3.58 ERA in 55.1 innings. The young right-hander also had a nice FIP and WHIP of 3.11 and 1.084.
Wicks has options
Wicks, as Mooney said, will start the season in Iowa and is likely the next player to be sent down, given he still has three minor-league options available. Mooney’s colleague at The Athletic and co-host on the show, Sahadev Sharma, said that he couldn’t see Wicks coming out of the bullpen, and would be better served getting innings down on the farm.
“I would not see Wicks coming out of the bullpen, I think he’s willing to do whatever is needed and what is asked of him, but I think you don’t open the season with him in the bullpen. It’s either rotation or Iowa rotation.”
Wicks this spring has been great, pitching to a 3.86 ERA and five strikeouts in 4.2 innings.
It’s good to have options
Brown has the potential to be more than a fifth starter as he progresses through his career, but this is a great place to start.
The Cubs have plenty of options to mix and match in the starting rotation if an injury happens.
The Cubs have a solid rotation forming to start the season, and having Brown fill it out is a nice “cherry on top” to finish it off.
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