The Chicago Cubs began the 2025 season on an offensive tear, clubbing opposition and pushing themselves to a fairly comfortable lead atop the NL Central Division.
Over the last couple of months, however, that has all changed. The Cubs now sit 4 games below the surging Milwaukee Brewers, who slowly caught up to and then surpassed their division rivals.
An extended slump by the offense has exposed the Cubs’ weaknesses, which fall almost entirely in the area of pitching.
Moving towards the July 31 trade deadline, the Cubs were rumored to be aggressive buyers in pursuit of a front-of-rotation starter, a high-leverage back-of-bullpen reliever, and, possibly, a back-of-rotation starter as well.
Instead, Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer only picked up the oft-injured Michael Soroka, a back-of-rotation/swing man who would subsequently be sent to the IL after two innings pitched in his Cub debut, as well as relievers Taylor Rogers and Andrew Kittredge, and infielder/outfielder Willi Castro.
Chicago Cubs pitching, (un)remarkably average
As of this writing, and headed into a crucial run of games this month, the team’s pitching staff ranks disappointingly average. Their starting pitching is 14th in ERA and their bullpen ranks 12th in the same category.
Is this enough to get the Cubs to the postseason and to a hopefully deep playoff run, with a World Series possibility?
MLB insiders contributing their insight to a recent Jesse Rogers piece for ESPN have serious doubts.
Rogers spoke to three unnamed insiders– a scout, an executive, and a coach– to assess their takes on the Cubs’ post-deadline roster status. And, in doing so, they offered sobering observations about the postseason viability of Cubs pitching.
Insiders offer their opinion
“Hiccup is their pitching,” the scout said. “They have playoff starters in Imanaga and Boyd (I like Boyd, but he has history of injuries and fatigue). Others like Cade Horton and Colin Rea can turn in a good game but not sure you feel comfortable handing the ball in a Game 3.”
“I really thought the Cubs would add another starting pitcher,” the executive added. “I think they have enough pitching to get to October, but I worry about them being able to match up against some of the other really deep NL clubs.”
“Outside of Imanaga, they have good, five-inning pitchers for October,” the unnamed coach offered. “I’ll take my chances against Horton, Taillon or even Boyd a third time through the order, but I like Imanaga. It’s always hard to square him up.”
There was less pessimism about the Cubs’ bullpen, which at one point was performing at a top-tier level. There were still concerns, though.
“October baseball usually centers around pitching, and I do have concerns about their ability to win a long series,” the executive said. “I understand why they didn’t go after those closers that changed teams, but you’re asking a lot out of [Daniel] Palencia in October. I’m not sure they have enough.”
Concern all around
Rogers’ insiders aren’t saying anything that hasn’t already been obsessed over by Cubs fans.
The rotations IS thin when it comes to elite-level starters who can carry a team in the postseason. Shota Imanaga and Matthew Boyd may be the only ones who truly qualify in that regard. It’s also full of question marks and pitchers whose durability has to come into question. Even with Jameson Taillon and Javier Assad set to return after injuries, the rotation doesn’t profile as championship-level.
At the back of the bullpen, Daniel Palencia also has to be a question mark. While he’s performed incredibly well as the team’s shutdown closer since moving up from the minors earlier in the season, this IS his first time in the role and there will be tons of pressure on him as the season heats up considerably.
Between the starters and the closer, the relief corps looks to be overall solid, but there have been too many cracks and blowups over the last several weeks to really count them as playoff-reliable.
Time will tell how Cubs pitching holds up through the pennant race. If their offense doesn’t pick up, however, this all may be a moot point.
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