The Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers are the second game of the day at 4 p.m. ET at Dodger Stadium, with scorching temperatures of 100 degrees expected in Southern California. In a matchup of AL East rivals, the Tampa Bay Rays host the New York Yankees at Tropicana Field at 6:30 p.m. ET. In the nightcap, the San Diego Padres visit the Milwaukee Brewers, who had MLB's best record in the regular season.
Game 2s of the NLDS will be played on Sunday, while the American League series get a day off and will resume with their second games on Monday, Oct. 5.
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 01: Brent Suter (39) of the Atlanta Braves on the field after beating the Phillies in the Philadelphia Phillies versus the Atlanta Braves game 3 of the National League Wild Card Series on October 1, 2026 at Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Well the Braves won a playoff series and exorcised some demons of recent postseasons past in the process this week against the Phillies. Their reward is facing the death-star Dodgers in a best-of-5 series with a spot in the NLCS on the line.
Game 1 will be perhaps the most challenging, with the Braves opting for a bullpen game and the Dodgers being able to throw a fresh Tarik Skubal on the other side. The Dodgers will be heavily favored in this game and for good reason. The Braves faced Skubal once this season and were able to score two runs off him over 7.0 innings, with a home run coming from Ozzie Albies. To be honest, that is an outcome I would take if you offered it to me right now for how the Braves perform against him today. The big lefty has been incredible for 4 seasons now, with very strong strikeout numbers, an extremely low walk rate, and a solid ground ball rate. His FIP and xFIP have hovered in the mid-2 range since the beginning of 2023. His well-shaped upper-90s fastball from the left side leads his arsenal, with a hard changeup and slider, as well as a sinker make up the vast majority of his remaining pitches. There isn’t a real weakness for Skubal. The Braves will need some luck and a big moment or two against him to put up some runs. Getting him out of the game early sure would help as well.
Meanwhile, the Braves have a talented bullpen to face the Dodgers’ lineup that was second-best in wRC+ in baseball this year. That said, covering 9.0 innings means that we will likely get bulk innings from non-high-leverage options. We will have to hope they can get through those innings without that potent Dodgers offense putting up crooked numbers left and right.
Game Info
Game Time: Saturday, October 3, 4:00 pm EDT
Location: UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA
Watch: FOX
Radio/Audio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan, La Mejor 1600/1460/1130 AM, ESPN Radio
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 01: President of Baseball Operations for the Phillies, Dave Dombrowski in the dugout before the Philadelphia Phillies versus the Atlanta Braves in game 3 of the National League Wild Card Series on October 1, 2026 at Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The Phillies are not playing baseball for the rest of the 2026 season. In some ways, you’re all free from whatever this season. In some ways, we are all just trapped in whatever they prepare to do for a 2027 season that only might happen.
Given the nature of this season, it feels right to ask a few big picture questions about where everything is going. Dave Dombrowski has been running the team since the 2020-21 off-season and has seen the team make the playoffs in each of the last five seasons. This is the first of which both the regular season record and postseason results went backwards. It’s time to at least ask a few important questions.
Should the Phillies look at 2026 as just a down season or the beginning of a bigger trend?
The Phillies won 95 games in 2024 with the second-best record in the National League and followed that up with 96 wins and the second-best record in the NL again. While both seasons featured quick October exits, the Phillies were clearly at the top of National League World Series contenders given their regular season success.
2026 was a step back. They won eight fewer games than the previous season and backed into the Wild Card series as the sixth seed, needing to win game 162 to even make it. After losing in said Wild Card, it is clear the Phillies are as far from contending as they’ve been in a while.
With all of that said, the core of the roster in both years is basically the same. Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper are still the two best hitters. Trea Turner is still here. The rotation has the same core. Jhoan Duran is still the closer.
There are basically two competing ideas. One is that the core is aging. Kyle Schwarber is almost 34. Bryce Harper is almost 34. Trea Turner is 34. JT Realmuto is 35. Zack Wheeler is 36. Besides Wheeler and Harper, all of these guys regressed to different degrees. It could be very difficult to overcome.
The other, and the path easier to face, is that this season was just weird. They got off to a disastrous start and sometimes that happens. The manager got fired. Trea Turner just had a weird year. Same for JT Realmuto. Kyle Schwarber is still very good even if he regressed from 2025. Bryce went from first base to right field.
It is easy to overreact to one year and start making decisions that set them back further. It’s also easy to underreact and not look for significant changes. The Atlanta Braves won 76 games in 2025 and then bounced back with 94 wins this year thanks to a few smaller changes, some health, and bounce-back seasons from key players. Sometimes you just have a weird year.
Making significant roster changes to the core will also be extremely difficult. Almost every highly paid veteran on the Phillies roster carries trade protection, either because it’s in their contract or because of 10-5 rights.
Is just throwing money at the issue enough or do the problems run much deeper?
At minimum, the major league roster needs at least one new starting outfielder (let’s say it’s not Trea Turner for argument’s sake), a new third baseman, and multiple new left-handed relievers. One of those lineup upgrades probably needs to hit cleanup.
While Jesús Luzardo is getting a big raise with his extension and other’s will see smaller ones, there is some money. Since the Competitive Balance Tax existed, the penalties have reset after every new CBA agreement so let’s assume that happens again.
Maybe they throw a bunch of money at one of the aging outfielders. Maybe it’s Randy Arozarena, or maybe it’s Seiya Suzuki or Ian Happ. Maybe Bo Bichette opts out of his contract with the Mets (I wouldn’t count on it) and is a target. Maybe it’s someone else.
But does money solve this? It might help the 2027 roster but the problems just seem deeper.
Andrew Painter showed plenty of growth as a rookie but that wasn’t exactly the same for Justin Crawford. There were flashes of what it could look like but Crawford regressed hard every time. He still hits too many groundballs and struggles to play a consistent center field. Given that he had an 80 wRC+ on a .317 BABIP, it just seems like there is a long ways to go before he is any kind of capable starting outfielder.
The 2026 roster featured only six players above replacement level according to bWAR. That is troubling and might not be fixable in one offseason.
The farm system is in rough shape. Aidan Miller did not play until September but is playing in the Arizona Fall League. Gage Wood looks like a good pitching prospect but probably needs more time before being a major league contributor. Their best storyline was Bryan Rincon, who broke out with a power surge in the hitting-friendly environment of AA Reading (and a very juiced minor league baseball).
How impactful are the changes around the players supposed to be?
The Phillies will be looking for a new manager and with that will probably come a new coaching staff. The Phillies tried to hire Alex Cora in April after Rob Thomson was fired and it’s hard to imagine them not trying again this offseason. Given his reputation, it is natural to think Cora would bring in some coaches.
But with that said, it’s just harder to see him sticking around. The offense regressed from 9th in wRC+ in 2025 to 28th this past season. Trea Turner regressed hard. JT regressed hard. Brandon Marsh made the all-star team but was a disaster in the second half. The team only had 4 hitters with an OPS above 100 and two of them were Bryan De La Cruz and Derek Hill, clear bench players.
Given the results and an incoming manager, it just seems hard to picture Long remaining as the hitting coach moving forward.
With all of this, how impactful are these changes supposed to be? The core is likely to remain the same and there is only so much a manager, a hitting coach, and others can really change. What are the expectations going to be?
Sep 3, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal (29) throws a pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
It’s only fitting that the team with the pressure of living up to astronomically high expectations would debut in the playoffs in a game in which the victory appears to be the only plausible result. In a single baseball game, anything can happen, but one could hardly manufacture a more lopsided pitching scenario if they tried for Game 1 of the NLDS between the Dodgers and Braves.
The reigning back-to-back champs gave themselves the luxury of foregoing last postseason’s hero Yoshinobu Yamamoto in favor of Tarik Skubal for the first matchup of this series. Meanwhile, Atlanta needs to find 27 outs from a pitching staff that lacks reliable starting options for this opening game, inevitably turning to a bullpen effort. While we’ve seen in the past teams going this route as a way of capitalizing on a strength, in the Braves’ case it’s nearly purely out of necessity.
With Skubal on the mound at Dodger Stadium, the home team can create a perfect storm against a Braves offense that during the year has struggled against lefties (91 wRC+) and also has had its issues on the road (89 team wRC+). We’ve already seen glimpses of these problems facing lefties in the Wild Card round, as Jesús Luzardo and Cristopher Sánchez looked in control of their outings against Atlanta—Luzardo allowed just one run in five innings, and Sánchez had only one run on the books through six innings until getting pushed past his limit and allowing a couple more runs in the seventh. Dodger fans know all too well about Don Mattingly and leaving starters in too long in the postseason.
Such heavy favoritism might have been intimidating in other circumstances in the past, but for the back-to-back champs, it is easier to simply expect that they can take advantage of this opportunity before facing Chris Sale on Monday—one that was rightfully earned by beating out the Braves for this second seed in the National League.
Judge took live batting practice on Friday at Tropicana Field, but has not yet progressed to running the bases or practicing in the outfield.
The superstar slugger continues to work his way back from a right calf strain, which also sidelined him for the team's Wild Card series against the Boston Red Sox.
The Yankees offense fared just fine without their captain in that series, scoring 18 runs across the two-game sweep of their archrivals.
In 66 games during the regular season, Judge slashed .241/.360/.511 with 18 home runs and 41 RBI. He missed more than three months with a right rib stress fracture before returning to the Yankees Sept. 7, hitting his first home run back Sept. 14. The calf injury came two days later.
Meanwhile, Aaron Boone did make one change to the Yankees' 26-man roster for the ALDS; Ryan Weathers - who has not pitched since late August due to a flexor tendon strain in his left forearm, but has been ramping up with live batting practice - has been added to the team's bullpen for the series.
As such, versatile infielder and righty batter Amed Rosario was left off the roster, having been swapped for the southpaw. This makes sense, as the expected Rays starters for the first three games of the series - Drew Rasmussen, Nick Martinez, and Freddy Peralta - are all right-handed pitchers.
Weathers recorded a healthy 3.60 ERA and 1.223 WHIP across 25 starts for New York during the regular season. His strong strikeout rate, walk rate, and ground ball rate indicate his theoretical fit as a bullpen option for the Yankees during the upcoming series.
The 2026 Major League Baseball playoffs are on to the best-of-five Division Series with eight teams remaining – and a quadruple header on Saturday, Oct. 3 to get the round underway.
The Yankees, White Sox, Padres and Braves all had to win best-of-three wild card series, while the Rays, Guardians, Brewers and Dodgers all earned a bye through the first round as the top division winners in each league.
The winners advance to the best-of-seven League Championship Series.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Yankees captain Aaron Judge was left off the roster for New York’s AL Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays while he tries to work his way back from a calf injury.
A three-time AL MVP, Judge hasn’t played since Sept. 16.
Giancarlo Stanton, who hasn’t played since April 24 because of strained calf muscles in both legs, remained on the 26-man roster for the best-of-five series starting Saturday.
Stanton was active for the Wild Card Series sweep of Boston but didn’t get in the games, which both turned into blowouts.
Judge was sidelined by a fractured rib from May 31 to Sept. 8 and played in just seven games before straining his right calf. He was limited to 66 games this season and hit .241 with 18 homers, 41 RBIs and an .871 OPS, including .174 with one homer and three RBIs in September.
Left-hander Ryan Weathers, sidelined with a left forearm flexor strain since Aug. 22, was added to the roster as an 11th pitcher.
Utilityman Amed Rosario was dropped. He had two plate appearances in the Wild Card Series with a walk and a strikeout.
White Sox-Guardians
Right-hander Tyler Davis was added by the Chicago White Sox, who dropped right-hander Huascar Brazobán.
Brazobán appeared in Game 2 of the sweep at Houston, facing three batters. He hit his first, struck out his second and allowed a single to his third.
With this in mind, here are three things to watch as the teams collide in Game 1 of the AL Division Series on Saturday night:
Rust versus rest
The Rays are fresh, having not played since their regular season finale on Sunday, Sep. 27. They’ve got their pitching set the way they want, with ace Drew Rasmussen starting the opener, and their bullpen arms having had the time to reset.
But the Yanks are surging with confidence after outscoring the Red Sox, 18-2, over two blowouts that were played without star Aaron Judge, who remains out for the ALDS due to injury.
Those games were so lopsided that the Yankees did not have to stress their high-leverage relievers and their terrific rotation flexed two strong starts, one each for Cam Schlittler and Max Fried.
Gerrit Cole will take the mound in Game 1 for New York, with Schlittler is set for Games 2 and 5, if necessary.
So which team has the advantage? Maybe neither, if history is any guide.
Since this playoff format started, teams that had the bye have won 9 of the 16 five-game sets in the divisional series against the teams that won a Wild Card Series. It is worth noting, however, that in the last two years, teams with the bye have won 6 of the last 8.
The Yankees are rolling in red hot, but it’s hard to believe the Rays, mostly a contact, speed-based team, will be hampered by any layoff rust, especially with Rasmussen pitching.
Rice could be nice
Ben Rice landed the hammer blow to the Red Sox in the Wild Card, and now he'll be looking to wreak havoc on the Rays in the ALDS.
The lefty slugger excelled against Tampa during the regular season. Rice hit seven homers against them this year in 51 plate appearances, batting .356.
He was especially successful at Tropicana Field, going 11-for-24 (.458) with five homers and a 1.685 OPS.
Rice has 10 career home runs against Tampa Bay overall.
His at-bats in Game 1 against Rasmussen should be especially intriguing, because he's the one Rays pitcher who has been able to stifle him.
Rice is 1-for-16 lifetime against the Tampa Bay righty, though the one hit was a home run on July 9 of this year.
Considering how crucial Rice was in the Yanks’ victory in the Wild Card Series over Boston, this is a matchup with meaning.
Sep 29, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees designated hitter Ben Rice (22) runs after hitting a grand slam home run against the Boston Red Sox during the eighth inning during game one of the Wildcard round for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Yankee Stadium. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Considering how crucial Rice was in the Yanks’ victory in the Wild Card Series over Boston, this is a matchup with meaning.
Glove story
The Rays love to take chances on the basepaths, pushing the pace and trying to inject chaos into an inning.
Sharp defense when the Rays run is paramount for the Yankees to escapef innings before Rays baserunners become runs allowed.
“If you’re clean there, there’s some outs to be had,” Aaron Boone said on the workout day. “But they do a lot of things really well.”
The Rays were second in MLB with 164 stolen bases. Chandler Simpson led the AL with 46 steals, but he was also caught an MLB-most 14 times.
Yankee backstop Austin Wells threw out 14-of-64 runners trying to steal, or 21.9 percent -- a few notches below the MLB average rate of 23 percent.
Per Baseball Savant/Statcast, Wells ranks in just the 23rd percentile for average "pop" time, at 1.97 seconds.
While New York's catcher wasn't tested by a quiet Red Sox offense on the basepaths during the Wild Card round, Wells will certainly have to make plays behind the plate during the Divisional Series against the Rays.
Judge was not included on the team's ALDS roster submitted in advanc of Game 1 Saturday, Oct. 3, even as he vowed to "do all he can" to play against the Rays after sitting out their two-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox in the wild-card round.
Judge suffered the injury Sept. 16 at Minnesota, just seven games after returning from a rib fracture. He played in just 66 games this season after winning consecutive AL MVP awards.
Now, he'll cool it a little longer as his teammates take aim at the Rays, who won the AL East in Judge's absence.
Before the Yankees finished off the Red Sox, Judge got simulated at-bats in at their Class AAA facility in Somerset. After the team flew to Tampa for the ALDS, he worked out at their spring training facility there and also went through the off day workout at Tropicana Field. Manager Aaron Boone did not specify whether Judge had run the bases in his rehab progression, often one of the final steps to a return, but noted he had tested the calf in other fashions.
New York's sweep of Boston marked its first playoff games contested without Judge, 34, since 2015.
The club added lefty starter Ryan Weathers to the roster for this round, as the best-of-five format will require more length from the pitching staff. DH Giancarlo Stanton is also back on the roster, though he didn't get an at-bat in the two-game wild card series as he returns from a lengthy absence due to a pair of calf injuries.
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ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 05: Joc Pederson #3 of the Texas Rangers celebrates with teammates in the dugout after hitting a home run during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Globe Life Field on September 05, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Gunnar Word/Texas Rangers/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good morning, LSB.
In his latest Q&A Evan Grant was asked if the Rangers would consider moving their outfield fences in to account for their crappy crappy offense.
Also up for discussion: How possible would a Ron Washington reunion to close out his career be?
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - SEPTEMBER 23: hird baseman Miguel Vargas #20 of the Chicago White Sox is tagged out in a rundown by pitcher Seth Lugo #67 of the Kansas City Royals during the 3rd inning of the game at Kauffman Stadium on September 23, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) | Getty Images
I’m not saying the Royals suddenly have a playoff offense, but some health and an addition or two could make the offense good enough with the right pitching in place. A guy like Vinnie Pasquantino getting back to where he was in 2025, along with an acquisition or two, and Carter Jensen and Jac Caglianone taking a step forward could make this offense legitimately good in 2027. There are a lot of ifs, but they don’t seem quite as daunting as they have in the past. But boy do they need to figure out how to translate all the hard hits and batting average into runs scored.
Hammond got off to an impressive start at Single-A Columbia in his first full season, and his improved chances of sticking at shortstop only increased enthusiasm. But he only slugged .312 over his final 40 games to finish as a league-average bat in the Carolina League on the year as a whole.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 27: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on before the first pitch against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on September 27, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Scott Marshall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good morning everyone!
It’s Saturday and The Division Series’ are set to get underway this morning. In the meantime, it’s time to get you caught up on the latest news from around the league.
After falling just two games short of a playoff spot this year, the Diamondbacks are planning to reduce payroll this winter.
The Dodgers will have to try to win their third straight World Series with a hobbled Shohei Ohtani, who admitted he will not be fully healthy heading into the postseason.
The San Diego Padres have made the postseason for the third consecutive season. Each team claimed a playoff berth in a slightly different manner.
The 2024 and 2025 clubs leaned heavily on pitching to earn back-to-back postseason appearances. Often, the Padres required perfection from their pitching staff to stay competitive in a postseason series.
This season, the Friars rode their offense into October baseball, highlighted by clutch hitting from Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill, Manny Machado, and Ty France. That same formula helped them advance into the National League Division Series against the Milwaukee Brewers.
The bats are hot
The Padres may have the most explosive offense remaining in the postseason. Since July 17, the team’s batting average is .270. This is a remarkable feat because they posted a .226 batting average through the first 96 games of the 2026 season.
You cannot argue with the results; the Friars scored 343 runs in the team’s final 66 games. The offense averaged 5.20 runs per game, and it may be their blueprint for victory over the top-seeded Brewers.
Quick work in eliminating the Cubs
Granted, the starting pitching deserves some of the credit, but the bats set the tone for the series win over the Cubs. The lineup batted .328, outscored Chicago 12-1, and slugged four home runs in the two-game sweep. Machado’s bat came alive at the right time, as he hit .429 (3-for-7) with a home run, a double, two runs scored, and two RBI.
The results offer a stark contrast to last season. The Padres struggled badly at the plate in the 2025 Wild Card Series against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. In defeat, the team batted .189 and scored only five runs. The most alarming stat was the lineup striking out 20 times in 95 at-bats.
The Brewers’ pitching staff will be a formidable challenge for the Friars’ lineup. They must continue delivering timely hits with runners in scoring position. In the Cubs series, the club batted .500 (5-for-10) with RISP.
You might see small ball come into play in this division series. It is the perfect source to plate runs in expected low-scoring contests.
Good-hitting teams know playoff success begins and ends with quality pitching. The Padres have the right balance, and the Friar Faithful hope the magic continues for another postseason series.
I’ve shown you that chart before, but it’s worth repeating here. The Cubs, by fWAR, had one of the worst pitching staffs in all of Major League Baseball. The only reason they were in the postseason is the offense, which as you can see outpaced the second-place Dodgers… by a lot. If the 2026 Cubs had posted a league-average fWAR figure for hitters, they’d probably have finished well under .500.l Conversely, if they’d had league-average pitching, they’d probably have won 100 games and still be playing.
So, here we are. Jed Hoyer has a lot of work to do to improve this pitching staff for next year. He admitted in his year-end presser that he didn’t do very well in 2026. There are two major issues for Hoyer, in my view:
Dumpster-diving for relievers. It worked in 2025. It spectacularly backfired in 2026.
Pitching development has not produced the 98+ mile per hour fastballers that every other team seems to have on an assembly line.
Fixing those two things will not be easy. But that is what the Cubs must do if they are to compete with other pitching staffs in modern baseball.
The Cubs used 39 (!) pitchers this year, not counting catcher Carson Kelly, who threw in three blowouts, including one game the Cubs won. He posted a 6.00 ERA. Ten of the 39 actual pitchers had a higher ERA than that, and 12 of them had worse bWAR than Kelly’s 0.0 as a pitcher.
I’m not posting comments on 39 pitchers. Nor do you probably want that. Here are comments on 22 of them.
Shōta Imanaga: B
This grade will likely be controversial. I kind of look at Imanaga as the pitching version of Ian Happ — someone who Cubs fans love to dislike, but his performance is relatively solid.
It’s the home runs, right? That’s the biggest issue with Imanaga. Apart from those, though, he posted a 2.0 bWAR season, which is pretty much in line with his previous seasons. He was healthy all year and made 32 starts and went six innings or more in half of them. He doesn’t walk guys (5.2 percent walk rate).
I would not be against bringing him back at a reasonable price for a couple more years.
Matthew Boyd: C
Boyd made only 22 starts due to two injuries — a biceps issue that kept him out for much of April, then he hurt his knee playing with his kids and missed most of May and June.
Sometimes he was unhittable. Other times he was serving up long balls. (That wasn’t unique to Boyd, either, among this staff.)
He’s been a good Cub for two seasons and really seemed to enjoy his time here. But he’ll be 36 in February. There’s a $15 million mutual option which seems likely to be declined.
Colin Rea: C-
Like a lot of Cubs pitchers, Rea had issues with home runs. Oddly, after he left the rotation following the acquisitions of Clay Holmes and Kevin Gausman, Rea seemed the forgotten man. He appeared in only 11 games from Aug. 8 to the end of the season and threw just 19.1 innings.
He’s been a useful spare part for two seasons, but in a revamp of this staff, I think it’s time to move on.
Edward Cabrera: F
I’m honestly not sure what happened here. Cabrera was perfectly fine for his first seven starts, posting a 3.27 ERA and 1.282 WHIP, numbers completely in line with what he did in 2025 in Miami.
Then he started to get hit, hard, and wound up with an IL stint. He came back for one start in August, got hit hard again and left with a blister issue that kept him out a month. On his return he went to the bullpen and was bad again and was left off the postseason roster.
After those first seven starts he posted an 8.84 ERA and 1.707 WHIP and allowed 11 home runs in 38.2 innings, which is awful even by this pitching staff’s low standards.
Cabrera turns 29 in April and has two years of team control remaining. So do they try to fix him? Or put him in a trade package?
For whatever it’s worth, Owen Caissie didn’t have a good year in Miami, either, batting .220/.288/.412 in 108 games, with some IL stints. He struck out 123 times in 291 at-bats.
Ben Brown: A
Probably the biggest “what if” question about the Cubs this year revolves around Brown, who finally figured things out and had become an outstanding starting pitcher when the neck injury from two years ago reoccurred and forced him to the injured list in mid-June. Despite that, Brown led all Cubs pitchers with 2.2 bWAR, which tells you how bad the rest of the staff was. (It took Imanaga an entire season of 32 starts and 174.1 innings just to get to second on that list at 2.0.)
Brown’s best start of the year was probably his six-inning, four-hit, one-run, seven-strikeout game against the Pirates May 25. (And the Cubs lost that game 2-1!)
Here’s hoping for a full recovery and Brown leading the Cubs rotation in 2027.
Javier Assad: B
Assad became the guy Cubs fans loved to clamor for every time he was sent down to Triple-A Iowa. (That was done five times this year, the maximum for any player in a season.)
Truth be told, the Cubs might have been better off just putting him in the rotation and not trading for Kevin Gausman. Assad made 11 starts and posted a 3.49 ERA and 1.200 WHIP in that role. He allowed too many home runs (10 in 56.2 innings as a starter), but so did the entire Cubs staff.
After April 25, when he got pounded by the Dodgers for six runs in 2.1 innings, Assad posted a 2.63 ERA and 1.062 WHIP in 75.1 innings. Yes, the FIP was a bit high in that span at 4.92, but you can’t argue with the results.
Assad is who he is — about a 2 WAR starter who will consistently post an ERA in the mid-3s and keep the Cubs in games. Just give the guy a rotation spot in 2027. He’s a perfectly cromulent No. 5 MLB starter.
Ryan Rolison: B-
The Cubs saw something in Rolison even after he posted a 7.00 ERA for the Rockies last year, so they claimed him off waivers in January — from the White Sox, who had claimed him from the Braves in December, who had acquired him from Colorado for cash considerations in November.
Rolison was really good until mid-August when he ran out of gas — over his last 17 appearances he posted a 5.87 ERA and 1.565 WHIP, with a high walk rate (11.7 percent).
Overall, though, this was a very good year and he’s still pre-arb for 2027, which this front office will like.
Aaron Civale: B
Civale was poor as a starter for the A’s, so the Cubs acquired him by trade in July for a guy who had a 32.7 percent walk rate at Myrtle Beach (Aiden Moffett, and no I am not kidding about that walk rate, look here).
Civale had been pretty good in five relief appearances for the Cubs last year and he was very good again in 18 relief outings this year — 1.73 ERA, 1.064 WHIP, and only two home runs in 36.2 innings. (Given the propensity of home runs allowed by this staff, that seems important to note.)
He turns 32 next June and won’t be expensive to bring back.
Trent Thornton: C+
Thornton’s season was pretty much comparable to what he had posted in Seattle in 2024. His 2025 season was ruined by an Achilles injury, but he recovered from that and was a useful spare part in the Cubs pen. His season ended with an injury that appeared mysterious, as he had just thrown a good scoreless inning against the Pirates.
Peterson’s overall numbers with the Cubs were pretty good: 3.70 ERA, 1.369 WHIP. That included a horrific outing against the Cardinals July 3 (10 runs in 3.2 innings). After that he was quite a bit better: 2.66 ERA, 1.310 WHIP, only seven home runs in 71 innings.
Maybe they should have started him against the Padres. He threw well enough in relief in the Wild Card Series. I would not be opposed to bringing him back.
Clay Holmes: D+
Holmes started off well enough as a Cub, with a 1.55 ERA and 1.000 WHIP in five starts in August, with only one home run allowed in 29 innings.
September was not as kind: four starts, 8.24 ERA, 1.729 WHIP, 15 walks in 19.2 innings. These numbers are likely why he wasn’t used in the Wild Card Series.
He’s a free agent and I doubt he’ll be back.
Jacob Webb: C-
This is a tale of three seasons.
13 appearances through the end of April: 5.06 ERA, 2.062 WHIP, three HR in 10.2 innings 44 appearances from May 1 to Aug. 21: 1.55 ERA, 0.971 WHIP, three HR in 46.1 innings, 52 strikeouts 11 appearances from Aug. 24 to the end of the season: 9.90 ERA, 1.700 WHIP, four HR in 10 innings, four blown saves
That’s one really good reliever for three-plus months and two outright release candidates.
I can’t explain that. Can you?
The Cubs have a $2.5 million team option on Webb, so they’ll probably keep him for another year. The year as a whole wasn’t awful, but those four blown saves…
Kevin Gausman: D
Gausman’s nine starts as a Cub weren’t any better than what he did in Toronto over 23 starts there. He had a couple of really good outings, notably seven shutout innings vs. the Diamondbacks Aug. 24, but the bad outweighed the good, and his postseason experience, one of the reasons for the deal, turned out not to mean much.
The Cubs had one of their season ticket holder Chalk Talk sessions with Gausman in early September that I attended, and he seems like a thoughtful, good dude. He’ll turn 36 in January and I wonder if his career is over.
Ryan Zeferjahn: C+
You can see the talent, the 98+ fastball, it’s just thisclose but not quite all the way there.
There was the blown save in Milwaukee, but then there was the easy save he posted in the final home game against the Marlins.
The Cubs might have something here, and he’s pre-arb for 2027 and under team control for three years after that. So they have time to figure things out with him. Hopefully it works.
Daniel Palencia: C-
Anointed the closer in Spring Training by Craig Counsell, Palencia threw well for five outings, then hit the IL with an oblique injury.
Returning on May 4, he pitched all right, but didn’t get many save opportunities because the Cubs were winning blowouts and walk-offs, then they went on that long losing streak. In mid-June he had some elbow flexor inflammation and missed another two months.
His first five outings after returning were just plain bad: 14.54 ERA, 1.846 WHIP, two home runs in 4.1 innings and his velocity topping out at 98-99 instead of the 100+ he had thrown previous to the injuries.
Then things seemed to fall into place. Over his last seven appearances of the regular season, Palencia threw 7.2 innings, allowed one hit, three walks and one unearned run, striking out six and regularly hitting 100 again. He threw one inning in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series in San Diego and got taken deep by Gavin Sheets on a 101 mile per hour fastball that, well, a hitter shouldn’t be able to hit:
That was a good pitch and well located and I don’t see how Sheets hit that thing 394 feet.
It was a lost season for Palencia, but if he and Zeferjahn are 100 percent next year and Zeferjahn can throw strikes, maybe the Cubs finally have that 100 mile per hour late relief tandem that they’ve needed all along.
Phil Maton: F
Maton had a very good year in 2025 split between the Cardinals and Rangers. The signing did not seem unreasonable, even with Maton being 32, though I wouldn’t have given him two years.
The knee injury that ruined his season was evident as early as April 8, the first time he went on the IL after posting a 13.50 ERA and 2.500 WHIP, with four walks and two HBP among 24 batters faced.
He returned April 27 and gave up a pair of runs to the Padres in his first outing back — a game the Cubs lost 9-7. Win that game and the Cubs would have hosted the Padres in the Wild Card Series.
He pitched okay for a time, then went back on the IL in late June after blowing a save opportunity against the Mets June 25 by serving up a home run to former Cub Jared Young, the first batter he faced. (The Cubs won that game 4-3 in 10 innings.)
Returning from that stint July 19, Maton was given about the lowest leverage situation you could ask for: Throwing the eighth inning at home with a 10-0 lead against the Twins. He allowed three singles, a walk and a run. That was it, he hit the IL for a third time and finally had knee surgery in early September.
One wonders if Maton had the procedure when this first cropped up in April, maybe he could have come back and been effective in the second half.
We’ll find out next year because Maton was signed to a two-year deal (with an option for 2028!). Hopefully, things will improve. They really couldn’t get worse.
Hunter Harvey: F
I could have given Harvey an “incomplete” because he pitched in only four games for the Cubs. The “F” grade is really for Hoyer here, because he spent $6 million for those four games, and he did that knowing that Harvey had a long injury history. That was money basically flushed down the drain. He has a mutual option for 2027 that will almost certainly be declined. There’s no reason to bring him back.
Riley Martin: Incomplete
Martin’s a great story, a sixth-round draft pick in 2021 from Quincy University who almost gave up baseball for pharmacy school.
He threw very well in eight games before missing the rest of the season with a flexor strain. He did make one rehab appearance for Triple-A Iowa in September and could be an important part of the 2027 bullpen.
Jordan Wicks: D-
The only reason he gets a “D-” instead of an “F” is the 10th-inning save he posted against the Brewers June 28.
Wicks is only 27 and was a first-round draft pick. He has talent. Maybe the Cubs can turn him into the next Drew Pomeranz or Caleb Thielbar (at least when those guys were good).
Caleb Thielbar: D-
Speaking of Thielbar… this was a “roll the dice” signing at age 39 after his good 2025 season. It could have been predicted to fail, and it did. This is a D- instead of an F because over his last 14 appearances, Thielbar posted a 2.84 ERA and 1.184 WHIP and allowed just one home run in 12.2 innings.
Thielbar turns 40 in January and is almost certainly done. He pitched 10 MLB seasons and had a total of 5.2 bWAR and made about $15 million, which is pretty good for an 18th-round draft pick from South Dakota State.
Roberts’ setback was a laceration on the middle finger of his pitching hand — the result of a metal vent coming loose.
Roberts said he was on his ninth rep in a 10-throw workout involving a medicine ball, which is part of his daily routine. Without space to do the drill in the weight room, he moved to a tunnel at Citizens Bank Park. On the ill-fated throw, the medicine ball rebounded off one wall and hit a vent cover on another, dislodging it.
The vent was about to strike Roberts’ leg, so the pitcher reached back out of pure reaction. The cut is on the underside of the pitcher’s fingertip, which impacts his ability to throw. He did not require stitches, but he needs to let the wound heal before he can ramp up his throwing intensity.
Then over his last seven outings he had a 13.50 ERA and 2.625 WHIP and went on the IL with forearm inflammation. He did not pitch in MLB the rest of the year, though he did make 17 appearances for Triple-A Iowa, some on a rehab assignment, others on option after that ended.
As with many others, Roberts has talent and if he can be made right, he could be an important part of next year’s bullpen.
Braxton Garrett: Incomplete
Garrett was acquired from the Marlins at the trade deadline for Jonathon Long and Jace Beck. He was recovering from Tommy John surgery that caused him to miss almost two full seasons from mid-2024 to the middle of this year.
Garrett threw five innings for the Cubs against the Red Sox in the final game of the regular season, allowing one run. He’ll be in the mix for the rotation in 2027.
In alphabetical order: Charlie Barnes, Ty Blach, Tyler Ferguson, Gavin Hollowell, Cade Horton, Antoine Kelly, Luke Little, Corbin Martin, Hoby Milner, Jayden Murray, Drew Pomeranz, Yacksel Rios, Jameson Taillon, Vince Velasquez, Andrew Wantz, Bryse Wilson and Jake Woodford also pitched in at least one game for the Cubs in 2026.
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 26: Carson Benge #3 of the New York Mets runs to third base during a baseball game against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on September 26, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Meet the Mets
Carson Benge made his case for why he feels he deserves to win NL Rookie of the Year.
