The 2026 Chicago Cubs keep stacking defensive numbers that are hard to ignore.
Last week, they crossed the +100 mark in Defensive Runs Saved, a level they have since dipped just below, though they are expected to clear it again before the regular season ends. That makes them the first team since the 2024 Blue Jays to get there, and it also has them tracking toward the best DRS season since the 2022 Yankees, who finished at +124.
In plain English, the Cubs are making plays at a rate that puts them in rare company.
DRS is only one lens for judging defense, but the Cubs look just as dominant in other metrics, too. By Outs Above Average, Chicago sits first in the league at 61. The next closest club is the Arizona Diamondbacks at 37.
That kind of gap says plenty. However you want to measure it, the Cubs have separated themselves from the rest of MLB on the defensive side, and that pairs with a league-leading offense to give them an extremely high floor as the stretch run and October approach.
It also helps explain why the concern about arm talent around the National League may not loom as large for Chicago as it does for some of its rivals. The pitching staff remains the roster’s biggest weakness, and none of the Cubs’ rotation arms can stack up with Chris Sale, Jacob Misiorowski, or the groups of aces the Dodgers and Phillies can throw out.
But the Cubs’ position players are producing enough runs and preventing enough of them to give the team a legitimate path forward. In the postseason, that still counts for a lot.
In Other News...
Cubs Bullpen Suddenly Faces A Brutal Ninth Inning Problem
Jacob Webbs scare added another layer to a Cubs bullpen that was already under real strain. Webb was struck on his right forearm by a 102.5 MPH line drive during the game, but x-rays came back negative, which at least offered some relief for a group that has been scrambling for steadier late-inning answers. Chicagos relief corps has struggled badly since Aug. 19, leaving little room for error as the season tightens and every leveraged inning matters.
Daniel Palencia has emerged as the most obvious option to absorb ninth-inning duties if Webb misses time, but the path forward is hardly clean. Palencia has had his own recent difficulties on the mound, which makes the bullpen picture even murkier for a team already trying to piece together the back end of games. For the Cubs, the issue is no longer just surviving one scare - it is finding a reliable way to close games when the options keep getting thinner. [Read more 🡒]
Cubs Lose A Late-Season Weapon At The Worst Possible Time
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It is a frustrating turn for a pitcher who had already dealt with the same problem in 2024 and had recently been trying to work his way back through rehab. For a Cubs team that could have used every healthy arm down the stretch, Browns setback leaves one more hole to fill and one more reminder of how quickly pitching depth can disappear. [Read more 🡒]
Cubs Close The Book On A Once Promising Hometown First Rounder
Ed Howards Cubs journey has reached an abrupt end. The Chicago first-round pick from 2020 was released by the organization in August 2025, closing the book on a player the franchise once believed could grow into a homegrown answer in the middle infield.
Howards path never fully recovered after the major hip injury he suffered in 2022, which led to surgery and a long rehab process. He tried to fight his way back into form, but the combination of limited playing time and uneven performance left the Cubs with a difficult decision on a once-promising local talent. [Read more 🡒]