The Chicago Cubs finally got the kind of Ben Brown update they’d been waiting on.
After weeks of uncertainty around the right-hander’s neck issue, Marquee Sports Network’s Taylor McGregor said during Tuesday night’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals that Brown is moving forward again in his recovery.
“Ben Brown is symptom-free and has begun throwing, so from this point forward, it’s just a matter of building himself back up to get ready to pitch in the major leagues again.”
That’s a major step for a pitcher who had become one of the most important arms on the roster before the injury shut him down. Brown has not pitched for the Cubs since June 19, and the club had been stuck waiting for any real sign that the problem was easing up.
The concern around Brown isn’t new. He also missed the final three months of the 2024 season with what was initially described as a neck strain, but the Cubs never quite had a clean read on what was bothering him. He was eventually diagnosed with an osteoma, a new piece of bone growing as a benign tumor on another piece of bone and causing pain in his neck.
This time, the symptoms looked similar, and the Cubs were left in wait-and-see mode until Brown felt well enough to start throwing again.
Before the neck issue, Brown had been pitching like a breakout star. He posted a 1.85 ERA in 20 games, including eight starts with a 1.70 ERA, a 25.0 K%, a 0.90 WHIP, and just one home run allowed in 42.1 innings. Opponents hit only .179 against him.
A big part of that leap came from a changed approach. Brown added a sinker/two-seamer to his mix, and that adjustment helped turn him from a solid arm into a far more dangerous one.
After hitters got to him in 2025, he reemerged this season as a ground-ball pitcher while still missing bats at an above-average clip. The walks stayed under control, too, and for about a month he was carrying the rotation.
If Brown can get back for the stretch run, that would be a huge lift for the Cubs.
In Other News...
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With the trade deadline also looming, the front office may not be done adding pitching help, which means there will be fewer places to go around. That puts a handful of current Cubs in a vulnerable spot, with Aaron Civale, Tyler Ferguson, Trent Thornton, Andrew Wantz, Pedro Ramirez and James Triantos among the names most exposed if the club has to clear room for the reinforcements coming down the line. [Read more 🡒]
Cubs Catching Depth Just Took Another Hit Fans Will Notice
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For Chicago, the departure is another reminder that organizational catching depth can change quickly, especially when a player with big league experience becomes available elsewhere. Bethancourt had been part of the mix at Iowa, and his exit leaves the Cubs with one less experienced option in the upper minors while the Yankees keep searching for a right-handed-hitting catcher and continue sorting through trade possibilities. [Read more 🡒]
Jed Hoyer May Have Just Shown His True Cubs Deadline Plan
Tarik Skubal is still the loudest name on the pitching market, and the Tigers are expected to move him before the deadline with a long list of contenders circling. The Cubs have been floated as a possible fit, but the broader picture around Chicago has pointed in a different direction, one that values a starter who can stick around beyond this season rather than a short-term swing at a premium arm.
That preference says plenty about how Jed Hoyer may be approaching July. Chicago is willing to part with prospects for the right pitcher, but the club seems far more likely to chase a controllable arm than a rental with free agency looming, which is why names like Reid Detmers, Jose Soriano, Emmerson Hancock and Sandy Alcantara keep surfacing as more realistic paths if the Cubs decide to make their move. [Read more 🡒]