As if this last road trip wasn’t bad enough for the Chicago Cubs, now we’ve gotten horrible news about rehabbing pitcher Ben Brown, who might be done for the rest of the 2026 season. The right-handed pitcher was on the verge of going out on an official rehab assignment in the minor leagues after completing his second session throwing to live batters at the Cubs’ spring training facilities in Arizona, but he unfortunately suffered a setback.
Brown, who has been sidelined since early June with the same type of neck issue that forced the pitcher to miss the second half of the 2024 season, felt symptoms following his throwing session earlier this week and will now have to wait to see what team doctors have to say after going back to Chicago to be reevaluated.
Via Meghan Montemurro.
Not great news for Ben Brown & Cubs: Brown (stress reaction in neck) became symptomatic at end of his live BP yesterday and they worsened as day progressed. It’s same issue as before. He’ll travel back with Cubs & be evaluated. Counsell: “It’s gonna slow it down in some way.”
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The dreams of having Brown return down the stretch and potentially work back up to giving the Cubs starter innings have been crushed by this devastating update. Even if it isn’t a full-on shutdown situation, time is simply not Brown’s friend, as the Cubs only have 4.5 weeks left before the start of the postseason and 28 games remaining in the regular season. If the Cubs have to sit Brown for any period of time to let the bone heal in his neck, then he’d really be pushing it trying to ramp back up while also trying to avoid further injury.
After already going through this in 2024, the Cubs were being even more cautious with Brown this time around, avoiding getting him on the mound sooner until he was completely pain-free. All signs pointed to Brown being able to come back in September and helping out any way he could heading into the playoffs, but that now seems like a long shot.
Prior to the injury, Brown was leading the Cubs’ rotation after being called into action in May, when Matthew Boyd suffered a freak knee injury that sidelined him for more than a month. Brown was excellent in eight starts, posting a 1.70 ERA, 25.0 K%, 0.90 WHIP, and only allowing one home run in 42.1 innings, while keeping opponents to a .179 batting average.
Brown’s big jump in 2026 made him a potential ace for the Cubs in the playoffs, so seeing this setback certainly kills the vibes of having a big boost down the stretch. Now, someone else will have to step up to be a difference-maker in October.
Overall, Brown recorded a 1.85 ERA in 20 games between his time in the bullpen and eight starts.
