It’s been a month since veteran reliever Caleb Thielbar suffered a hamstring injury against the Philadelphia Phillies, but he’s now back from the injured list. The Chicago Cubs activated Thielbar from the IL prior to Tuesday night’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers.
To make space on the active roster, the Cubs designated Ty Blach for assignment. Blach was recently called up by the team from Triple-A, and he did pitch in Monday’s series opener against the Brewers, throwing three innings in garbage time after the Cubs fell behind big early. The Cubs signed Blach to a minor league deal in the middle of April. The lefty had a 5.23 ERA in 20.2 innings with the Iowa Cubs prior to his call up.
Before the leg injury, Thielbar was still one of the top relievers for the Cubs, posting a 3.12 ERA in 11 games. The lefty should return to his high-leverage role behind Daniel Palencia, and that should give Craig Counsell a much better option than the struggling Phil Maton.
Last year, Thielbar had one of his best seasons in the majors, recording a 2.64 ERA in 58 innings.
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Overall, the Cubs have been slightly above average out of the bullpen, with a 3.75 ERA, ranking 12th in MLB. However, the bullpen has declined since Thielbar’s injury, as the Cubs rank 20th in bullpen ERA since April 24 at 3.98.
(Previous Update)
The Chicago Cubs will now likely be without their top four relievers in the bullpen as veteran lefty Caleb Thielbar left Thursday’s series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies with an apparent leg injury. After allowing a game-tying home run, Thielbar looked uneasy after delivering a pitch to Trea Turner. Craig Counsell and the team’s trainer came out to chat with Thielbar, who then walked off the mound and back into the clubhouse.
On the replay of Thielbar’s last pitch on Thursday, Marquee Sports Network analyst Jim Deshaies speculated that it looked like the Cubs’ pitcher injured his left hamstring. The left-handed reliever has been filling in as the Cubs’ closer since Daniel Palencia was placed on the injured list Friday.
This definitely looks like a trip to the injured list for Thielbar, and if that is indeed the case, then he’ll represent the fourth key reliever to be sidelined with an injury through the first month of the 2026 season. Along with Palencia, Hunter Harvey and Phil Maton are also on the 15-day injured list.
A brutal series of injuries has hit the Cubs to begin this year, and now the organization is truly scrambling on the 40-man roster. We’ll see what the update is on Thielbar, but a hamstring injury normally means at least a month off, depending on the severity.
Rookie lefty Riley Martin entered in relief of Thielbar on Thursday, and he was able to escape a jam after walking back-to-back hitters. Martin has now become a key in the bullpen, which no one saw coming back in March. However, Martin has been solid, posting a 2.16 ERA with 10 strikeouts in 8.1 innings since the Cubs called him up from Triple-A earlier in April.
Looking forward, Counsell is going to have to work his magic in the bullpen, and there’s no doubt it’ll be a closer by committee situation.
