You knew the injury update wasn’t going to be positive once Craig Counsell said that Riley Martin was sent back to Chicago for further testing, and on Monday, the team made it official. A day after the rookie pitcher was placed on the 15-day injured list, the Chicago Cubs ruled Martin out for the next two months because of a flexor strain in his left arm.
Martin, 28, was added to the 40-man roster following the 2025 season, competed for a bullpen role in spring training, and after a handful of injuries was called up from Triple-A in early April. There weren’t high expectations for Martin when he was first promoted to the big leagues, but in a matter of weeks, he became a fan favorite. With so many pitchers injured, Martin stepped up in the bullpen and posted a 2.16 ERA in eight relief outings.
Now, Martin will be out for an extended period. Just a brutal hit for him and the Cubs.
The Cubs invested more money than usual on relievers during free agency, and so far, the results have been poor. Hunter Harvey is on the injured list alongside Caleb Thielbar, while Jacob Webb has been flat-out terrible. Meanwhile, Phil Maton just came off the injured list himself, and he had a poor first outing after missing a couple of weeks because of knee tendinitis.
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Martin has been one of several arms that have come up from Triple-A during April as the Cubs are trying to survive an onslaught of bullpen injuries. Overall, the team has been able to hold up quite well so far in 2026, but we are seeing some cracks the past few days as Counsell is being forced to use guys who were way down on the organizational depth chart heading into the season.
That’s why this injury to Martin hurts even more. Again, there weren’t high expectations, but Martin looked the part of a quality MLB reliever, and now the Cubs have to hope he doesn’t suffer any setbacks during the next two months.
Following Monday night’s 9-7 loss to the San Diego Padres, the Cubs’ bullpen now ranks 12th in MLB with a 3.87 ERA. The group’s 20.9 K% is 25th in the league.
Palencia is scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Tuesday, which should give the Cubs a better idea of his timeline to return. The Cubs have been without their closer since April 17, when he was placed on the injured list with what was eventually diagnosed as a lat strain.
Right now, half of the Cubs’ bullpen began the year at Triple-A.
Ben Brown (Opening Day Roster)
Javier Assad (Triple-A)
Corbin Martin (Triple-A)
Jacob Webb (Opening Day Roster)
Ryan Rolison (Triple-A)
Yacksel Ríos (Triple-A)
Hoby Milner (Opening Day Roster)
Phil Maton (Opening Day Roster)
Out of the four pitchers who have been called up from Triple-A in the past week, Yacksel Ríos and Corbin Martin weren’t even on the 40-man roster at the start of the season.
