The Chicago Cubs ripped the Band-Aid and designated veteran starting pitcher Jameson Taillon prior to Monday night’s series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals. Taillon, who had his second start on Sunday after returning from the injured list, was lit up against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and although he was beloved in the clubhouse, the pitcher was actively hurting the team on the field.
Taillon is in the final year of his four-year, $68 million contract with the Cubs, and while he was good for the majority of his tenure in Chicago, the right-handed pitcher was becoming a giant liability this season. The Cubs have already made a couple of minor trades for starters this season, David Peterson and Aaron Civale, and they’re expected to make a splash by Monday’s trade deadline. However, in the meantime, Cubs manager Craig Counsell is giving the ball over to Javier Assad to replace Taillon in the starting rotation.
Assad, who first came up to the big leagues in 2022, has pretty much answered the call whenever and wherever the Cubs have needed him. So far in 2026, Assad has pitched in 17 games, including eight starts. He may not have the nastiest stuff; he doesn’t generate a ton of strikeouts, but Assad has always been dependable in the majors. The right-hander has a 3.86 ERA in 65.1 innings this year, while recording a 3.50 ERA in 95 career MLB games.
The Cubs have most recently used Assad out of the bullpen, with his last appearance being in Saturday’s 11-0 win over the Pirates. Assad got credit for the save, throwing three scoreless innings. As things currently line up, Assad will make Friday’s start against the New York Yankees at Wrigley Field. His last start came against the Cincinnati Reds on July 11 when Assad went five innings and gave up two runs.
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Assad has a 3.64 ERA in 42 innings over his eight starts with the Cubs this season. If you take away his one blowup against the Philadelphia Phillies on April 13, nine earned runs over 4.1 innings, Assad has a 1.91 ERA in his other seven starts (8 ER in 37.2 IP).
(Previous Update)
The Chicago Cubs mean business. A day after Jameson Taillon allowed seven runs on three home runs, the Cubs have cut him loose. On Monday, the team officially announced that Taillon was designated for assignment.
They could have moved the veteran to the bullpen, or maybe even given him more time to figure things out with a second stint on the injured list, but nope, the Cubs are done with Taillon, who has a 5.92 ERA this season and has allowed 25 home runs in 76 innings.
He seemed like a great teammate, and while most Cubs fans will remember Taillon at his worst, the right-handed pitcher did have a solid 2.5-year run in the rotation prior to this year’s disaster.
The Cubs will obviously be active in the trade market for a starting pitcher, but in the meantime, they can go to either Javier Assad or Aaron Civale to replace Taillon.
