The Chicago Cubs are making a change in the starting rotation out of necessity, and although you may have assumed that the team would go back to Javier Assad, Craig Counsell has instead opted to insert Ben Brown into Matthew Boyd’s spot.
Boyd will be out for approximately six weeks after undergoing surgery on his left meniscus. A freak incident while playing with his kids earlier this week led Boyd to need the procedure, which ultimately wasn’t as bad as it could have been. A full repair would have sidelined the pitcher for the rest of the season. Now, the Cubs are expecting Boyd to be back before July. However, until then, the team needs someone to step up in the starting rotation and Brown has been given another shot.
It was a brutal 2025 campaign for Brown as a starting pitcher. The right-hander made 15 starts last season, and in 75.2 innings, Brown was crushed, allowing 14 home runs, a .294 batting average, and the 6.30 ERA wasn’t fluky. Opposing hitters were able to sit on Brown’s four-seam fastball or knuckle curve as the Cubs’ pitcher shied away from a change up that he tried to incorporate as his third pitch.
However, we’re not talking about the same pitcher anymore. Back in spring training, Brown’s newfound sinker was quietly being molded into his repertoire, and although the Cubs rotation was full to begin the year, the team did give Brown a spot in the Opening Day roster as a reliever. His first appearance was rough, giving up a home run in relief of Boyd against the Washington Nationals, but Brown has completely changed his perception.
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Sure, there were some stretches in the past when Brown was successful. It’s a reason that the Cubs still have high hopes for him, but the way he’s getting to his positive results now is much more encouraging. Brown has a 2.10 ERA in 12 appearances this season, going more than one inning in 11 of those relief outings. He’s struck out 24 batters, while only allowing eight walks, and he hasn’t surrendered a home run since the first batter he faced on Opening Day.
Bleacher Nation noted a specific change in pitch usage for Brown, a significant shift with the sinker becoming a real third weapon this year.
Pitch Usage (2024 –> 2026)
- Four-seamer: 62.7% –> 36.9%
- Knuckle Curve: 35.7% –> 34.7%
- Sinker: 0% –> 23.2%
- Changeup: 1.6% –> 5.2%
More importantly, the change in pitch mix has finally gotten opposing batters off the barrel against Brown.
Batted Ball Metrics (2025 –> 2026)
- GB%: 38.7% –> 50.7%
- EV: 91.8 MPH –> 89.1 MPH
- Hard hit rate: 51.4% –> 34.8%
- Barrel rate: 10.9% –> 4.3%
We’ll see how long Brown can go on Friday night in the Cubs’ series-opener against the Texas Rangers. We already know what Assad can bring to the table, and while he has been a reliable pitcher there is no doubt that Brown provides the Cubs a higher ceiling.
It’s better to find out now if Brown can be a starter and help the rotation this season than to wait around and go to him as a last resort. I would have been apprehensive if the Cubs were going back to Brown if he had not made a substantial change in the offseason. This is not the same Ben Brown.
He last pitched on Monday against the Cincinnati Reds. Brown threw 25 pitches in that game after throwing 24 pitches in a two-inning save on Saturday. Not exactly sure how stretched out Brown is, and it’s not like the Cubs are expecting him to immediately go 6+ innings on Friday, but he’s been given a big opportunity to get back into the rotation, and hopefully the new version does a better job with it.
