Well, it hasn’t worked out as a starter, and he’s been a major disappointment so far in 2026, but the Chicago Cubs are hoping that Edward Cabrera can at the very least help out in the bullpen to close out the year. The right-handed pitcher has been out since August, when he suffered another blister issue that put him on the injured list. He’s been rehabbing in the minors at Triple-A with the Iowa Cubs, where he’s been preparing to return as a reliever.
On Saturday, the Cubs activated Cabrera from the injured list, making room on the roster by placing Trent Thornton on the 15-day injured list because of ankle soreness. We see this from time to time, but this 100% seems like a phantom IL situation for Thornton, who, despite having a 3.35 ERA this season, hasn’t actually looked all that good.
As for Cabrera, the velocity looked good at Triple-A, and maybe his stuff gets a boost in short bursts out of the bullpen. His secondary pitches have to be the difference-makers for him to succeed, so we’ll see if he’s made the proper adjustments to be able to contribute down the stretch. And well, let’s hope that blister issue doesn’t pop up again.
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This is a real bummer because there were high expectations for Edward Cabrera, but by now, Chicago Cubs fans have had enough, and so has the team. After only lasting 3.2 innings in his first start back from the injured list, Cabrera is back on the injured list. He didn’t tell the team that he had a blister on his right middle finger until after he was already out of Sunday’s series finale against the St. Louis Cardinals, and now Cabrera will miss another two weeks because of the finger issue. It’s the second time the right-handed pitcher will be sidelined because of the same blister problem.
However, when Cabrera comes back in a couple of weeks, he won’t be in the starting rotation. Cubs manager Craig Counsell confirmed the change prior to Monday’s series opener against the White Sox at Wrigley Field. Cabrera will be relegated to bullpen duty in late August or early September, as the team can no longer trust the pitcher to go deep in games without the blister becoming a constant problem.
Cabrera has dealt with blister issues throughout his career, including during his time with the Miami Marlins. Earlier in 2026, Cabrera was first placed on the 15-day injured list after a start against the Milwaukee Brewers in May.
Whether it’s the recurring blister issue, hand cramps, or flat-out awful starts, Cabrera’s first season with the Cubs has been close to a complete disaster. We’re talking about a guy who was brought into the roster to be a playoff starter, and he’s going to end the regular season working as a relief pitcher.
In 2025, Cabrera finally had a fully healthy season and was great, posting a 3.53 ERA over 137.2 innings. He had the same blister on his middle finger in spring training last year, which forced him to miss the first few weeks of the regular season. Once he got a few starts under his belt, Cabrera ended the year with a 2.95 ERA in his final 22 starts, including 16 of at least five innings.
Now, in 2026, Cabrera will finish with only 15 starts, which include only 10 starts of at least five innings. He also missed nearly two months with a hamstring strain, which he suffered in late June against the New York Mets.
On Sunday, Cabrera was charged with seven earned runs, raising his ERA to 5.68, 11th worst among all MLB pitchers with at least 70 innings so far in 2026.
