Maybe it was always a pipe dream that Kyle Wright would be able to make a comeback in 2026 with the Chicago Cubs, but the possibility is officially over now. The right-handed pitcher was released by the Cubs right before the All-Star break, after Wright wasn’t able to recover from a setback earlier in the season or potentially an opt-out in his minor league deal with the club.
Wright is MLB’s last 21-game winner, accomplishing the feat in 2022, which also happened to be the last time the right-handed pitcher was healthy for a complete season. He pitched in nine games in 2023, but then the arm injuries came. A shoulder surgery followed after the 2023 season, and Wright hasn’t been able to return to the big leagues since.
There was some glimmer of hope that he could make a comeback in 2026 with the Cubs, signing a minor league deal in the offseason. He was reportedly back to throwing 96mph while continuing his rehab in the Cubs’ spring training complex in Arizona, but just as it looked like Wright was going to go up to Triple-A, he suffered a setback in May. There hasn’t been a word about Wright since then, and on July 12, Wright was officially released by the Cubs.
A year after making eight starts in the Kansas City Royals’ minor league system, Wright ended his tenure with the Cubs without ever pitching in an official game in the minor leagues.
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Kyle Wright’s Injury History
Wright’s last stint in the big leagues was rough in 2023, when the right-hander had a 6.97 ERA in 31 innings of work. Funny enough, his last MLB game actually came against the Cubs on Sept. 28, 2023, when Wright picked up the win after pitching 2.1 innings of relief out of the bullpen. Wright had already dealt with a shoulder issue that season that forced him to miss four months of action. Then, after the season ended, he underwent surgery to repair damage in his shoulder that cost him the rest of the 2024 season.
Fast forward to 2025, and Wright still wasn’t all the way back. By then, he was in his second year in the Royals organization after he was traded to them by the Atlanta Braves on Nov. 17, 2023. So, after missing all of 2024, Wright made his 2025 debut in the minors in early May, but he suffered a setback after two starts. The pitcher returned again a few weeks later and made six more starts, but was then sidelined again after June 21 because of an oblique injury.
And that was it for Wright in 2025. A total of eight starts between Double-A and Triple-A, 23 innings, and apparently enough to grab the attention of the Cubs, who signed him in February.
