Chicago Cubs: The best case scenario playoff pitching roster

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The pitching has been an issue almost from day one of the season.

Emerging ace Cade Horton was lost for the season after just two starts and will be out for much of next year as well following Tommy John surgery. Justin Steele’s return was shelved after a setback in his recovery from 2025 elbow surgery. Starters Matthew Boyd and Edward Cabrera, as well as closer Daniel Palencia have had two stints apiece on the IL. Three of the four free agent bullpen arms picked up in the offseason are either injured or off the team. Jameson Taillon flatlined the year and was later let go. And this was just some of the misfortune facing the team and it’s pitching staff.

The injuries have rocked them, non-stop, and have forced them into filling the roster with minor league pickups and castoffs from other teams just to field a full pitching staff.

Some good trade deadline acquisitions and a couple of pleasant surprises have helped stabilize the Cubs’ pitching, but with the playoffs approaching, there’s real concern about how this patchwork pitching staff may hold up. After all, as most experts acknowledge, pitching takes on a greater level of importance in the postseason.

But what if all goes well for Chicago’s pitching plans? What if it’s all “best case scenario” once the Cubs hit the playoffs?

Here’s a look at what such a pitching staff might look like.

The “best case scenario” Cubs playoff pitching roster

A veteran three-man Wild Card starting rotation of Clay Homes, Matthew Boyd, and Kevin Gausman would be top-tier. If/when the team advances, they’d then have to choose from Shota Imanaga, David Peterson, Colin Rea, and Javier Assad for the fourth rotation spot. This is definitely workable, especially if the offense is rocking.

The bullpen, however, is considerably more uncertain.

Jacob Webb and Daniel Palencia have been awful in recent outings and there’s real reason to be scared of what they might look like in a postseason late-inning relief role. Ryan Zeferjahn has closer-level stuff, but has struggled since coming over from the Angels at the trade deadline. His last two outings, though, have been great.

Now, here’s where there will be a bit of fantastical thinking to make this “best case scenario” angle work.

Justin Steele is currently working through a rehab assignment in the minors and, ideally, he gets the green light to work just in time to make the playoff roster. This would give the Cubs a second or third lefty in the pen, depending on whether they choose to keep both Ryan Rolison and Caleb Thielbar on the roster.

Then there’s Shelby Miller, who’s a bit further along in his rehab assignment than Steele. In a perfect world, he also gets back in time for the postseason.

Edward Cabrera, who’s also rehabbing, could be brought on as a wild card bullpen asset with legit swing-and-miss stuff for spot bullpen use.

So, in this “best case scenario” Cubs playoff bullpen, the team has a possible relief corps of: Palencia, Webb, Zeferjahn, Steele, Miller, Cabrera, Rea, Peterson, Assad, Imanaga, Rolison, Thielbar, Aaron Civale, and Trent Thornton.

And if all of them are clicking and performing at full capacity, that’s not too shabby of a bullpen.

Of course, “if” is a huge word in baseball.