Cubs Should Be Concerned About Starting Rotation for Postseason

As the Chicago Cubs get set for a massive weekend series against the Detroit Tigers, there is some concern about the team potentially being limited against the top contenders in the league.

It has been a fantastic start to the season for the Cubs, who currently reside in first place in the National League Central.

Winning the division was certainly a goal for Chicago coming into the year, and they seem well on their way to accomplishing that.

The Cubs have been led by arguably the best offense in baseball that has two NL MVP candidates helping lead the way. However, while they have two stars in Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker, there is a lot of depth for the unit as well.

While the lineup is awesome for Chicago, there is some concern about another area for the team with success in the postseason being the goal.

Do the Cubs Need to Add Starting Pitching?

Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report recently wrote about the starting rotation as it currently stands being a concern if the playoffs were to start today.

“While the Cubs have the offense to make a deep playoff run, they lost Justin Steele for the year with Tommy John surgery. Outside of Shota Imanaga, it's fair to be skeptical about who they would start in a postseason series.”

Coming into the campaign, the rotation looked fairly strong on paper for Chicago. With Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, and Jameson Taillon, that trio figured to be able to hold their own in a potential playoff series.

However, Steele is out for the year and Taillon has seen some regression in 2025 compared to last year. This leaves a currently injured Imanaga as the best option in a playoff series, and he will need some help.

When looking at some of the other rotations that the Cubs would likely have to face in October, they would be behind the eight-ball.

While the unit does have the top lineup and can overpower competition, it feels like the team could use another front-end start to replace Steele.

Due to the success of the team in 2025 and the impending free agency of Tucker this winter, Chicago is primed to win this year. However, this is still a flawed pitching staff that has been bailed out a lot by the offense.

Come October, pitching is key and even the great offense of the Cubs might be slowed down a bit. With that being said, Chicago has the talent to get the best pitchers available this summer, and they should certainly do so.