Chicago Cubs Place Ben Brown On Injured List

The Cubs have placed the rookie starter on the 15-day IL.

Jun 8, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Ben Brown (32) pitches against the Cincinnati Reds in the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports / Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs placed right hander Ben Brown on the injured list prior to Tuesday's game. Brown will hit the 15-day IL with a neck strain, retroactive to June 9. To fill his roster spot, the Cubs activated Colton Brewer from the 15-day IL.

Brown, in his rookie season, has been solid out of both the bullpen and as a starter. In 15 games, eight of which are starts, the 24-year-old has posted a 3.58 ERA in 55.1 innings with 10.4 K/9. The righty has been very impressive in his debut campaign, in every role he's been asked to fill.

What has been particularly impressive is his knuckle curveball, the best of his three pitches that he throws 35.7 percent of the time. It's his best bat misser, a pitch that hitters are only managing a .141 average against and whiff on 51 percent of the time.

Most of Brown's appearances have been shorter outings, as he has gone five or more only three times. However, he hit the scene in a big way during a series in Milwaukee where he went seven innings of no-hit ball with 10 strikeouts against the division rival.

Brown is the latest in what has been a season of many injuries to the rotation for the Cubs, but they have gotten healthy as of late and have the depth to survive an injury to the rookie. When he returns, he will rejoin a rotation, led by rookie Shota Imanaga, that has been very good in 2024.

On the other side of things, Colton Brewer returns from the IL after missing nearly a month with a back strain. In his first season in Chicago, Brewer began the season pitching 11.2 innings and striking out 12 and was a solid option in a struggling bullpen.

With Adbert Alzolay on the 60-day IL and Hector Neris and Mark Leiter Jr. taking a step back from strong starts, the addition of Brewer will be a boost to the relief corps.

Brown is off to a strong start to his big league career and this injury could be a pretty big blow to the Cubs rotation. No timetable has been given for how long he will be out, but they get a boost to the bullpen in the meantime.