Chicago Cubs Rising Star Rookie Shines In No-Hit Bid

Ben Brown had seven strong innings for the Chicago Cubs against their rival Milwaukee Brewers.

Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports / Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs got a stellar performance from rookie Ben Brown on Tuesday, who went 7.0 innings of no-hit ball in his sixth MLB start against their rival Milwaukee Brewers.

In what is an important series for both the Cubs in the NL Central race, as well as manager Craig Counsell making his return to Milwaukee, Brown delivered a gem when they desperately needed it.

The right hander struck out 10 batters, allowing just two base runners via walk.

Brown had everything working against the Brewers, throwing 93 pitches and getting 16 total whiffs. 10 of those came on his knuckle curveball, a pitch that he had a 50 percent whiff rate on in this outing.

While he was brilliant, he only got one run of support, courtesy of a Michael Busch homer. After being replaced by Hayden Wesneski in the eighth inning, the no-hitter was broken up.

Acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022, Brown came into 2024 ranked as the No. 11 prospect in Chicago's farm system by MLB Pipeline. He was called up early in the season after Justin Steele went down with an injury, and has pitched well in different roles since.

In his 12 games, he has bounced around from the bullpen to the rotation, making five spot starts.

He set career highs on Tuesday, but has been solid in all of his prior starts. He struggled out of the gate in his first MLB appearance against the Texas Rangers, allowing six earned runs in 1.2 innings, but has steadily progressed in every appearance since.

With his outing against Milwaukee on Tuesday, coupled with Kyle Hendricks moving to the bullpen, Brown could continue to pitch himself into a rotation spot.

The Cubs' rotation, led by fellow rookie Shota Imanaga, could be their biggest strength in the NL Central race.

While the rising star certainly would have liked to pick up a winning decision, he's probably more excited that his team was able to earn a huge victory in extra innings as they put up five runs in the top of the 10th and held onto a 6-3 win.