Former Cubs Top Prospect Excited to Battle for Final Rotation Spot

The Chicago Cubs former top prospect is ready for the challenge of becoming the team's fifth starter.

Cameron Zunkel | Mar 23, 2025

Mar 18, 2025; Bunkyo, Tokyo, JPN; Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Ben Brown (32) throws a pitch in the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the Tokyo Series at Tokyo Dome. / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

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Chicago Cubs

Spring training is coming to a close, and opening day is less than one week away. With that, teams have to make their final roster decisions within the next couple of days. The Chicago Cubs are no different.

The Cubs first four starting pitchers have been locked in for the majority of spring. Shota Imanaga and Justin Steele will be the co-aces of the staff. Jameson Taillon will slot in nicely as the third starter and new addition Matthew Boyd has earned the fourth spot in the rotation.

The fifth and final spot is still up for grabs.

Chicago optioned Jordan Wicks to Triple-A, so he is not going to start the season on the Major League roster. Along with that, Javier Assad is beginning the season on the IL, so he will not have a spot in the rotation for the time being.

The final spot is now between Ben Brown and Colin Rea.

Brown made his season debut in Japan. The numbers were not the best, but there was a lot to like about his outing.

The 25-year-old was able to get the Los Angeles Dodgers to swing and miss 14 times in his 2.2 innings of work. A high majority of those whiffs came on his nasty knuckle curve. His fastball averaged over 95 mph, so he had two pitches working really well.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell is well aware of how good Brown can be if given the chance.

“He’s feeling really good. And I think that shows us some signs of being a really good Major League starting pitcher. If that’s the direction we go, that’s a pretty good [arm]. There’s some ceiling there, and it’ll be interesting to see what happens," Counsell said, per Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.

In 2024, Brown was much better as a starter than he was a reliever, so it would not be surprising to see the club give him in the ball to begin the season.

Last year, the right-hander had a 3.23 ERA as a starter in 39.0 innings pitched. He struck out 43 batters and opponents had a batting average of just .180 off him.

He is clearly a better pitcher when he has the time needed to warm up and come up with a game plan against opposing teams.

The former 33rd-round pick is more than happy to be in the mix for the final spot.

“It’s a dream come true. To be able to compete for a job you’ve been dreaming of your whole life. It just puts more emphasis on the day to day and going out and executing what I can control. It’s exciting, though. It’s an exciting position to be in," Brown said, per Bastian.

With him as the fifth starter, Chicago will use Rea as multi-inning reliever.

If Brown is the man for the job, the Cubs have a high-upside starter on their hands.

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