Cubs’ aggressive additions could prove key to finally clearing Brewers-shaped hurdle, now or in October
If you can’t beat ‘em, add ‘em?
Even after luring Craig Counsell away, the Cubs have yet to wrest control of the division from the Brewers.
But with another ex-Brewer in the fold, maybe things could be different?
Tyrone Taylor, a Brewer from 2019 to 2023, made the case with his first-inning home run Monday, the start of a Cubs home-run barrage in the opener of the teams’ four-game series.
Taylor was added in one of Jed Hoyer’s aggressive moves at the trade deadline, that deal with the Mets landing Monday’s starter, Clay Holmes, with hopes of the righty propelling the Cubs to big things from the top of the rotation.
Hoyer & Co. likely weren’t thinking of Taylor, a reserve outfielder who brought a .368 average and a .432 on-base percentage as a Cub into Monday, as a middle-of-the-order presence, but that homer – his first in a Cubs uniform – came from the cleanup spot.
Sure, role players can be difference-makers, but the Cubs parted with No. 2 prospect Jefferson Rojas to nab Holmes, who looked worth the cost once more Monday, following up seven shutout innings against the Diamondbacks with six more scoreless frames against the Brewers. He’s got a 1.55 ERA since being acquired.
Before all that, the Cubs spent $175 million to add third baseman Alex Bregman, whose scorching summer has only been overshadowed by Pete Crow-Armstrong’s MVP push. Bregman had a .967 OPS in his previous 42 games before homering twice in his first three at-bats Monday.
If the Cubs are going to finally clear the Brewers-shaped hurdle, be it in a surprise late-season rally in the division race or come the postseason, the front office’s aggressive work to add to the roster could prove the difference.
Sticking with Shota
The Cubs have no plans to remove lefty Shota Imanaga from their rotation following a second straight clunker Sunday.
Imanaga leaped into a tie for the major league lead in home runs allowed by surrendering a trio to the Reds, matching the 33 given up by Jeffrey Springs of the Athletics.
“Shota’s going to make his next start,” Counsell said Monday. “We’re going to continue to work on, like everybody, having him be more effective, be your best possible self and be as effective as you possibly can. That work never stops.
“We need Shota to be one of our guys.”
The choice to stick with Imanaga is no shock. Though he wrapped a rough August with a 5.96 ERA in five starts, including a pair of games in which he allowed three homers, that followed a terrific July (1.53 ERA in five starts) and a stretch of a 2.09 ERA in nine starts.
“Major League Baseball is an execution game,” Counsell said. “Shota has proven, at his best self, he’s a very good major league pitcher. He didn’t execute some things [Sunday] night.”
However, watching Imanaga serve up long balls brings to mind how his 2025 ended: He gave up 10 homers in September and wasn’t chosen to start the Cubs’ loss to the Brewers in Game 5 of the NLDS.
Murray? Present.
Infielder B.J. Murray Jr. is joining the Cubs after putting up impressive numbers in the minors this season.
In 118 games with Triple-A Iowa, Murray hit .294/.395/.500 with 49 extra-base hits, 68 RBIs and 74 runs scored.
Murray, ranked as the organization’s No. 19 prospect, was a 15th-round draft choice of the Cubs in 2021.
He’ll become the second player born in the Bahamas to appear in a game for the Cubs, joining infielder Andre Rodgers, who played in nearly 500 games across four seasons as a North Sider in the 1960s.