The Chicago Cubs have made a very surprising move on Thursday afternoon which has some fans scratching their heads.

As first reported by Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Cubs activated right-handed reliever Tyson Miller off the 60-day injured list and subsequently designated him for assignment.

Miller had began a minor league rehab assignment and actually was posting solid numbers for Triple-A Iowa this year with a 2.77 ERA over 13 innings pitched, making the move all the more difficult to explain.

Realistically, Chicago likely did not feel there was a spot for him right now in the bullpen, and with the 29-year-old out of options, they were left with no choice but to DFA him.

After the Cubs acquired Miller in a trade from the Seattle Mariners early on in the 2024 season, he responded with the best campaign of his career.

Pitching to an ERA of 2.15 in 49 appearances for Chicago, he was arguably the team’s most consistent reliever.

It’s unfortunate they are not able to find a spot for him since he finally appears healthy after a hip issue costed him a massive chunk of the first half.

He is now likely to be traded or claimed in the coming days.

As the Cubs bullpen starts to somewhat find its groove, someone like Miller was going to have a tough time cracking his way back into the innings distribution.

Fans in Chicago are certainly going to keep a close eye on wherever he ends up going.