{"id":44298,"date":"2025-03-26T13:53:59","date_gmt":"2025-03-26T13:53:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=44298"},"modified":"2025-03-26T13:53:59","modified_gmt":"2025-03-26T13:53:59","slug":"chicago-cubs-name-rhp-ben-brown-as-the-5th-starter-while-rhp-brad-keller-makes-the-bullpen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=44298","title":{"rendered":"Chicago Cubs name RHP Ben Brown as the 5th starter while RHP Brad Keller makes the bullpen"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

MESA, Ariz. \u2014 The Chicago Cubs are rolling with right-hander Ben Brown in the rotation.<\/p>\n

Brown, 25, will open the season as the Cubs\u2019 fifth starter, coming off a great rookie season that was cut short by a neck injury.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been very healthy and certainly we think he performed super effectively in that role last year and think he\u2019s got the ability to do it,\u201d manager Craig Counsell said Tuesday. \u201cThis is just about being a good pitcher and everybody kind of does that a little differently. That\u2019s certainly something Ben has shown is the ability to get swing-and-miss, and that for him right now, that\u2019s a little bit of his foundation and gets him out of some trouble. The rest of it is where the development is left to happen.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been good this spring. I think he could get better, and I think he will as he keeps taking the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the Cubs\u2019 final exhibition game, Brown allowed two runs and six hits in 4 1\/3 innings with one walk and four strikeouts in a 4-2 win versus the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday at Sloan Park. Brown\u2019s inclusion in the rotation means veteran right-hander Colin Rea will be used out of the bullpen, though Counsell noted he will still make many starts over the course of the season. Counsell expects Rea to play a valuable role in relief in the first week of the season and the initial two turns through the rotation.<\/p>\n

\u201cLength from the bullpen is something that we\u2019re really going to need,\u201d Counsell said. \u201cAnd we have some guys because of the Japan trip not completely stretched out to where normal spring training would happen and then we have seven games in a row like a lot of teams do to start the season, and that\u2019s going to make Colin\u2019s innings on a particular day really important.\u201d<\/p>\n

Right-hander Brad Keller has also made the team in the bullpen following a strong spring. The Cubs will need to add the hard-throwing 29-year-old to the 40-man roster but don\u2019t have to officially make that move until Thursday.<\/p>\n

\"Chicago
Chicago Cubs\u2019 Brad Keller pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Camelback Ranch on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (Armando L. Sanchez\/Chicago Tribune)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI kind of go back to Brad signing with us, and I think this is a place organizationally we did a nice job,\u201d Counsell said. \u201cI think Brad showed some trust and faith in the process to our ideas around helping him improve. So he\u2019s excited. I think he\u2019s excited by his spring, he\u2019s definitely been one of the pleasant surprises this spring. When you\u2019re a nonroster guy coming into his situation, there was nothing promised coming into camp. So he earned his way on and that\u2019s what you want to do in those situations.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Cubs have not yet made a decision on the final bench spot, which comes down to Gage Workman and Vidal Bruj\u00e1n, who were both part of the active roster in Japan. But with second baseman Nico Hoerner on track to be ready for Thursday\u2019s opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Cubs won\u2019t need to carry both players on their 26-man roster.<\/p>\n

Part of that decision hinges on Bruj\u00e1n\u2019s health. He exited Saturday\u2019s game after a collision with the outfield wall at Sloan Park resulted in a contusion on his right elbow that he is still feeling, particularly when hitting. Starting the season on the injured list has not been ruled out for Bruj\u00e1n.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ben Brown, 25, will open the season as the Chicago Cubs\u2019 fifth starter in the rotation, coming off a great rookie season that was cut short by a neck injury.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":44300,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[1323,896,959,282,80,780],"class_list":["post-44298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb","tag-ben-brown","tag-brad-keller","tag-cactus-league","tag-chicago-cubs","tag-mlb-baseball","tag-spring-training"],"yoast_head":"\nChicago Cubs name RHP Ben Brown as the 5th starter while RHP Brad Keller makes the bullpen - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=44298\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chicago Cubs name RHP Ben Brown as the 5th starter while RHP Brad Keller makes the bullpen - 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