A way-too-early projection of the Cubs bullpen after the Phil Maton signing

Barring reunions, the three most important Chicago Cubs relievers from this season will play elsewhere in 2026 in Brad Keller, Drew Pomeranz and Caleb Thielbar. Jed Hoyer is essentially starting from scratch - but made a significant addition late Friday night, inking veteran right-hander Phil Maton to a two-year deal with a club option for 2028.

The Cubs will mark Maton's eighth MLB organization in his 10-year career - and his fifth since the start of the 2024 campaign. Something seemed to click for him in recent years, and he's posted very strong numbers: 125 1/3 innings pitched, a 3.23 ERA, 1.085 WHIP and 10.1 K/9.

Phil Maton does what the Cubs love better than just about anyone

Relying on inducing weak contact, the veteran ranked in the 98th percentile in whiff rate and barrel rate last year, pitching for Texas and St. Louis. He was also in the top 1 percent in average exit velocity and hard-hit rate. Chicago loves pitchers that can limit hard contact, especially in the pen, which likely explains why the Cubs were comfortable going multiple years on him. He doesn't get outs with velocity - he's just a spin master.

Projected Cubs bullpen post-Phil Maton signing

CP - Daniel Palencia
SU - Phil Maton
RP - Porter Hodge
RP - Ben Brown
RP - Luke Little
RP - Ethan Roberts
RP - Javier Assad
RP - Jordan Wicks

Maton can finish games - he's done so 55 times over the last four years - but projects to fill a role similar to the one Keller played for much of the year before taking over closing duties last in the summer: versatile outs-getter who, in an ideal world, sets the stage for Daniel Palencia in the ninth.

With Palencia and Maton at the back end of the pen, Hoyer will likely look to the middle innings in the weeks and months to come. The return of Colin Rea and the decision to tender a contract to Javier Assad gives the Cubs a pair of rotation depth/swingman options (assuming the team adds another starter, otherwise one of them rounds out the starting five) - but there's a lot of question marks between there and the late innings.

Even so, it's encouraging to see Hoyer break the norm and do what's needed to get a reliable veteran for the pen. The last two winters have seen the additions of Ryan Pressly and Hector Neris - both of which ended in disappointment - and Maton definitely feels like a major upgrade over those types of guys, especially in a key role.