Cubs bullpen bounceback candidate has done himself no favors this spring

A return to his 2024 form would do Porter Hodge - and the Chicago Cubs - a lot of good. With one spot conceivably open in the team's Opening Day bullpen, the hope is a high-upside arm like Hodge could make a strong case for himself this spring.

Unfortunately, at least to this point, that hasn't been the case.

Hodge has struggled badly with his control - which has always been a thorn in the right-hander's side. He averaged 5.0 BB/9 in his minor-league career and a barely improved 4.4 BB/9 mark in the big leagues. After an injury-plagued 2025, the 25-year-old has done himself no favors in a trio of Cactus League appearances, walking seven and allowing seven runs in two innings of work.

“This offseason,” Cubs pitching coach Tommy Hottovy told MLB.com, “I thought he did a great job of just getting back to a clean, athletic delivery and just ripping his fastball over the plate and let the slider work off that. We saw it in the live BPs. He [had a] 75-80% strike rate. And then the game happens and you kind of get back in those bad habits. So, for Porter, to me, I love the work he puts in and our guys work their tails off. When they're on the mound, you’ve got to go out there and trust that it’s going to be there.”

Despite rocky start to spring, Porter Hodge will be important to the Cubs

Needless to say, that's not going to get it done. Barring a dramatic turnaround, this type of showing - paired with the fact he's got a pair of minor league options remaining - makes it highly likely he opens the season as an important depth option at Triple-A Iowa who gets the call when a reliever on the big-league squad hits the IL throughout the year.

Injuries happen. I don't need to tell anybody that. Right now, it sounds like there's just a disconnect between Hodge's throwing sessions and in-game mechanics. If Hottovy and the Cubs can help him work through these issues (and keep in mind, we're talking about a guy who still has fewer than 80 MLB innings to his name), it's completely within the realm of possibility he throws meaningful, high-leverage innings this summer.

But right now, he's simply not looking like a guy ready to be a contributor in April, when Chicago could really use a hot start with other NL Central clubs facing big early-season questions.