Cubs could fix their biggest issue and get the best version of Ben Brown with one move

I still can't help but think how different the conversation might be if the Chicago Cubs were on the brink of clinching a playoff spot with the likes of Ben Brown and Cade Horton healthy and at their best. Given the team's historic defensive performance this year and the high-powered offense, we'd be talking about serious World Series aspirations.

Ben Brown's breakout 2026 season was derailed by the same neck issue that abruptly ended his 2024 campaign, so it's a major concern for the big right-hander looking ahead. The Cubs, for their part, need to find a way to keep him healthy and the best way to do that might be re-thinking his role.

“The frustrating thing for Ben,” Craig Counsell said after the Cubs shut Brown down for the year. “is just this is multiple times where this has knocked him out for a long period of time. And that obviously is what is the most frustrating part of it. And the answers are, ‘rest,’ which is a good answer, but sometimes a frustrating answer, because athletes want to do something to fix it, right? And there’s just not much to do.

As a team, Chicago has blown 28 saves - the third-most in the National League. Daniel Palencia has failed to lock down the closer's job, battling injuries, and Jacob Webb has faded down the stretch after a brilliant run in the ninth-inning this summer. In an ideal world, he's more of a seventh or eighth-inning arm as opposed to a closer.

Ben Brown has all the weapons needed to be a succesful Cubs closer

Transitioning Brown to a full-time closer could have a trickle-down effect on the rest of the bullpen, allowing Webb and Palencia to be late-inning out-getters, giving the Cubs a quality trio to turn to, led by a high-octane option to slam the door.

The Cubs' bullpen will see plenty of turnover this winter: Caleb Thielbar, Hunter Harvey, Colin Rea, and Aaron Civale are all free agents. The same is true of the rotation with Matthew Boyd, Shota Imanaga, Clay Holmes, Kevin Gausman and David Peterson ticketed for the open market. By penciling Brown into the ninth, Jed Hoyer can focus his resources elsewhere, rather than be forced to invest heavily in a ninth-inning arm, something we know he'd like to avoid.

Health comes first and foremost. But if reducing his overall workload could allow Brown to stay on the mound for a full 162 and beyond, it's a move the Cubs need to seriously consider this offseason.

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