3 minor league pitchers the Cubs need to get a look at down the stretch

3. Caleb Kilian

The Cubs have not seen Caleb Kilian all year despite initially having a promising shot to make the major league roster in Spring Training. A teres major strain in his right shoulder ultimately cut those hopes short, but he's finally nearing the end of his rehab assignment after months of recovery. Moreover, he's now entirely focused on relieving instead of starting, which could fast-track his return to Wrigley and make his potential future on the big league team much easier to imagine.

Coming into 2024, things looked brighter than ever as he posted a fantastic 1.50 ERA in his six innings in spring with some extra life on his fastball. It was a tantalizing showing for a pitcher who has disappointed with a 12.42 ERA in the majors and plenty of minor-league struggles since he arrived in the Kris Bryant trade in 2021. Although things haven't looked good overall in his very limited time back in Triple-A this year, all of that deserves a huge asterisk when considering the injury and the conversion.

There are signs he could be slowly getting back to that exciting Spring Training form too. Kilian has been clocked at 97.2 mph as recently as Sunday's game and has even touched 99 on the radar gun during his rehab assignment. His most recent performance was also his best of the year, with three innings of scoreless baseball. The velocity alone is reason to believe this is a different Kilian than the one that struggled so mightily in his earlier years with the organization. It's probably for the better for now that he continues to rack up innings in Iowa, but a call-up has to be considered to see how these changes translate to the majors.

For all their talent, these three guys still only scratch the surface of the bevy of pitching the Cubs have been developing in the minors. They're closer than ever to having a pipeline of arms that can be relied upon for supplemental pieces throughout the years. Hopefully, the rest of 2024 can be used to help define which of them