Projecting Cubs' playoff rotation after Jed Hoyer's blockbuster trade deadline

Fingers crossed, thanks to Jed Hoyer's efforts in recent days, we won't have to re-live the nightmare that was Colin Rea starting a must-win postseason game again come October.

To be clear, I love me some Colin Rea. Dude has been a relentless work horse over the last two years, taking the spot of Justin Steele when he went down for the year last April and doing the same when Cade Horton's season ended in his second start of 2026. But he should, under no circumstance, be the man handed the ball with the season on the line.

The additions of Clay Holmes, Kevin Gausman and David Peterson have reshaped a rotation that was hanging by a thread. That group could get further reinforcements in the final months of the regular season when (hopefully) Ben Brown and Edward Cabrera return from the IL. So, assuming all is well with that group, at large, let's look at how a potential Cubs postseason rotation might look.

Cubs can take things in a variety of directions with rotation in October

Kevin Gausman

Look, you don't trade for a guy like Gausman and not hand him the ball in the big moments. He anchored the Blue Jays' staff during their run to the American League pennant (and right to the precipice of a World Series championship) last year and that experience is meaningful come October.

The numbers on the back of the baseball card haven't been there this year, but some of the expected metrics suggest he's due for some positive regression. He may not be a Tarik Skubal, but he's got a pedigree that's suited well for the postseason and I'd be very surprised if Counsell went with anyone else to open a series.

Matthew Boyd

Call me old-school, but I like the idea of changing up the look for hitters and going right then left and, frankly, Boyd showed he can handle the pressure last postseason and will have a very fresh arm this time around after missing a good chunk of the season. That should help him overcome the issues he ran into down the stretch last year: a workload he hadn't handled in years wearing him down.

Like Gausman, Boyd is capable of inducing plenty of chase. He's also good at working through starts where he doesn't have his best stuff early on - something that's even more important come October. Boyd has earned the right to get the ball in big spots for the Cubs and I suspect he'll do just that in a couple of months.

Clay Holmes

Clay Holmes was one of the most sought-after rental arms available at the trade deadline and, while it came at a steep cost in top-100 prospect Jefferson Rojas, it was the Cubs who came out on top. You don't pony up that type of young talent only to hide a guy come October.

Game plan: give Holmes the ball and let the defense take care of the rest. One of the top ground ball pitchers in the league, the veteran right-hander is a perfect fit on the North Side.

Holmes is no stranger to the postseason, either, having pitched as a member of the Yankees in 2021, 2022 and 2024 as a reliever. Now as a starter, he'll have the chance to start a playoff game for the first time in his career and, hopefully, help the Cubs bring home a National League pennant for the first time since 2016.

Shota Imanaga

Here's where things get a little muddier. If Ben Brown is healthy, he could get the ball here. But the Cubs are being incredibly cautious with their young right-hander and, even if he gets the all-clear from the team medical staff, I wonder if he'll be kept on a short leash similar to Justin Steele.

That wouldn't be a terrible thing, allowing Craig Counsell to shorten games, having the likes of Steele, Brown, Edward Cabrera, Daniel Palencia and newcomer Ryan Zeferjahn for the late innings - as well as unsung heroes like Jacob Webb. If Imanaga can keep the ball in the yard and avoid that becoming a major issue again down the stretch, he should have the team's trust to deliver if needed in October.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow