Shelby Miller could be the bullpen addition the Cubs never made at the trade deadline

Less than a year after undergoing elbow surgery, Chicago Cubs pitcher Shelby Miller is on the verge of returning to the majors. Nobody expected him to even have a chance to pitch during the 2026 season, which is why the Cubs inked him to a two-year deal last offseason. But the 35-year-old righty is suddenly way ahead of schedule and looking sharp in his minor league rehab assignments.

Miller has made five rehab appearances heading into the weekend, one with Double-A Tennessee and four with the Iowa Cubs. Although his 5.79 ERA looks ugly, we're talking about a very small 4 2/3 sample size. Two of those appearances were scoreless outings, he has an 8:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio and, remarkably, Miller is touching 96 MPH with his fastball. Not too shabby for a guy who just had his UCL reconstructed last October.

That being said, we should temper our expectations a bit. Craig Counsell recently told reporters that the team is being overly cautious with Miller's rehab, as they should be considering the circumstances.

Shelby Miller could completely transform the Cubs' bullpen

If Miller can complete this remarkable return, signing him could prove to be one of the most consequential moves the Cubs front office made last winter. The bullpen is in need of reinforcements, and a guy like Miller could slot into a setup role if everything continues to go smoothly for him.

Not to take anything away from Miller's impressive recovery, but him potentially grabbing a vital bullpen role is also an indictment on the current state of the bullpen. Jacob Webb is the only guy who can be trusted to take the ball in a save situation right now, and the team is using him quite a bit. His 57 appearances is already approaching his career-high, and he's had to appear in consecutive games multiple times in August.

It helps that Daniel Palencia was recently activated, but his rough outings in the minor leagues mean he's going to have to prove he can handle high-leverage innings again. And the big disappointment is that Ryan Zeferjahn, the team's prized bullpen addition at the trade deadline, has looked very ineffective in a Cubs uniform thus far (7.50 ERA in his first seven outings with Chicago). Oh, and don't forget the team's $5.5 million gamble on Phil Maton not exactly paying off. I certainly didn't forget.

Needless to say, a healthy Miller could be a game-changer when the playoffs come around. Along with other injured arms like Ben Brown and Justin Steele.

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