Chicago Cubs 2025 Profile: Ben Brown |
As difficult a season as 2024 was for the Chicago Cubs, there were plenty of positive storylines to take away from last season. Several of those storylines revolved around the young players, including the overall growth of Pete Crow-Armstrong and Michael Busch, who are expected to play even bigger roles in 2025.
You then look at the pitching staff, who has not only been one of the better overall staffs in baseball but has done it unconventionally as they have focused more on contact-oriented pitchers than velocity. At some point, you have to think that this organization will shift to velocity, and should that be the case, they have plenty of in-house options that could help with that. One of the in-house options that will get plenty of attention this season is RHP Ben Brown, who is not only coming into 2025 healthy but could be in line to be an X-Factor for this team. Over the past five seasons, the Cubs have not only done a great job of acquiring young pitching but have spent plenty of time learning how to develop that pitching. It took a while for the results to happen, but Justin Steele was the first of what has been a wave of young pitching prospects, with last season being the best of them all. Brown is one of those young arms the Cubs are going to count on, and had it not been for a neck injury shutting down his season, he could have been a difference-maker down the stretch. Acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies as part of the David Robertson trade in 2022, Brown was once a top-five prospect in the Cubs system and showed the organization he was well worth the trade. In seven starts with the Tennesse Smokies in 2022, Brown posted a 4.08 ERA but managed to go 3-0 with 44 punchouts in those outings. Then came 2023, when Brown was not only counted on to be one of the Iowa Cubs starters but also started to show the Cubs organization what he was all about as a pitcher. Across 26 games (19 starts) between Tennessee and Iowa, Brown posted an 8-8 record with a 4.27 ERA. That brought his minor league numbers to 19-17 over his career, while his ERA sits a touch under 3.7. The potential is clearly there, and it wasn't until 2024 that Brown finally had a chance to show what he could do. After Steele had a hamstring injury during his first start, Brown was called up to replace him on the roster. Despite taking some bumps in his debut, he bounced back and became a lethal weapon for the Cubs. For the season, Brown gave the Cubs 55 innings across 15 games, eight of which were starts. During those games, he posted a 1-3 record, with a 3.58 ERA, as Brown showed he could handle both a relief and a starter role. To go with those numbers, Brown walked 19 and struck out 64 in his 55 innings while holding opponents to a .208 average. Not bad for a two-pitch pitcher who missed the season's final three months with a stress reaction in his neck. It's no secret that Brown may have some of the best, if not the best, stuff in the entire organization. His fastball sits around 97 MPH and can reach 99-100 at times. However, it's his 87 mph slider that sets him apart, as that has been widely regarded as the best breaking ball in the Cubs system. Brown also mixes in a changeup every now and then to help against right-handers, but he has been primarily a two-pitch guy at this point in his career. That leads us to what his role could be in 2025. Until he gets back on the mound and proves he is healthy, no one knows what his role will be. We know that Brown can be a long-term starter, as evidenced by his seven no-hit innings in Milwaukee last season, but he may not have the durability to be a starter. Injuries are a concern with Brown, and coming off his injury last season, expect the Cubs to be careful with him this season. Should that be the case, you could be looking at the closer in waiting for the Cubs, as there is a shot Brown will take over the closer duties this season. Ideally, fans would love to see the team spend money in free agency for a closer, but should they do not, Brown is a strong possibility to earn the opportunity. He has already proven to have the high velocity you look for in a closer, while his breaking ball makes him a two-pitch guy, which is what most closers tend to be. Considering he has been stretched out in the past, high pitch counts shouldn't be an issue for him, but for him to be at his best, one-inning spurts could be what is needed for him to unlock his true potential. The Cubs had a guy like this in Keegan Thompson, who dominated in 2022, filling a variety of roles in the pen. If Brown is healthy, he could be the 2025 version of Thompson. Still, he could also emerge as the team's closer they have been looking for, pushing Porter Hodge to the eighth and everyone else down a peg in the pen.
