Potential Chicago Cubs Fifth Starter Struggles on Opening Day in Japan

The Chicago Cubs took the lead early on opening day in Japan, but ultimately came up short against the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-1.

In the game, Shota Imanaga had a very good start. He threw four hitless, shutout innings while striking out two batters. He did walk four, but he usually has much better control than that.

The left-hander along with Justin Steele and Jameson Taillon are locked into the starting rotation. The fourth starter will most likely be Matthew Boyd. The fifth and final spot is still up for grabs, though.

The thought was Javier Assad would take the mound every fifth day, but he is dealing with an oblique injury that will force him to start the season on the IL. Jordan Wicks and Colin Rea are also in consideration for the final starting job.

Ben Brown, however, had a chance to steal the fifth starting spot from all three of those guys.

The right-handed pitcher made eight starts in 2024. In those starts, he threw 39.0 innings, allowed just 24 hits, struck out 43 batters and owned a 3.23 ERA.

Brown has a lot of upside, and that was shown as the Cubs decided to start extending his outings during spring training this year.

In Japan, though, the former 33rd-round pick was used in relief after Imanaga.

Brown threw 2.2 innings, allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits while striking out five batters and walking three.

The 25-year-old showcased some nasty pitches on the mound, but it came with some issues commanding the zone. He needed 65 pitches to get his eight outs, which is extremely inefficient.

His struggles in relief are nothing new. Brown's ERA was 1.18 runs lower as a starter. Additionally, opponents hit .180 off him when he started games compared to a much higher .266 when he was used out of the bullpen.

The 6-foot-6 pitcher is clearly much more comfortable when he has time to go through a full pregame routine. Coming out of the bullpen forces him to get his arm ready quicker than he would have to as a starter, and that has a negative effect on him.

His talent can not be denied, but if Brown can not pitch well out of the bullpen, there might not be a spot for him on the team as the starting rotation could be full.

Nonetheless, he was the first out of the bullpen, and manager Craig Counsell did his best to extend his outing to ensure he throws more pitches. That could point towards him still being in the mix for the fifth starter job.

Looking forward, the Cubs will play one more game in Japan Wednesday morning before heading back stateside. Their domestic opening day is March 27 when they take on the Arizona Diamondbacks.

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