Cubs Avoid Arbitration With Starter Ahead Of 2026 Season

Prior to Thursday's deadline to avoid a salary arbitration case, the Chicago Cubs and left-handed starter Justin Steele agreed to a $6.775 million contract for the 2026 season, as first reported by Patrick Mooney of The Athletic.

This is the second year of arbitration eligibility for Steele, who made $6.55 million in 2025. His season ended after just four starts due to an elbow injury that required surgery, and he is expected to return to the Cubs' rotation at some point in the first half of the upcoming season.

Source: Cubs pitcher Justin Steele agreed to a one-year, $6.775 million contract ahead of today’s deadline to exchange salary figures for arbitration-eligible players.
— Patrick Mooney (@PJ_Mooney) January 8, 2026

Steele represented a much-needed victory for Chicago's pitching development apparatus, even though it took him several years to realize his potential. The Cubs selected him in the fifth round of the 2014 MLB Draft out of high school in Mississippi, and Steele slowly made his way through their minor league system before making his big-league debut in 2021.

He became a regular member of Chicago's rotation in 2022, then broke out into a first-time All-Star in 2023 as the Cubs became surprise playoff contenders before fading in September. Steele finished 16-5 that season with a 3.06 ERA in 173 1/3 innings, placing fifth in National League Cy Young Award voting.

Steele followed that up with another strong 2024 campaign, but was limited to 24 starts and 134 2/3 innings after straining his left hamstring in his Opening Day start against the Texas Rangers. He returned in May and remained healthy until September, when left elbow tendinitis sent him back to the Injured List. That proved to be a harbinger of things to come in 2025.

Justin Steele — Matt Marton-Imagn Images

The Cubs made the playoffs last year for the first time since 2020 without Steele, but the lefty is a big part of their rotation when available, and his absence — coupled with a late-season injury to NL Rookie of the Year runner-up Cade Horton — was sorely felt in the postseason.

Chicago started a reliever, Drew Pomeranz, in Game 5 of the NL Division Series and saw their season end with a loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.

Which other Cubs are eligible for arbitration?

Steele is one of just three Cubs players, all pitchers, who will need to agree with the club on a 2026 salary Thursday or else head to arbitration.

One of the others is Edward Cabrera, who Chicago acquired Wednesday in a trade with the Miami Marlins for a package centered around top prospect Owen Caissie. MLB Trade Rumors projected that Cabrera, who is arb-eligible for the first time in his career, will earn $3.7 million, a significant raise over the $1.95 million he earned in 2025.

Right-hander Javier Assad, also in his first year of arbitration eligibility, has a projected salary of $1.9 million, per MLB Trade Rumors. An oblique strain cost Assad the majority of the 2025 season, but he returned in August and has a 3.43 ERA in 331 career innings with the Cubs, mostly as a starter.

More advanced stats such as fielding-independent pitching (FIP) do not view him as favorably, but he offers insurance in case the rotation is again beset by injuries and can also be used out of the bullpen.

The Cubs chose not to tender contracts to two other arb-eligible players, catcher Reese McGuire and reliever Eli Morgan.

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