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When Justin Steele awkwardly fielded a swinging bunt in the fifth inning of Thursday's Opening Game, Cubs' fans held their breath as the lefty lay on the ground holding his hamstring. Despite walking off under his power, once the Cubs acknowledged it was "a hamstring injury" mid-game, the obvious outcome was that Justin Steele would miss time, leaving a hole in the Cubs' already thin rotation. Questions about who would take the open roster spot took hold of discourse, both on NSBB and Cubs Twitter, as there were three apparent candidates: Drew Smyly, Hayden Wesneski, and Ben Brown. While Smyly offered the easiest plug-and-play, Wesneski, and more specifically Ben Brown, offered greater upside. Today, we got our answer, as reports from Tommy Birch, who covers the Iowa Cubs, as pointed out that Ben Brown is no longer with the Iowa Cubs. The only possibility is that he's on his way to Texas to join the parent club.
It's always hard to tell what a young player will do when given an opportunity on the highest level, but it's probably even harder to pin down Ben Brown. I wrote about Brown over the offseason a few times and again when I ranked him as my personal 10th-. If we're looking at his most recent MiLB data, it is fair to worry a bit about the powerful righty; he's got a fantastic fastball-curveball combination, but his fastball command has yet to show consistency at the Triple-A level. Our own Mathew Trueblood also highlights how high his release point is on the pitch and the issues it may cause. There's been a real fear that Brown's best bet to MLB usefulness would come out of the bullpen, especially at the start of that career.
With the doom-and-gloom out of the way, some real excitement brewing with Brown. First, Brown showed significant improvement in his fastball command this spring. The 6"4 righty did walk five in fourteen innings but gave up only a single run. His calling card, his curveball, is especially deadly and is a true "unicorn" pitch based on its spin and tightness. CHGO's Brendan Miller highlighted in his tweet that Brown's curveball moves more like a traditional slider, and yet, no one in baseball throws a slider like him. This type of pitch, coupled with the uniqueness of where he releases his fastball, will give him a good leg-up as he continues to refine his command; MLB hitters will never have seen someone like this before.
Brown is not the safe option here. There's a chance his command doesn't play, that the Cubs have brought him up too quickly. However, the Cubs are in a situation where their rotation is already a bit depleted with Jameson Taillon on the shelf, and Ben Brown offers things the Cubs don't have: a RHP who throws hard. While someone like Drew Smyly or Hayden Wesneski are more known quantities, the Cubs took the upside play here. Regardless of if you think he's ready, the Cubs do, and this will be a fun experiment. Make sure you clear your schedule because when Ben Brown debuts, whether it's great, awful, or somewhere in the middle, the Ben Brown experience will be something unlike any other starting pitcher in the entire league.
Do you think the Cubs should have called up Ben Brown? Would you rather have seen Hayden Wesneski or Drew Smyly? Let us know the comment section below!
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