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The Cubs' 4-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday in extra innings was a game the visitors didn't deserve to win, but they won it, anyway. No shade to the Brewers, but in many ways, the Cubs managed to out-Brewers them. Chicago was outhit (in terms of actual hits and expected hits) and got performance after performance from a cast of randoms and leftovers from other organizations. Milwaukee has used what can only be called "Brewers magic" for years to do this to other teams; they seemingly manifest pitchers out of thin air and do just enough offensively to get wins. On Sunday, it was the Cubs that used this formula to great effect. The catalyst in that formula was a pitcher who knows Brewers magic very well: Bryse Wilson.
Wilson, 28, was designated for assignment on June 22 by Philadelphia. The Cubs, desperate for any human being with a pulse and an arm, claimed the right-handed pitcher on waivers. It's probably safe to say that there were little in the way of expectations, as their new addition has accumulated -0.4 fWAR over his career in 463 IP at the big-league level. It's been years and years since he was a top-100 prospect, so any pedigree has long been forgotten. Little was expected. The message (probably encoded a bit more hopefully) was surely along the lines of "please eat some innings". The Cubs didn't even trust Wilson to start the game, instead going with Ryan Rolison as the opener. They also called up Jordan Wicks for a "break-in-case-of-Bryse-emergency" bulk inning role. The burly pitcher, however, had different ideas.
When the 6-foot-2, 255-pound Wilson entered the game in the top of the third, the Cubs were already down 1-0. Instead of getting walloped, all he did was battle. The tone was set for his entire performance in that third inning—though the inning did not start well for the North Siders. The Brewers were quickly able to get runners on both first and third, with only one gone. Cue the music: Cub-killer extraordinaire Jackson Chourio was headed to the plate, perhaps the last Brewer you'd want to see there. The game felt like it was about to get out of hand; the tables were set for Milwaukee to break the game open. Then, it felt like a switch flipped for the man on the mound, and the game flipped on its head.
One of the most important things for a pitcher is getting ahead of hitters. It changes the at-bat significantly, and Wilson went right after Chourio by firing in a show-me 89-mph cutter through the zone for strike one. Coming back 0-1, he threw a 92-mph sinker at the top of the zone (though to be fair, I don't think he meant to throw it up there) for a second straight strike. Now up 0-2, Wilson reared back and got every bit of his body behind a 95-mph heater right at the top of the zone, which got the young slugger to give a big swing... and an even bigger miss. It was a statement moment from an unlikely hero. Wilson ended up getting out of the jam, but that single at-bat felt like it began to give the pitcher the confidence he needed.
On the day, Wilson pounded the strike zone with that confidence. He started two-thirds of the hitters he faced with a strike, and kept the ball in the zone nearly 60% of the time. This is a big change from what he's done in the past; his career in-zone rate is under 50%. His fastball had some extra juice as well, as it averaged over 94 mph for the first three innings of his appearance (though it dipped below in the fourth, he was clearly gassing out). It was a bulldog-like performance. It's true that he only got five swing and misses on the day; you'd hope that he'd throw a few more over four innings. It makes the four strikeouts a little less impressive, but it's easy to forgive that after throwing four scoreless frames on the road, all things considered.
Another thing to note going under the hood; Wilson used his arsenal a little differently than normal. He threw more four-seam fastballs (23%) than his 2025 (17%) and barely utilized his curveball (just three curves were thrown all day despite him using this pitch 16% of the time last year). Are these little flourishes the Cubs installed? Hard to tell in such a small sample size. It could also just be random happenstance or Brewers-specific matchup things—or Wilson consciously altering his plan to confound a team that knows him well. Regardless, Wilson didn't really look like the guy he had been before.
Interestingly enough, the only real success Wilson has had in his career came in 2023 and parts of 2024 when he was mostly a reliever with Milwaukee. His keys to success? Over 60% first-pitch strikes and being in the zone over 50% of the time. He relied heavily on the sinker, cutter and four-seam fastball—pitches he leaned into Sunday. This could be a good example of "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em".
The reality of the Cubs' situation is that their bullpen is beat to death right now. The team had to call upon Wicks in extra innings with the bases loaded and no outs to bail them out of the game. Trent Thornton was the only pitcher who wasn't used, but he had pitched three of the last four outings and the Cubs are going to need someone capable of coming out of the pen this week. Hell, they're going to need someone to come out of the bullpen Monday night. To do that, the team may have to make the hard choice to designate Wilson for assignment to bring up someone, because it's likely that the right-hander will be down for the next few days after throwing 61 pitches Sunday afternoon. Sadly, four innings cannot erase 164 games of futility, and the Cubs know what he's been in the past.
Wilson, though, may have bought himself a little time. Ethan Roberts was terrible in relief; he could be optioned to Iowa instead. Frankly, Roberts (sporting an xFIP of 5.17 on the year entering Sunday) has been terrible all year. He deserves the demotion. Craig Counsell looked absolutely miffed and exhausted coming to yank him after he loaded the bases. I'm not sure there's a lot of trust there after that performance. It might just be best for everyone involved if he takes a break from the parent club, opening up the chance to Wilson (whom Counsell managed and liked in 2023) to stick around. For a team who's short on middle relief options right now, that could give Wilson a window to seize some extra innings.
Regardless of what happens to him, successful teams find innings from people like Bryse Wilson throughout the year. The Cubs have used 30 pitchers on the year (not counting Carson Kelly), and beggars cannot be choosers. Last year, the Cubs rode Chris Flexen for 43 innings. Flexen was terrible in terms of almost every statistic except for ERA, but those 40 innings were key for a team in the middle of the year who needed someone to throw strikes.
The Cubs need to add some talent to this roster. They need at least one starter and one or two relievers, without much help coming internally—meaning it's going to come via trade. Teams really aren't open for business yet and the Cubs would prefer to wait some of these prices out—probably two weeks or so, if not longer. They're going to need these kinds of performances from someone.
Even if they do DFA the righty before he makes a second appearance with the Cubs, his four innings with the club were incredibly important in the moment. The Cubs won an emotional series in Milwaukee that they probably didn't deserve to win. Many players contributed to that win, and Wilson played a starring role. If the Cubs are going to stick around until reinforcements come, they're going to need a few no-name guys to find those innings. On Sunday, Bryse Wilson reminded us that he can be a hero, even if it's just for one day.
What did you make of Bryse Wilson's first appearance? Do you think he can keep it up? Let us know in the comment section!
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