The Chicago Cubs have been very active in the bullpen market this offseason. 

They have already agreed to Major League contracts with five different relievers. Those relievers are Phil Maton, Hoby Milner, Caleb Thielbar, Jacob Webb, and Hunter Harvey. Of these relievers, Thielbar is the only one returning from last year. 

With five free-agent reliever additions so far this winter, the Cubs' bullpen is starting to take shape. So, let’s predict which relievers will make the 2026 Opening Day roster.

Daniel Palencia 

Daniel Palencia is coming off a breakout campaign in 2025 in which he finished with a 2.91 ERA and 61 strikeouts across 52 ⅔ innings pitched. He also led the team in saves last year with 22. As a result, Palencia is locked into that closer role next season. 

The Cubs didn’t add a full-time closer this offseason, and Palencia showed last season that he can handle that ninth-inning closer role. There’s no question that the hard-throwing right-hander will make the Opening Day roster. 

Phil Maton 

Maton is the only reliever that the Cubs have signed so far this offseason who received a multi-year deal. So, he’ll definitely make the team’s Opening Day roster. He’ll fill that sixth/seventh/eighth inning role in this bullpen. 

The right-hander posted the best numbers of his career in 2025. He delivered a 2.79 ERA and 81 strikeouts across 61 ⅓ innings pitched. With a 32.5% strikeout rate last year, the Cubs will be relying on him to get punchouts in key situations.  

Hoby Milner 

The Cubs signed Milner this offseason to be their reliable left-handed pitcher out of the bullpen. Manager Craig Counsell will likely go to him in many left-on-left situations, as the southpaw held left-handed hitters to a .208 batting average in 2025. 

Therefore, Milner will be used in key moments against left-handed batters. He’ll fill that Drew Pomeranz role from a season ago. The 34-year-old had a 3.84 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 73 appearances last year. 

Caleb Thielbar 

Thielbar is back with the Cubs following a career year in 2025. He finished with a 2.64 ERA and 56 strikeouts across 58 innings pitched. The left-hander will have a very similar role as last year, when he earned 25 holds. 

Jacob Webb 

Webb is one of the more underrated signings by the front office this winter. He wasn’t the biggest name in the reliever market, but he has emerged as a reliable bullpen arm in each of the past two seasons. 

He has finished with a 3.02 ERA (2024) and a 3.00 ERA (2025) over his last two years. The right-hander has also limited hard contact in both those seasons. So, Webb will be a key part of Chicago’s bullpen in 2026. 

Hunter Harvey

Harvey is the latest signing for the Cubs. Although he missed most of the 2025 season due to shoulder/groin injuries, he gives Chicago another hard-throwing right-hander out of the bullpen. He averaged 97.8 mph on his four-seam fastball during his last full season in 2024. 

If he can stay healthy, Harvey could turn out to be one of the team’s best reliever signings this offseason. He didn’t allow a run over 10 ⅔ innings pitched last year. 

Javier Assad/Colin Rea/Porter Hodge/Ben Brown/Luke Little/Jordan Wicks

The last bullpen spot(s) will come down to these six pitchers. Assuming the Cubs decide to carry eight relievers to start the year, that means two of these pitchers will begin the season in Chicago’s bullpen. 

One of Assad/Rea will likely make the team as a reliever. Then, the other four relievers could be battling it out for the final spot. If the Cubs want another lefty in the bullpen, Little could have the inside track on making the Opening Day roster. But it will probably be Hodge/Brown for that last spot.