Ethan Roberts' scoreless spring appearances and improved velocity put him in strong contention for a coveted Cubs bullpen spot on Opening Day.
Chicago Cubs pitcher Ethan Roberts has gotten off to a solid start this spring.
He hasn’t allowed a run in any of his three appearances. Roberts has given up just one hit, one walk, and two strikeouts across three innings of work. In his most recent Spring Training appearance, he allowed one hit with one strikeout in one scoreless inning against the Padres.
Roberts has really made the most of his opportunities this spring. Not only has he looked good on the mound in his three Spring Training appearances, but his metrics back up his strong start as well.
The Cubs pitcher has posted a 0% barrel rate, an 81.7 mph average exit velocity, a 28.6% hard-hit rate, a 47.6% zone swing rate, and a .111 batting average against across his three innings this spring. Those are all solid metrics from the right-hander.
Seeing Roberts have some success on the mound is not a totally new thing. He dominated at the Triple-A level last year, finishing with a 2.16 ERA and 54 strikeouts across 41 ⅓ innings pitched.
The 28-year-old was really solid for Triple-A Iowa throughout the 2025 season. He ranked in the 70th percentile or better in batting average against (.196), expected slugging against (.287), hard-hit rate (26.9%), strikeout rate (29.8%), chase rate (29.7%), and zone swing rate (62.4%).
Even in his limited innings with the Cubs last year, Roberts showed some good things. Despite having a 6.00 ERA in 10 appearances, he had a whopping 37.5% chase rate to go with an elite 30% hard-hit rate.
Therefore, Roberts is definitely in the mix to make the Cubs’ Opening Day roster. He showed some encouraging things throughout the 2025 season and has continued some of that success on the mound in Spring Training.
One of the most notable things about Roberts this spring is his added velocity. He is now averaging 93.3 mph on his cutter, 83.8 mph on his sweeper, and 93.8 mph on his sinker. That velocity is up across the board, as the right-hander averaged 91.4 mph on his cutter, 82.2 mph on his sweeper, and 92.9 mph on his sinker last year.
Roberts is currently battling for that final bullpen spot on the Cubs’ Opening Day roster. He is one of a handful of relievers in contention to earn that coveted final bullpen spot.
If he continues to pitch well this spring, he could be considered a strong candidate to make the initial 26-man roster.