Chicago Cubs: Shelby Miller may be pitching sooner than expected

The Chicago Cubs made some interesting moves this past offseason, beyond the signing of third baseman Alex Bregman and four veteran relievers to help restock a depleted bullpen (Phil Maton, Hoby Milner, Jacob Webb, Hunter Harvey).

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Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and his front office added a number of pitchers via minor league deals—a stockpiling of arms that now seems absolutely prescient given the team’s current struggle with pitching injuries.

They also made one curious free agent pitching acquisition for a bullpen arm still recovering from Tommy John surgery.

In mid-February, Chicago officially announced that they had signed veteran right-handed reliever Shelby Miller to a 2-year, $2.5 million contract.

The 35-year-old Miller had undergone Tommy John surgery in the fall—the second of his thirteen-year major league career—and was expected to spend all of 2026 in recovery and rehabilitation in hopes of a full return at the start of the 2027 season. Basically, the Cubs were gambling on getting just one good season from the high-upside pitcher for their relatively minimal investment.

Shelby Miller throwing, hoping for a 2026 return

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Recent developments, however, indicate that Chicago might get some return on their investment considerably sooner.

In a July 1 article for The Athletic, Cubs insider Patrick Mooney briefly mentioned that the pitcher was actually targeting a return before the end of this season:

“Shelby Miller, a talented reliever who signed a two-year deal while recovering from Tommy John surgery, has been pushing through his rehab program in the hopes of joining the bullpen at some point later this season.”

Then, on Saturday, Rich Biesterfeld, Arizona correspondent for the Iowa Cubs and South Bend Cubs, posted a video on social media of Miller actually throwing batting practice.

Per Biesterfield:

“Interesting development after today’s Arizona Complex League game. Pitcher Shelby Miller threw live BP to 3 hitters. Shelby is 7 months post surgery and throwing! Been mentioned as a possibility to help the big league team later this season.”

Ahead of schedule

Miller was once a considered a high-end starting pitcher, but persistent arm issues forced a move to the bullpen. He’s bounced around a lot through his major league run, pitching for ten teams—including a brief stint with the Cubs in 2021. He has a 4.04 career ERA and posted a 2.74 ERA over 48 appearances in 2025 with the Diamondbacks and Brewers before his injury.

“This is a signing for the future,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said at the time of Miller’s signing. “This year is very much in question, obviously. It would be fast for this year, so this is about next year primarily. But you’re hoping to see how the rehab goes and see what happens there.”

At this point, any established pitcher coming back to contribute this season would be a major plus. As things stand right now, the team has 13 pitchers on the injured list—including many, such as Cade Horton, Justin Steele, Daniel Palencia, and Edward Cabrera, who figured prominently in the Cubs plans this season.

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