Chicago Cubs: Where does Colin Rea fit going forward?

The Cubs rotation is going to see more rearrangements coming with the trade deadline approaching and arms returning (Jameson Taillon now and Edward Cabrera down the road) from the IL. Assuming Cabrera and/or possibly Ben Brown return, and they add at least one starter, some current starters will end up serving different roles. This potentially includes Colin Rea.

Rea, like last year, was meant to be a swing man on the staff but then had to be pulled full-time into the rotation due to injuries. In 2025, he was an unsung hero for the Cubs, while this year it’s been a mixed bag.

Last season he pitched to a very solid 3.95 ERA, 4.11 FIP, 4.31 xFIP, 1.25 WHIP, 19.2% K rate, and 6.6% BB rate in 159.1 innings. This year so far he’s posted a 4.85 ERA, 4.94 FIP, 4.67 xFIP, 1.42 WHIP, 17.5% K rate, and 8.2% BB rate in 105.2 innings pitched. Not great, though not necessarily horrific (all things considered). It still brings up the debate on what Rea’s role on the team should be post-deadline.

Should Rea be in the rotation going forward?

Rea has never been flashy and is not one to post red bubbles across his Baseball Savant page. Even last year, he was not lighting it up with whiff rates, exit velo, expected ERA, or barrels. He pitched with good command and found ways to be effective (partially due to the defense). It might not be fair to compare a fuller sample last year, but it begs the question of how much longer they can ride with Rea every five days.

One thing that stands out is that his fastball, sinker, and cutter run value have noticeably dropped from last year. The command has also dropped a bit (74th BB percentile in 2025 vs. 53 in 2026) while his homers-to-flyball ratio has also increased from 1.13 to 1.45, despite a 5.5% increase in groundball rate.

To his credit, he’s still had a handful of effective starts this year. While his numbers are not eye-popping, he has more often than not at least kept the Cubs in the game by “grinding” away. With all of that said, Rea being a swing guy is likely for him if/when the Cubs upgrade the rotation. It feels like one can walk the tightrope for so long when crunch time comes.

This is not to say Rea has no value, or even that he is behind the likes of David Peterson on the depth chart. Rea is a workhorse who has been asked to do a lot, and he can continue to serve the team witout needing to be a key cog in the rotation.

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