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Cabrera (3-1) was tagged with the loss Saturday against the Rangers after allowing five runs on seven hits and a walk across five innings. He struck out six.
This was Cabrera's worst outing of the season, and he's clearly trending in the wrong direction after suffering his first defeat of 2026. It seems his strong start to the campaign, where he tossed 11.2 scoreless frames in his first two outings, is now a distant memory -- he's allowed at least three earned runs in his last six appearances. The five earned runs he gave up in this loss were a season-worst mark. Cabrera, who gave up multiple homers for the third time in his last four starts, now has a 3.88 ERA across 46.1 innings. He's slated to make his next start over the upcoming weekend against the White Sox.
Assad (3-1) tossed 3.2 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win in Friday's 7-1 victory over the Rangers. He allowed a hit and a walk while striking out one.
Ben Brown started for the Cubs and gave them four strong innings before turning things over to the bullpen. Assad stepped up with some important length and earned his third win of the year and second in relief. The righty has a subpar 6.00 ERA across 24 innings so far, but that figure is inflated by the nine runs he allowed on April 13 and the six runs he gave up on April 25. Outside of those two bad outings, Assad has a sharp 0.52 ERA.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Scores twice in win
Rotowire
Happ went 1-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored in Friday's 7-1 win over the Rangers.
Happ extended his on-base streak to 29 games, which dates back to April 5. While the veteran's .243 batting average doesn't jump off the page, his .376 on-base percentage would be a new career high. Happ is buoying that on-base percentage with a nearly 17 percent walk rate, which would also be a new career best. As long as Happ keeps getting on base frequently, he should be able to score plenty of runs for the Cubs.
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Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong: Two more hits, stolen base Friday
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Crow-Armstrong went 2-for-4 with an RBI double and a stolen base in Friday's 7-1 win over the Rangers.
It was Crow-Armstrong's second multi-hit game in the last three contests after he'd gone 12 straight games with one hit or fewer. PCA is now on a six-game hitting streak and may be finding his swing after a slow start to the 2026 campaign. He's slashing .255/.321/.400 with four home runs, 17 RBI, 24 runs scored, nine stolen bases and an 11:42 BB:K across 160 plate appearances.
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Cubs' Michael Busch: Drives in three more Friday
Rotowire
Busch went 1-for-3 with a three-run double, two walks, one stolen base and a run scored in Friday's 7-1 win over the Rangers.
Busch walked and stole his first base of the season in the sixth inning before hitting a bases-clearing, three-run double in the seventh to break the game open. After Busch got off to a really slow start over the first month of the season, he's been swinging a hot bat in May. In eight games this month, Busch is 11-for-27 with four doubles, a triple, a homer, 12 RBI, three runs scored and eight walks. He's raised his slash line to .234/.345/.369 with three homers, 23 RBI, 17 runs scored, one stolen base and a 23:36 BB:K across 168 plate appearances this season.
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Cubs' Seiya Suzuki: Smacks seventh homer Friday
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Suzuki went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run, two walks and two runs scored in Friday's 7-1 win over the Rangers.
Suzuki walked and scored in the first inning before taking Kumar Rocker deep to end an eight-pitch at-bat in the fourth. It was Suzuki's seventh homer of the season, all of which have come in his past 15 contests. After missing the first 12 games of the season with a knee injury, Suzuki has been one of the best hitters in baseball in his 25 games. He's slashing .304/.414/.565 with the seven long balls, 16 RBI, 19 runs scored and a 16:24 BB:K across 111 plate appearances.
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Cubs' Michael Conforto: Stays hot with two hits, walk
Rotowire
Conforto went 2-for-4 with a double, a walk and a run scored in Friday's 7-1 win over the Rangers.
After going 3-for-3 with a double, a homer and two RBI Thursday against the Reds, Conforto was given another start. He hit second in the Chicago lineup and reached base three more times. In limited at-bats, Conforto has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball the last couple weeks, but Friday was just his fifth start in the last 18 games. Across 12 plate appearances this month, Conforto is 6-for-10 with four extra-base hits, including two home runs, three RBI, four runs scored and a 2:1 BB:K. Conforto has done enough to earn more playing time against right-handed pitching, but the Cubs' outfield is set in stone. Moises Ballesteros has cooled off as the primary designated hitter, as he's just 2-for-31 (.065) since April 28.
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Cubs' Ben Brown: Goes four scoreless in start Friday
Rotowire
Brown didn't factor into the decision Friday against the Rangers, allowing one walk with three strikeouts across four scoreless and hitless innings.
Brown was forced into starting duties Friday after Matthew Boyd (knee) was placed on the injured list this week. After pitching exclusively out of the bullpen prior to this start, Brown was limited to 46 pitches against Texas. He lowered his ERA to an impressive 1.82 with a 27:9 K:BB across 29.2 innings. After making 15 starts last season, it shouldn't take long for Brown to build his arm back up to handle a starter's workload while the Cubs navigate their rotation injuries.
Harvey was diagnosed with a stress reaction in his right triceps Friday, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Harvey had progressed to throwing off a mound while working his way back from ticeps inflammation, but he reported soreness after Thursday's session. An MRI revealed a stress reaction, which will keep the 31-year-old shut down for the next month. A clearer timeline for his return may begin to emerge once he's cleared to restart his throwing program.
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Cubs' Moises Ballesteros: Taking seat Friday
Rotowire
Ballesteros isn't in the lineup for Friday's game against the Rangers.
Ballesteros will take a day to regroup after going 0-for-11 at the plate across his last four games. Michael Conforto will step in as the Cubs' designated hitter and bat second.
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Cubs' Gavin Hollowell: Sent to minors
Rotowire
The Cubs optioned Hollowell to Triple-A Iowa on Friday.
The right-hander was called up from Iowa and will return there after he allowed two runs over 1.2 innings Thursday against the Reds. Ethan Roberts (finger) was reinstated off the injured list to take Hollowell's spot in Chicago's bullpen.
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Cubs' Ethan Roberts: Returns from IL
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The Cubs reinstated Roberts (finger) from the 15-day injured list Friday.
The right-hander has been on the shelf nearly a month due to a right middle finger laceration, but he's ready to rejoin the Cubs after a five-outing rehab assignment. Roberts has made just three appearances in the majors this year and has pitched 2.2 scoreless frames.
Brown is slated to start Friday's series opener against the Rangers in Arlington, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Brown will be stepping into the rotation spot vacated by Matthew Boyd (knee) after the latter was placed on the 15-day injured list Wednesday. The right-hander has operated exclusively as a bullpen arm this season, posting a 2.10 ERA and 1.01 WHIP with 24 strikeouts over 25.2 innings. Brown has yet to exceed 50 pitches in any of his 12 appearances to date, so he'll likely have some limitations from a workload standpoint as he makes his first start since July 27, 2025. Over his 15 starts with the Cubs last season, Brown turned in a 6.30 ERA and 1.52 WHIP across 75.2 innings.
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Cubs' Shota Imanaga: Strikes out 10 in win
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Imanaga (4-2) earned the win Thursday over the Reds, allowing a run on six hits and three walks over six innings. He struck out 10.
It was another strong showing from Imanaga, who logged double-digit strikeouts for the second time this season while holding Cincinnati scoreless until Sal Stewart led off the sixth inning with a homer. Imanaga has allowed just one run over 13 innings in his last two starts, lowering his ERA to 2.28 on the year with a 0.93 WHIP and 53 strikeouts across eight outings (47.1 innings). Imanaga is currently in line to face Atlanta on the road his next time out.
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Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong: Swipes base in win
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Crow-Armstrong went 1-for-3 with a walk, a stolen base, an RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 8-3 win over the Reds.
A day after hitting a key home run in a Chicago win, Crow-Armstrong showed off the speed element in his game as he stole his eighth base of the season in 11 attempts. The talented young outfielder is now riding a five-game hitting streak, which has pushed his overall slash line up to .248/.316/.390. Coming off a 30-30 campaign in 2025, Crow-Armstrong remains a dynamic fantasy asset who is capable of producing elite stats the rest of the way after a relatively slow start to the year.
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