Although the Chicago Cubs have over the years made quite a practice of finding low-cost relief options and spinning them up into significant contributors, what they have done far less often is bring those relief options back after that year of contribution.
If you want to take that as a sign that the Cubs really saw something special in Caleb Thielbar’s time with the team, you may feel free to do so. The Cubs are bringing him back:
News: The Cubs are bringing back lefty Caleb Thielbar who pitched well for them last season, sources tell me and @JeffPassan. Thielbar, 38, had a 2.64 ERA in 67 games last season. He joins newcomer Hoby Milner as lefties in the Cubs pen. The deal is pending a physical.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) December 16, 2025Caleb Thielbar was only a mild reclamation type when the Cubs brought him in last offseason, as he was coming off a brutal year with the Twins on the results side of the ledger, but (1) his peripherals suggested his performance was closer to average, and (2) prior to 2024 he’d had a very long and successful run with with the Twins.
Still, with the Cubs, Thielbar not only bounced back to his pre-2024 form, he actually put together one of the best seasons of his career. His strikeout rate rose, his walk rate fell, his barrel rate plummeted, his groundball rate climbed, and his home run rate fell dramatically. He was also just a good, steady, veteran presence in the bullpen for the Cubs. I expect there were some benefits there behind the scenes that the Cubs were keen to bring back.
What I found most interesting about Thielbar’s performance with the Cubs was how dominant his curveball looked. He actually added a couple MPH to the pitch with the Cubs, and threw it more often than he’s ever thrown it. I’m not saying that’s the sole reason for his return to form, but, given that it was his most valuable pitch, it was clearly a factor. And that might give you some comfort projecting another strong season in 2026, even if not quite a 2.64 ERA showing. (Also: a Caleb Thielbar curveball was my literal favorite pitch of the entire season.)
The risks with Thielbar, obviously, are mostly tied to his age. He’ll pitch next season at 39, and although relievers often do work effectively up to and past age 40, time comes for us all at one point or another.
Like fellow lefty Hoby Milner, Thielbar is not a guy who can be used only against lefties, but he definitely has been especially hard on them. So you like the idea that you can use him for a full inning in the middle innings, or you can save him for a particular tough pocket of lefties late in the game. Now Craig Counsell has two of those guys at his disposal.
I wouldn’t say the Cubs definitely need only one more sure-fire relief signing (a later-innings type is still preferred), but I do expect that will happen. And the rest of the bullpen could be filled out by the typical mix of youngsters and reclamation fliers.
It’ll be interesting to see to what extent the Cubs seriously explore bringing back the other two guys who paired so well with Thielbar this past season, Brad Keller and Drew Pomeranz. My guess is that the former is getting interest out there on a big multi-year deal, and the latter is simply considered pretty risky to repeat his form from 2025, given his age and the years out of MLB that preceded it.
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