The Chicago Cubs will welcome back one of their top bullpen arms.
The Cubs officially activated Phil Maton from the 15-day injured list ahead of Monday’s series opener against the San Diego Padres. Left-hander Charlie Barnes was optioned to Triple-A Iowa as the corresponding move.
Maton landed on the 15-day IL back on April 10 due to right knee tendinitis. His move to the injured list earlier this month came amid a rough stretch for the 33-year-old. He allowed multiple runs in three straight relief appearances from March 31 to April 7.
There’s no doubt that Maton did not get off to a strong start this season. He allowed six runs on six hits across four innings pitched (13.50 ERA) and really struggled in those three appearances before landing on the injured list.
However, getting Maton back does strengthen a depleted Cubs bullpen that has dealt with its fair share of injuries to start the season. His activation off the 15-day IL gives the team another potential arm to go to in the later innings.
Hopefully, the time off allowed Maton to regain his confidence and help his knee fully heal. He spent roughly 2 ½ weeks on the injured list and appeared in just one rehab assignment game. The veteran threw one scoreless inning with two hits and two strikeouts for Triple-A Iowa last Friday.
Although Maton has not looked the part to start his Cubs tenure, he remains a big part of the bullpen moving forward. The team will need him to return to the form he showed in 2025, when he finished with a 2.79 ERA and 81 strikeouts across 61 ⅓ innings.
Last year’s numbers were why Chicago signed Maton to a multi-year deal this past offseason. When the front office agreed to a two-year, $14.5 million deal with him in November, he became the first reliever to earn a multi-year deal with the Cubs since Craig Kimbrel in 2019 (three-year, $43 million).
The potential is still there for Maton to be that same reliever in 2026. It all starts with his cutter.
Last season, Maton’s cutter had a 32.9% whiff rate and a 20.5% putaway rate. In his first five appearances this year, that cutter has just an 8% whiff rate and a 11.8% putaway rate. Opposing hitters are also batting .333 against that pitch so far, compared to only .215 in 2025.
It remains to be seen how manager Craig Counsell plans to deploy Maton in the short term. He could ease the right-hander back in and put him in low-leverage spots to start, or give him that closer role until Daniel Palencia returns.
Either way, Maton’s return is a nice boost for the Cubs.