Chicago Cubs Southpaw to Miss Start of 2025

The Chicago Cubs will be without Luke Little for the beginning of the 2025 regular season. It was announced the southpaw is not ready to return from a left lat strain that ended his 2024 campaign in July. Little had not taken the mound in Spring Training and was considered a long shot to make the roster for the Tokyo Series next week. Now, Little will have a longer runway to return to full strength and rejoin the major league club later in the season.

Little was a valuable long reliever for Craig Counsell and the Chicago Cubs in 2024. After debuting in 2023 as a September call-up, Little pitched well enough to earn a spot in the bullpen for 2024 and was well on his way to a solid season before a left lat strain ended his season. Looking to reclaim his spot in the bullpen, Little’s return will be delayed after the news broke that he is still rehabbing the injury. With the offseason additions the front office made to bolster the pitching staff, the Chicago Cubs should be able to absorb Little’s absence and wait until he is fully healthy to reintegrate him into the bullpen.

Luke Little Not Ready to Rejoin Chicago Cubs

As the Chicago Cubs prepare for the early start to their 2025 campaign next week in Japan with a matchup against the Los Angeles Dodgers, they got some injury news on a bullpen arm. Little will not be available for the Chicago Cubs to start the season as he continues to rehab from a left lat injury. The team was hoping his recovery would have him ready to join the active roster in Spring Training and let him ramp up to make the trip to Japan. As Opening Day got closer, that hope fell by the wayside and the team optioned him to AAA last week.

Little debuted with the Chicago Cubs in 2023 as a September call-up and made the most of his opportunity. In seven appearances out of the bullpen, he tossed 6.2 scoreless innings, allowing just nine baserunners and striking out 12. Little made the Opening Day roster in 2024 and continued to produce out of the bullpen. In 30 appearances, he went 3-1 with a 3.46 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and 28 strikeouts across 26 innings. Little’s season was cut short and he was unable to return to the mound. The team was hoping his rehab would be further along at this point but he is still recuperating.

The 24-year-old southpaw had bounced between the starting rotation and bullpen in the minors and only made one start as an opener in 2024. He was thought to be one of the more versatile options for Counsell’s pitching staff heading into 2025. With Little out to open the year, the Chicago Cubs will likely turn to some combination of Colin Rea, Ben Brown, Jordan Wicks, and Elijah Morgan to pick up the innings Little was expected to work. With any question about his availability answered, the focus for Little now shifts to his long-term rehab and his ability to come back at some point in 2025 and pick up where he left off in 2024.

Final Thoughts

Little was a good surprise for the Chicago Cubs last year. They piecemealed a bullpen together in 2024 and Little ended up being a solid contributor in early relief. His not being healthy yet after nine months is relatively concerning. It’s not as bad when considering the moves that the front office made to address both high-leverage and long relief situations the bullpen will face in 2025, but not having a pitcher ready in the bullpen with the profile of Littl is not ideal for a team trying to get out of an 83-win rut and take over the NL Central.

With the reinforcements made to the bullpen for Counsell’s bunch, the unit should be able to manage Little’s injury in the early going. As the season wears on though, and more players hit the IL and depth is needed to keep the team competitive, Little will be vital to the team’s aspirations for 2025. In a critical year for the franchise’s direction, Little won’t be a main storyline, but could help or hurt the team’s chances of getting to where they want to go.