The rules for managing a roster in Major League Baseball have to be the most interesting of any professional sport. There’s an active roster, a 40-man roster, 10, 15 and 60 day injured lists, a Rule-5 draft, qualifying offers, waiver rules, etc., etc.
This can make it very complicated for General Managers to keep their best players on the active roster, let alone in the organization. So it is no wonder that they often use whatever tools are at their disposal to hold on to players who they might be in danger of losing.
One tool the Cubs appear to be using right now is the ability to stash players coming off of injury in the Minor Leagues on rehab assignments. This allows they to leave players off the active roster or 40-man roster (if they are on the 60-day IL) when otherwise they would be obligated to do so.
There are three separate stipulations for rehab assignments:
- 20-day (games) for position players
- 30-days (games) for pitchers
- A special rule for players coming off Tommy John Surgery to allow the 30 days, plus as many as 3 10-day extensions, for a total of 60 days. This is significant for the Cubs, as it would allow them to extend Shelby Miller’s rehab assignment.
The Cubs have several players on rehab assignments, with more potentially on the way. And while other players have has somewhat short assignments earlier this season, they seem to be taking their time with several players right now. Of course, some players are coming off longer layoffs, which could necessitate more time, but it does seem like they are being extra careful, perhaps for reasons other than just to get the recovering player ready.
Here are some of the rehab assignments for players injured earlier this season:
| Player | IL Duration | Rehab games |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew Boyd | 21 days | 1 |
| Matthew Boyd | 52 Days | 3 |
| Caleb Thielbar | 25 Days | 1 |
| Edward Cabrera | 15 Days | 0 |
| Phil Maton | 23 Days | 2 |
Now lets take a look at the current injuries with days of rest
| Player | IL Duration | Rehab games |
|---|---|---|
| Edward Cabrera | 49 days | 3 |
| Hoby Milner | 47 Days | 4 |
| Daniel Palencia | 57 Days | 3 |
| Shelby Miller | Over 1 year | 1 |
As I look at this list, and see the amount of time missed for these players, it does not look too egregious. But it does appear that for Milner and Cabrera, the team is taking more time now than they did earlier in the season in bringing them back from the IL.
In addition, the following players have not yet started rehab assignments, but are expected to return in 2026:
- Ben Brown
- Hunter Harvey
- Justin Steele
- Phil Maton
- Riley Martin
- Matt Shaw
- Gavin Hollowell
The problem is that when some of these players come back, roster moves will be needed to make room for them, as except for Palencia, Brown, Shaw and Hollowell, they have no options left to go to the minors. And I would not expect them to option anyone but Hollowell.
That puts some players who are on the active roster in trouble of losing a spot, and for almost all of them, that would mean sending them through waivers with the possibility they will get claimed or request their release.
This includes players like Aaron Civale, Trent Thornton and even Caleb Thielbar. It also mean Javier Assad might be destined for AAA, as he still does have an option left.
And when the Cubs bring back anyone on the 60-day IL, like Brown, Miller, Harvey or Steele, it would mean that someone like Jayden Murray, Antoine Kelly or Tyler Ferguson might need to be DFA’d. Although, dropping Civale, Thornton or Thielbar would supersede that requirement, as taking them off the active roster would also require a DFA which would remove them from the 40-man.
With the possibility of injury always lingering, I’m sure the Cubs front office would like to keep everyone they currently have on the roster as long as absolutely possible. Because, as much as it seems like the Cubs will have plenty of options down the stretch, a few injuries after losing a couple of guys who have been solid might put them back in a position where Kelly, Ferguson and Jake Woodford are all in the bullpen at the same time — which is not ideal.
So, while it might be a bit frustrating waiting for Milner and Cabrera to come back — and Daniel Palencia, once he works out his control issues — it is very understandable that the Cubs are using the injury rehab outing to squeeze as much time out of the season as they can before they have to start making decisions about dropping players.
Cubs in 7 
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