MILWAUKEE — For two months, Jacob Webb was nearly untouchable.
Webb became a stabilizing force in the Chicago Cubs bullpen when a banged-up pitching staff needed the veteran reliever the most. His stretch of 24 consecutive scoreless outings between June 24 and Aug. 21 helped establish the team as one of the best in the National League.
The last 2½ weeks have been a different story.
Webb found himself in a position Tuesday night that has become too familiar. Two costly changeups turned into another blown save in a 4-3, 10-inning loss to the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field.
One strike away from locking up a Cubs win in the bottom of the ninth, Webb gave up a single to Christian Yelich. Two pitches later Jackson Chourio took him deep for a game-tying, two-out, two-run home run.
Carson Kelly had appeared to be the Cubs hero in the ninth, delivering a pinch-hit, two-run double with the bases loaded against Brewers closer Trevor Megill.
But the Cubs failed to score in the top of the 10th — hurt by Seiya Suzuki oversliding third base on a tag-up for the second out — and Luis Lara’s bases-loaded single off lefty Caleb Thielbar in the bottom half gave the Brewers the walk-off victory.
In his last six outings since his scoreless-innings streak ended at 24 2/3, Webb has allowed nine runs, including three home runs, in 4 2/3 innings. Chourio’s home run was the first Webb allowed on his changeup since June 10 and just the third of the season against the pitch.
“I’m tired of letting the team down, to be completely honest,” Webb said afterward. “It’s pretty tough to watch every time I give up a homer.”
Holding on for the win would have moved the Cubs (81-65) above the Philadelphia Phillies for the first National League wild-card spot. Instead they enter Wednesday’s series finale riding a three-game losing streak.
The bullpen faltered for a second consecutive day, part of a tough stretch for a group that largely has held it together since the All-Star break (a 3.80 ERA entering Tuesday, 13th in the majors).
“This is how you have to win games in the bullpen — you’ve got to get outs,” manager Craig Counsell said. “It’s our job, they’re going to do it. It hurts when it happens. It hurts when it happens consecutively, but we’ve got nine guys down there. They’re the ones we’re going to rely on and we’ve got to figure it out.”
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The Cubs offense had the tough challenge of again facing NL Cy Young Award contender Jacob Misiorowski, who allowed a lone run over 6 1/3 innings on Michael Busch’s RBI single in the first. That lead was brief as Brice Turang responded in the bottom half with an RBI single against left-hander David Peterson.
Peterson did enough to work around traffic on the bases, holding the Brewers to one run on six hits and three walks in 4 1/3 innings. Four strikeouts and two double-play balls aided that effort. Right-hander Aaron Civale gave the Cubs two big shutout innings in the sixth and seventh, striking out four of the six Brewers he faced.
For as much as the bullpen has been getting it done this season, weaknesses and regression have been exposing the unit. The Cubs have relied on a mix of pitchers taking on new roles as their projected top relievers have dealt with injuries most of the year, particularly to high-leverage options Daniel Palencia, Phil Maton and Hunter Harvey.
Asked whether changes need to be made to the bullpen by calling on options at Triple-A Iowa, Counsell replied: “The answers are not there. I mean, we can’t do it.”
“These are our guys,” Counsell continued. “They’re going to get the outs. You go through tough stretches in the season. It hurts when it happens right now, it hurts when it happens right at the end of the game with two outs, hurts a little bit worse.
“And it tests you and you have to use the test and you have to use the hurt to get you to a better place, and it can. When you get knocked down and you can get back up, that’s an even better feeling.”
The playoffs begin in three weeks, adding to the uneasiness about the bullpen’s performance over the last 17 games (a 5.40 ERA).
Perhaps the Cubs, attempting to be judicious in Shelby Miller’s return from a second Tommy John surgery, would be better served continuing the veteran’s buildup in the majors rather than on a rehab assignment at Triple A. Left-hander Justin Steele is scheduled for his third rehab outing with Iowa on Thursday, but the Cubs aren’t sure what his impact might be down the stretch.
If anything, the recent bullpen implosions are more of an indictment of the organization’s inability to develop high-leverage arms from within its farm system.
Palencia, coming off an electric 2025, has been hampered this year by two injuries and hasn’t recaptured his explosive fastball or confidence. Porter Hodge delivered a 1.88 ERA as a rookie in 2024 but struggled last year (a 6.27 ERA) and missed this season after elbow surgery.
The Cubs ultimately gave up on hard-throwing lefty Luke Little, designating him for assignment in August, after the 26-year-old showed promise with a 3.46 ERA over 30 appearances in 2024. Prospect Jaxon Wiggins, slowed by elbow inflammation early in the season, hasn’t become a late-season viable arm.
Bullpens can be notoriously volatile and difficult to project year to year. The lack of internal options at this point in the season, though, adds to the uncertainty of what this group can provide in the postseason.
They have three weeks to figure it out.
“We’re going to get back on track,” Webb said. “I have confidence in myself. I have confidence in this team, the bullpen, the pitching staff, the hitters. I’m just tired of letting the team down right now. It’s piss poor.”
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