The Cubs hold their breath, as another starter leaves the game early.

The pitching injuries continue to mount for the Chicago Cubs. The latest hurler to go down is Edward Cabrera. The right-hander exited his start against the Milwaukee Brewers in the fourth inning after throwing a pitch.

Following his removal from the game, the Cubs brought in right-hander Trent Thornton. Jesse Rogers of ESPN reports that Cabrera left the game after suffering a blister in his right middle finger.

The silver lining for the Cubs is that this shouldn’t turn into a long-term injury. It’s unclear if the right-hander will miss his next start, which is tentatively scheduled for May 26 against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park.

Edward Cabrera Leaves Start with Blister

With the Cubs needing to add arms to their rotation, they struck a blockbuster deal with the Miami Marlins to acquire Cabrera. The three-prospect package that Chicago sent to acquire the right-hander included top prospect Owen Caissie. The plan was to pair him up with 2025 Rookie of the Year finalist Cade Horton to anchor the top of their rotation.

The Cubs haven’t quite gotten the frontline starter results they hoped from Cabrera, but he’s been reliable. In his first nine starts of the season, the right-hander has pitched to a 4.06 ERA over 51 innings. More advanced run-prevention estimators give him a 4.38 FIP, 3.88 xFIP, and 4.11 SIERA. Those metrics suggest more of a middle-of-the-rotation starter.

The biggest drop compared to his breakout 2025 campaign has been in his strikeout rate. Cabrera posted a 25.8% rate last season, but that metric has backed up to 21.3% rate in 2026.

After the game, manager Craig Counsell provided context behind the blister.

“It was there before tonight, and it’s something he dealt with a little bit,” said Counsell. “It just got worse tonight, to the point where it was clearly affecting his command.”

The Cubs tried a remedy after the third inning. But after his first pitch of the fourth, a 92.5 MPH four-seamer, Counsell knew Cabrera wasn’t going to continue.

While the right-hander isn’t as strong as he was last season, the Cubs certainly can’t afford many more injuries. While blister issues don’t usually require a long shutdown, it could be long enough to affect the rotation for at least a couple turns through as it heals.

Cubs Rotation Suffers Another Injury

Despite spending much of the year in first place, it’s been a brutal season for the Cubs’ rotation on the injury front. Chicago is already down two starters for the year, and a pitcher they expected to return during the season suffered a setback.

The club already lost Horton for the year, as the right-hander underwent his second Tommy John surgery. Left-hander Justin Steele suffered a setback from his own elbow surgery and his return is uncertain. Additionally, Matthew Boyd is recovering from a meniscectomy that will keep him out until the end of June.

The Cubs have some minor league depth if Cabrera misses time. Javier Assad, Jordan Wicks, and Doug Nikhazy are currently with Triple-A Iowa and could be called up to Chicago.

Wicks and Assad were recently optioned to Iowa, so they can only be recalled to the major league roster before May 31 and June 1 respectively to replace an injured player. Nikhazy, who was claimed off waivers from the Chicago White Sox in April, is a possibility if the Cubs go with an extra reliever before Cabrera’s rotation spot comes up.

The Cubs will have to rely on their internal depth for the next couple of months. They’ll be able to reinforce their starting rotation ahead of August 3’s trade deadline. But with the Brewers recently passing them in the National League Central division standings, patience could run out if poor rotation health undercuts their entire season.