\u201cI feel pressure to do better, for myself especially, but I\u2019ve been around long enough to know that I\u2019m hurting the team and have been for a little while now, so I\u2019m not naive to that at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nothing is guaranteed in Major League Baseball. It\u2019s still a business, even for well-respected team leaders like Taillon.<\/p>\n
The Cubs ultimately decided they could not continue to deploy Taillon in the rotation and designated him for assignment before Monday\u2019s series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals. Right-hander Andrew Wantz was called up from Triple-A Iowa.<\/p>\n
Taillon, 34, finishes his Cubs career with a 4.21 ERA in 96 games (95 starts).<\/p>\n
![\"Cubs](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/CTC-CUBS-ASTROS01_262890392.jpg\")
Chicago Cubs pitcher Jameson Taillon throws against the Houston Astros in the first inning at Wrigley Field on May 22, 2026. (Terrence Antonio James\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had to make a hard decision as to whether we thought Jameson was going to pitch again, and with where we\u2019re at in the season and with what\u2019s going on in his season, we just didn\u2019t feel like it was going to happen again,\u201d manager Craig Counsell said. \u201cThose are hard decisions, and it seems like everything is always just a baseball decision and just about production. (Taillon\u2019s) not only produced as a Cub. He\u2019s had a big impact on our culture and on our clubhouse and so that makes those decisions harder.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut, in the end, we just feel like we had to do better in that spot.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taillon\u2019s -1.1 fWAR and 6.74 fielding independent pitching (FIP) are the worst among MLB pitchers this season (minimum 60 innings). His four-seam fastball and cutter were ineffective (.329 and .298 batting average against, respectively) while accounting for 46.3% of his pitches thrown. The right-hander\u2019s command often quickly put him in bad counts, led by a career-worst 56.1% first-pitch strike percentage that was down 11.7 percentage points from 2025. The Cubs hoped that while Taillon was sidelined by his hamstring strain for seven weeks he could make some adjustments to help lock in his command and better limit home runs. But neither happened in his two starts after coming off the injured list.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told (Taillon) last night that I\u2019m a little confused, I\u2019m trying to figure out how to make this better and why it\u2019s kind of gone this direction, and it was a little bit hard to figure out,\u201d Counsell said. \u201cUnfortunately, the hitters were obviously telling us something different, but, in the end, it\u2019s more production.\u201d<\/p>\n
Right-hander Javier Assad\u2019s presence on the pitching staff and his big-league success helps solve the immediate question of who slots into Taillon\u2019s spot. Assad is expected to take Taillon\u2019s starting turn, which is currently lined up for Friday at Wrigley Field against the New York Yankees. Monday\u2019s trade deadline should also bring rotation help, too, and right-hander Edward Cabrera is on track for a mid-August return. Cabrera, who has been sidelined by a hamstring strain, will begin his rehab assignment Friday at Triple-A Iowa and likely needs three rehab starts before rejoining the Cubs rotation.<\/p>\n
The ineffectiveness had reached a point of being undeniable, but Taillon\u2019s departure was felt deeply in the Cubs\u2019 clubhouse Monday.<\/p>\n
Counsell commended Taillon for being a great teacher of how to act as a major-league player, explaining that a lot of players need help in that area, but that Taillon was humble about it and always willing to provide guidance. Dansby Swanson, who signed with the Cubs in the same offseason as Taillon, called it a tough day for the organization following the departure of one of his closest friends in the game.<\/p>\n
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