The Cubs are out. What Jed Hoyer said about the bullpen
The Cubs lost the Wild Card Series to the Padres. Here's what Jed Hoyer said about the bullpen, the offseason plan, and what's still unknown.
If you had October plans built around Wrigley, you're probably walking past a quiet ballpark now and checking how many days are left until pitchers and catchers report. The Padres swept the Cubs in the Wild Card Series, and two days later the man who built the roster said the bullpen was his fault. Jed Hoyer, the Cubs' president of baseball operations, told reporters: "I did a poor job on the bullpen this year – full stop." He also said where the team's money and attention go next.
The short answer
The season ended on Wednesday, Sept. 30, in San Diego, when the Padres finished a sweep of the best-of-three National League Wild Card Series. The Cubs didn't get a home playoff game this fall.
On Friday, Oct. 2, Hoyer met the media at Wrigley Field. He didn't blame bad luck or a cold week at the plate. He said he got the bullpen wrong, and he said the whole pitching operation needs a hard look, from finding pitchers to developing them to trading for them.
He also told fans what to expect this winter. Most of the team's offseason effort is going to pitching. Not everyone from this year's team will be back. Three young or injured arms the Cubs are counting on are still unknowns.
That's a lot for one press conference, so here's how the season ended, what Hoyer actually said, and what's still undecided as the leaves come down.
How the season ended
The series was short and the Cubs' bats never showed up. They were shut out in Game 1 with three hits. Matthew Boyd gave up first-inning home runs to Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado, and the Cubs trailed from there.
Game 2 at Petco Park went 4-1 Padres. Kevin Gausman started and got through 3⅓ innings, giving up two runs before leaving with a balky left shoulder. That put the game in the bullpen early. Daniel Palencia came in right away and gave up a two-out, two-run homer to pinch-hitter Gavin Sheets, and that was the swing that decided it.
Over two games the Cubs scored one run on eight hits. Pete Crow-Armstrong and Alex Bregman went a combined 0-for-15 with eight strikeouts.
The division race was no closer. The Cubs finished 14 games behind the Brewers, which means another October where Milwaukee won the NL Central.
What Hoyer said about the bullpen
Hoyer opened with the line fans will remember: "I did a poor job on the bullpen this year – full stop."
He didn't stop at the relievers. According to MLB.com, he said the club needs to review "every aspect of the chain" on the pitching side, and he named scouting, player development and acquisitions. Put simply, he's questioning how the Cubs find pitchers, how they improve them once they're in the system, and how they trade for or sign them.
One number from the year sums it up. Fourteen different Cubs recorded at least one save in 2026, a club record. Sometimes a team spreads saves around because it has plenty of good arms. Here it mostly meant the Cubs never settled on who would finish games.
Hoyer also connected the bullpen to a larger problem with how the team won games. "We're leaning on our defense too heavily," he said, "and the overall quality of the pitching has to improve." The Sun-Times and MLB.com both reported that second half.
Cubs fans know what he means. A strong defense can cover for a lot over 162 games. In a short series it can't make up for pitchers who can't miss bats in big spots, and Game 2 showed that. The Cubs needed one reliever to get through one inning after Gausman left, and that inning ended the season.
It's unusual for a team president to put it this plainly. Hoyer didn't say the bullpen underperformed. He said he built it poorly.
What it means for the winter
After admitting the mistake, Hoyer said where the effort goes next. "It's safe to say that the biggest part of our focus going into the offseason is going to be on pitching," he said, and later: "The great majority of our focus is going to be on pitching acquisition."
Don't assume every dollar goes to arms, though. Hoyer said the split of resources between hitters and pitchers "has not been determined yet." With the lineup scoring one run in two playoff games, it would be surprising if the bats were left alone completely.
The roster will also change on its own. "We have a lot of good players that are free agents," Hoyer said. "We're not going to be able to bring back all of them." Expect some familiar names to sign elsewhere, possibly before Thanksgiving.
Then there's the help that's supposed to come from within. Ben Brown, Cade Horton and Justin Steele are all working back from injuries. Hoyer said they "all have a real chance to impact us next year, but how much is a real question."
That's the hard part of the plan. If all three come back healthy and effective, the Cubs have much less to buy. If they don't, this winter's pitching shopping list gets a lot longer. Hoyer didn't pretend to know which way it'll go.
What we don't know yet
Several things are still open. Hoyer didn't name which relievers he's moving on from or who he wants closing games next year, and none of his public remarks named a closer. Payroll didn't come up in the reports either, so there's no budget figure yet for all this pitching shopping.
We also don't know how the money will be split between pitchers and hitters, which free agents the Cubs will try to keep, or how much Brown, Horton and Steele will be able to give in 2026's follow-up season.
The answers will come at the usual times: when the free agents decide, during the winter meetings, and in whatever trades come after. Until then, read the full reports below. MLB.com has more of Hoyer's own words and the Sun-Times has the game details.
Sources (3)
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