The Cubs have just 31 players currently on the 40-man roster.
Thus, it seems quite likely that they will select someone in the Rule 5 Draft, which comes up on Wednesday. That’s especially true given the fact
that they have made Rule 5 selections in past years when they didn’t really have room, or a need — like last year, when they selected Gage Workman, who played in nine games for the Cubs before they sent him to the White Sox for cash considerations. Eventually Workman wound up back in the Tigers organization, where he started.
The best Rule 5 picks in Cubs history are, in my view, Willie Hernandez (1976, from the Phillies), Jody Davis (1980, from the Cardinals) and Hector Rondón (2012, from Cleveland). The Cubs might have added Trevor Megill (2019, from the Padres) to that list — if they had just kept him. He’s become a solid closer for the Brewers.
Here’s a list of every Cubs Rule 5 pick over the last 50 years.
With Jed Hoyer’s front office usually pretty good at identifying useful relief pitchers, and that being a need for the 2026 Cubs, if they pick someone I suspect it will be a reliever (or a minor league starter who the Cubs think can be useful out of the bullpen).
I asked Josh for some thoughts and he sent me six names of eligible pitchers. To that I am adding one more who was mentioned by someone in the comments recently. Here are the seven pitchers and what they’ve done in the minor leagues, in alphabetical order.
RHP Blake Burkhalter (Braves)
Burkhalter was the Braves’ second round pick out of Auburn in 2022.
He’s been (mostly) a starter (33 starts in 51 games) in the Atlanta system, with decent results (3.21 ERA, 1.269 WHIP, only seven HR allowed in 179.2 innings). He turned 25 in September.
Here are his numbers from Prospect Savant.
RHP Chris Campos (Dodgers)
Like Burkhalter, Campos is 25. He was the Dodgers’ seventh round pick in 2022 out of St. Mary’s (CA).
Also like Burkhalter, Campos has been mostly a starter in the Dodgers system (59 starts in 82 appearances). He has yet to pitch above Double-A and has a career 4.13 ERA and 1.234 WHIP in the minors, with good K and BB rates.
Here’s some video of Campos pitching early in 2025:
RHP Dylan DeLucia (Guardians)
DeLucia, also 25, was Cleveland’s sixth round pick in 2022 out of the University of Mississippi. He missed the 2023 season due to Tommy John surgery and in two years in the Guardians system has a 3.25 ERA and 1.085 WHIP in 37 games (35 starts). Here’s some video of him in A ball in 2024.
RHP Griff McGarry (Phillies)
McGarry is the oldest of this group, as he will turn 27 in June. He was the Phillies’ fifth round pick in 2022 out of the University of Virginia.
In 103 minor league games (40 of those in Triple-A) he has posted a 4.14 ERA and 1.338 WHIP. He strikes out a lot of guys (33.9 percent) but also walks a lot of guys (16.3 percent).
Here’s more on McGarry’s struggles with command.
LHP Hayden Mullins (Red Sox)
Mullins is 25 and was the Red Sox’ 12th round pick in 2022 out of Auburn (thus, a college teammate of Burkhalter).
He’s the only left-hander on this list. That alone might make him attractive to the Cubs.
He had a pretty good year in 2025 (2.21 ERA, 1.111 WHIP in 22 games, 21 starts), but also missed some time with a shoulder issue.
Here’s a six-strikeout outing he had in June:
RHP Peyton Pallette (White Sox)
Pallette is the youngest of this group, as he turned 24 last May. He was the White Sox’ second round pick out of the University of Arkansas in 2022.
He began his minor league career as a starter but threw exclusively in relief in 2o25, striking out 86 with just 28 walks in 64.1 innings.
RHP Tyler Vogel (Giants)
Vogel is 25 and was the Giants’ 12th round pick out of Jacksonville University in 2022.
Unlike most of the others on this list, he’s been used almost exclusively in relief in the minor leagues (102 games, only two starts). In 2025, he had a 25.4 percent strikeout rate but a 10.2 percent walk rate in 40 relief appearances.
Here’s some video of him from this past season.
