Brown squarely in mix for No. 5 rotation spot: 'It's exciting'

MESA, Ariz. -- After Shota Imanaga’s four no-hit innings on Opening Day in Tokyo, Cubs manager Craig Counsell handed the ball to Ben Brown. While the young righty’s outing was not entirely smooth sailing, there were reasons to be intrigued.

Brown generated 14 whiffs -- the most of any pitcher for the Cubs or Dodgers in Tuesday’s opener -- including 13 from his knuckle-curve, per Statcast. He sat at 95.5 mph with his fastball, topping out at 97.1 mph. Most of all, Brown continued to look healthy and primed to handle a prominent role for the North Siders.

Counsell acknowledged on Saturday that Brown is very much in the mix for the fifth spot in the Cubs’ rotation.

“He’s feeling really good,” Counsell said. “And I think that shows us some signs of being a really good Major League starting pitcher. If that’s the direction we go, that’s a pretty good [arm]. There’s some ceiling there, and it’ll be interesting to see what happens.”

Brown is currently slated to start Tuesday’s exhibition finale against the Braves, who are making a stop in Arizona en route to their season-opening series in San Diego. That will be his opportunity to give the Cubs’ decision-makers one final look to determine if he should be handed the lone rotation vacancy.

If the Cubs opt to hand the 25-year-old Brown the fifth spot -- behind Imanaga, Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon and Matthew Boyd -- that would mean righty Colin Rea would shift to a multi-inning role out of the bullpen. Brown was thrilled to know he is still a contender to begin the season in Chicago’s starting staff.

“It’s a dream come true,” Brown said, “to be able to compete for a job you’ve been dreaming of your whole life. It just puts more emphasis on the day to day and going out and executing what I can control. It’s exciting, though. It’s an exciting position to be in.”

Shota lined up for Game 3 vs. D-backs

Given the exhausting nature of the trip to Japan for Imanaga -- who took the ball on Opening Day and had a gauntlet of near-daily media responsibilities -- the Cubs are extending him some runway to his next appearance.

Counsell said on Saturday that Imanaga would not pitch in another Cactus League game this week, opting instead for a longer bullpen session. The lefty will then be lined up to start the third game of the season against the D-backs on March 29, following Steele (Thursday) and Taillon (Friday) in the rotation.

“That trip was a lot -- for everybody -- but for him, in particular,” said Counsell, who added that Imanaga was feeling a little “under the weather” as well. “And you can understand there’s just an added emotional component for them. I’m glad Shota acknowledged it, frankly, right? That it was just a lot. So, it works out well.”

Suzuki belts pair of homers vs. Rockies

After using Friday to recover from jet lag, Cubs slugger Seiya Suzuki certainly looked well-rested in the batter’s box in Saturday’s 7-3 loss to the Rockies at Sloan Park. In his first game action since the Tokyo Series, Suzuki launched two home runs, giving him three so far in Cactus League play.

“Really, all we need from Seiya is just we need him out there every day,” Counsell said during the Japan trip. “And if we get that, we know we're going to get a good season from him. He's such a talented hitter. My goal is just to write his name in the lineup as much as possible.”

Miller heading to 15-day IL

Counsell noted on Saturday that righty Tyson Miller will be placed on the 15-day injured list due to a left hip impingement, which the manager added has been an issue “off and on” since last season. It could help explain Miller’s Cactus League showing of nine runs allowed on 10 hits in 4 2/3 innings (four walks, seven strikeouts and one hit batsman).

“Essentially, it’s affecting mechanics a little bit here,” Counsell said. “And we’re struggling a little bit with some fastballs, just consistency of pitches, shapes. Hopefully, he can take a couple days, get rid of that and then work on some mechanics.”

Quotable

“It was a great atmosphere last night. If anything, it’s like a great sign for just baseball, one, in the Valley and just baseball period. There were 6,000 people there last night? It was packed. It was like, ‘Oh my god, it’s packed.’ I mean, there’s Spring Training all over the place and you’re going to get 5,000-6000 people at night there for a game? It was a great atmosphere.” -- Counsell, on watching his son, Brady, play for Kansas against Arizona State on Friday night