The Cubs have outrighted right-hander Jack Neely to Triple-A, according to Bruce Levine of 670 The Score. Neely was designated for assignment by the club prior to Opening Day in a move that made room for Michael Conforto on the team’s 40-man roster.
Neely, 25, was acquired from the Yankees at the 2024 trade deadline in exchange for Mark Leiter Jr. alongside Ben Cowles. The right-hander made his big league debut with Chicago down the stretch that year but struggled with a 9.00 ERA in six appearances despite a respectable 25.0% strikeout rate. His work in the minors during the 2023 and ’24 seasons had the look of a future staple of a big league bullpen, as his strikeout rate pushed 40% at the Double-A level. Unfortunately, his numbers fell off in a big way during the 2025 season. Neely struggled badly at the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate in Iowa and surrendered a 5.94 ERA in 33 1/3 innings of work. His 27.7% strikeout rate was solid, but it was overshadowed by a loss of control that resulted in a massive 18.1% walk rate.
Those numbers were unplayable enough that the Cubs did not turn to Neely in the majors at any point during the 2025 campaign, but his youth and prior minor league success was enough to convince them to keep him on the 40-man roster throughout the offseason. He looked much better in camp than he had during the prior year at Triple-A. He struck out 46.7% of batters faced in four scoreless appearances. That ultimately wasn’t enough to break camp in a crowded Cubs’ bullpen picture, however. At first, he seemed likely to head back to Triple-A as a depth option like Jordan Wicks, Javier Assad, Ryan Rolison and others, but when the team’s 40-man roster was squeezed by the need to add an extra bench bat following Seiya Suzuki‘s knee injury, Neely was the victim.
Now that the right-hander has cleared waivers unclaimed, the Cubs have outrighted him back to Triple-A. He’ll likely remain there for the rest of the season as non-roster bullpen depth for the Cubs, unless he gets added back to the 40-man roster and called up. Perhaps the 25-year-old will be able to post numbers more like his 2023-24 self and do just that, but if he fails to make the 40-man roster before the end of the year he’ll have the opportunity to elect minor league free agency following the season and sign with any of the league’s 30 clubs.
