CHICAGO – The bulk of the bullpen group that covered the later innings in the stretch run and playoffs for the Cubs last season either hit free agency this winter or are relievers no longer with the ballclub. Adding multiple arms, both for the Major League relief corps and depth behind it, has been a top priority.
“We’re obviously going to sign more relievers this offseason,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said this week at the MLB Winter Meetings.
That process continued on Thursday, when Chicago had reached agreements on a one-year contract with veteran lefty Hoby Milner and a Minor League deal (plus a non-roster invite to Spring Training) with righty Collin Snider, sources told MLB.com. The team did not confirm the deals.
A source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand that Milner’s pact is worth $3.75 million, plus incentives. That deal comes after the Cubs added right-hander Phil Maton via a two-year, $14.5 million contract last month to a bullpen that no longer has Andrew Kittredge (traded to Baltimore), Brad Keller (free agent), Caleb Thielbar (free agent) and Drew Pomeranz (free agent), among others from last season.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do completing our bullpen,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said this week at the Meetings. “You’re never going to be satisfied with what you have from a pitching perspective.”
Milner is reunited with Counsell, who managed the lefty from 2021-23 with the Brewers prior to joining the Cubs two years ago. The 34-year-old reliever’s best season came under Counsell’s watch in ’23, when Milner spun a 1.82 ERA across 73 appearances.
Last season, Milner worked 73 games for the Rangers and logged a 3.84 ERA with 58 strikeouts against 21 walks in 70 1/3 innings. Per Statcast, the lefty ranked in the 91st percentile for ground-ball rate (53.8%), leaning mostly on a sweeper (35.1%) and sinker (32.8%), while mixing in a changeup and four-seamer.
With his sidearm delivery, Milner limited left-handed batters to a .208 average and .526 OPS in 2025, compared to a .295 average and .820 OPS against righties. That falls in line with his track record, too. In parts of nine MLB seasons with five clubs, Milner has held lefties to a .221 average (.608 OPS) versus .277 (.794) against right-handed hitters.
Beyond Maton and Milner, the Cubs are still hoping to add more impact relief help to the back-end group. Hoyer did not rule out staying open-minded to multiyear deals, even with Maton being the first one given out by Chicago to a reliever since 2019 (Craig Kimbrel). Trying to re-sign Keller is an option and Pete Fairbanks is among the late-inning fits in free agency. Robert Suarez – reportedly a Cubs target – reached a three-year deal with the Braves on Thursday.
Under Hoyer, the Cubs have preferred to construct bullpens via in-house development or smaller moves via trades, waivers or shorter-term, value-based signings.
“I think it’s the right place to take a volume approach,” Hoyer said, “to use our pitching guys, to believe in guys and guys that can get better, and try to develop those guys as well as possible. So, I’d rather spend our resources on probably areas of less volatility, honestly. But at the same time, bullpens are really important.”
The 30-year-old Snider fits into Chicago’s typical bullpen approach of taking a chance on a pitcher with bounce-back potential.
Snider had a strong showing with Seattle in 2024, when he posted a 1.94 ERA with a 27.8% strikeout rate in 42 games after altering his pitch mix (leaning more on a four-seam and sweeper). In ’25, he had a 5.47 ERA in 24 big league outings and saw his fastball velocity drop to 92.4 mph from 94.2 mph in the previous year (per Statcast).
Snider dealt with injuries – he took a line drive off the left knee in April and had a right forearm flexor strain in June – and spent time back with Triple-A Tacoma before being outrighted in August and hitting free agency this offseason. With so many openings in Chicago’s bullpen, the righty will have a place in the competition for jobs this spring.
