Miles Mastrobuoni was the 26th man on the roster for most of his time with the Cubs in 2023 and 2024, a substitute fielder, pinch-hitter and pinch-runner.
The Cubs were 14-10 after defeating the Padres April 27, but then went on a long losing skid, losing 10 of 15 entering the final game of a three-game series against the Twins at Target Field.
They had used five pitchers in losing the previous day 11-1, so when Marcus Stroman, Michael Rucker, Keegan Thompson, Julian Merryweather, Brandon Hughes and Michael Fulmer had the team in an 11-3 hole in the bottom of the eighth, Mastrobuoni was summoned to try to finish things off.
This, he did not do. There were two out when Mastrobuoni entered the game and he allowed four straight hits: Single, double, single, home run.
Here’s the home run, hit by Michael A. Taylor [VIDEO].
And so, a game where the Cubs trailed 9-3 heading to the last of the eighth wound up as a 16-3 loss. Mastrobuoni’s career Cubs ERA of 108.00 is the highest for any Cubs position player in the divisional play era, though for his career that dropped to 27.00 when he threw a scoreless inning for the Mariners June 26, 2025 — also against the Twins.
Mastrobuoni batted .250/.324/.296 with one home run in 76 games for the Mariners in 2025, better than either of his Cubs seasons. He’ll likely be back as a backup infielder with the Mariners in 2026.
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