The 2023 Chicago Cubs season was the 152nd season of the Chicago Cubs franchise, the 148th in the National League, and the Cubs' 108th season at Wrigley Field. The Cubs were led by fourth-year manager David Ross and played as members of Major League Baseball's National League Central. The Cubs began the season March 30 at home against the Milwaukee Brewers and also finished the season against the Brewers in Milwaukee on October 1. With a win over the Rockies on September 24, the Cubs clinched a winning season, the team's first since 2020. The Cubs finished the season 83–79 to finish in second place in the Central, nine games behind the Brewers. They finished one game out of the final wild card spot, despite being in playoff position through most of August and September.Cubs eliminated from postseason: How they got here and what comes next, Marquee Sports Network, October 1, 2023 As a result, they failed to make the postseason for the third consecutive season.
Pursuant to the collective bargaining agreement entered into by the owners in players ending 2022 lockout, the Cubs played every team in baseball at least one series and intra-division games were reduced from 18 or 19 games to 13 games against each division opponent.
The Chicago Cubs drew an average home attendance of 34,261 in 81 home games in the 2023 MLB season.
Previous season The Cubs finished the 2022 season 74–88 in third place in the Central division, 19 games out of first place. They missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season.
Offseason
Coaching changes On October 28, 2022, the team announced that hitting coach Greg Brown would not return. Cubs' minor league hitting coordinator, Dustin Kelly, was named the new hitting coach.
Rule changes Pursuant to the CBA, new rule changes were in place for the 2023 season:
institution of a pitch clock between pitches; limits on pickoff attempts per plate appearance; limits on defensive shifts requiring two infielders to be on either side of second and be within the boundary of the infield; and larger bases (increased to 18-inch squares).
Transactions October 2022 Activated LHPs Steven Brault and Justin Steele from the 15-day injured list (IL). Activated IF Nick Madrigal from the 10-day IL. Recalled RHPs Jeremiah Estrada, Anderson Espinoza, Caleb Killian, OFs Alexander Canario and Narcisso Crook, and IF Jared Young from Iowa Cubs. Activated C Miguel Amaya, LHP Brailyn Marquez, and RHP Alexander Vizcaino from Tennessee Smokies. Source
November 2022 C Willson Contreras and LHP Wade Miley elected free agency.LHP Drew Smyly elected free agency.Activated RHP Kyle Hendricks, RHP Codi Heuer, OF Jason Heyward, OF Rafael Ortega, RHP Ethan Roberts from the 60-day IL. Sent IF David Bote, LHP Steven Brault, OF Narciso Crook, RHP Anderson Espinoza, RHP Alec Mills, DH Franmil Reyes, and LHP Brad Wieck outright to Iowa. Sent IFs Esteban Quiroz and Jared Young outright to Iowa.Released OF Jason Heyward.Traded RHP Alfredo Zarraga to Tampa Bay Rays for IF Miles Mastrobuoni. Selected the contract of OF Brennen Davis and RHP Ryan Jensen from Iowa. Selected the contract of RHP Ben Brown from Tennessee. Selected the contract of OF Kevin Alcantara from Myrtle Beach Pelicans.Claimed IF Rylan Bannon off of waivers from Atlanta Braves. LHP Brailyn Marquez, OF Rafael Ortega, and RHP Alexander Vizcaino elected free agency. Source
December 2022 Signed free agent RHP Adrian Santana to a minor league contract.Signed free agent LHP Brailyn Marquez to a minor league contract.Signed free agent OF Be DeLuzio to a minor league contractSigned free agent RHP Ronny Lopez and LHP Eric Stout to minor league contracts.Signed free agent OF Cody Bellinger.Signed free agent RHP Brad Boxberger.Signed free agent RHP Jameson Taillon. Signed free agent IF Sergio Alcántara to a minor league contract.Signed free agent IF Dansby Swanson.Claimed LHP Anthony Kay off waivers from Toronto Blue Jays. Designated IF Alfonso Rivas for assignment. Signed free agent LHP Drew Smyly. Designated RHP Erich Uelmen for assignment.Signed free agent LHP Brad Wieck to a minor league contract.Designated C P. J. Higgins for assignment. Signed free agent C Tucker Barnhart. Source
January 2023 Signed free agent C Dom Núñez to a minor league contract.Activated RHP Rowan Wick.Traded RHP Erich Uelmen to Philadelphia Phillies for cash.Released IF Alfonso Rivas.Sent C P. J. Higgins outright to Iowa.Signed free agent OF Mike Tauchman to a minor league contract.Signed free agent IF Eric Hosmer. Designated RHP Mark Leiter Jr. for assignment.Signed free agents C Daniel Campos, RHP Eduardo Castillo, IF Angel Cepeda, LHP Miguel Cruz, IF Ludwing Espinoza, IF Omar Ferrera, RHP Jostin Florentino, IF Albert Gonzalez, RHP Emannoel Madeira, IF Brailin Pascual, LHP Santiago Payares, IF Derniche Valdez, and IF Grenyerbert Velásquez to minor league contracts.Claimed RHP Julian Merryweather off waivers from Toronto Blue Jays. Designed RHP Manuel Rodríguez for assignment.Sent RHP Mark Leiter Jr. outright to Iowa.Signed free agent OF Trey Mancini. Designated LHP Anthony Kay for assignment. Signed free agent C Luis Torrens to a minor league contract.Sent RHPs Anthony Kay and Manuel Rodriguez outright to Iowa.Signed frees agent RHPs Tyler Dudley, Jordan Holloway, and Mark Leiter Jr. to minor league contracts. Source
February 2023 Invited non-roster RHP Nick Burdi, RHP Danis Correa, OF Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF Darius Hill. LHP Bailey Horn, RHP Ben Leeper, LHP Brenden Little, 1B Matt Mervis, IF Yonathan Perlaza, RHP Cam Sanders, IF Chase Strumpf, IF Andy Weber, and IF Bryce Windham to spring training.Placed RHP Ethan Roberts on 60-day injured list. Signed free agent IF Edwin Ríos.Placed RHP Codi Heuer on 60-day IL. Signed free agent RHP Michael Fulmer.Assigned C Caleb Knight, RHP Peyton Remy, RHP Samuel Reyes, and RHP Black Whitney to Chicago Cubs.Assigned RHP Max Bain, RHP Hunter Bigge, OF Zach Davis, RHP Kyle Johnson, IF Levi Jordan, RHP Nick Neidert, OF Cole Roederer, RHP Curtis Taylor, RHP Cayne Ueckert, C Jake Washer to Chicago Cubs.Assigned C Pablo Aliendo, IF Bryce Ball, OF Bradlee Beesley, RHP Brad Deppermann, OF Jefferson Encarnacion, IF Reivaj Garcia, C Ethan Hearn, OF Ismael Mena, IF Scott McKeon, IF BJ Murray Jr., OF Jordan Nwogu, C Casey Optiz, IF Fabian Pertuz, OF Yohendrick Pinango, IF Jake Slaughter, LHP Dalton Stambaugh, LHP Didier Vargas, IF Luis Vazquez, and RHP Jarod Wright to Chicago Cubs.Assigned RHP Joe Nahas, IF Miguel Pabon, RHP Jake Reindl, and IF James Triantos to Chicago Cubs. Source
March 2023 Assigned RHP Michael McAvene to Chicago Cubs.Assigned IF Christian Donahue to Chicago Cubs. Signed free agent LHP Christian Winston to a minor league contract.Optioned OF Brennen Davis to Iowa. Optioned C Miguel Amaya, RHP Ben Brown, OF Alexander Canario, and RHP Ryan Jensen to Tennessee. Optioned CF Kevin Alcantara to South Bend Cubs.Assigned C Moises Ballesteros to Chicago Cubs.Assigned C Malcom Quintero to Chicago Cubs.Assigned IF Luis Verdugo to Chicago Cubs.March 16Assigned OF Parker Chavers, OF Christian Franklin, and OF Jacob Wetzel to Chicago Cubs.March 17Assigned OF D.J. Artis, C Brayan Altuve, OF Raino Coran, OF Andy Garriola, IF Josue Huma, and IF Juan Mora to Chicago Cubs.March 18Optioned RHPs Jeremiah Estrada and Caleb Killian to Iowa. Assigned IF Christian Olivo to Chicago Cubs.March 23Traded IF Esteban Quiroz to Philadelphia Phillies for cash. Optioned OF Nelson Velásquez to Iowa. Assigned LHP Riley Martin, LHP Adam Laskey, and IF Liam Spence to Chicago Cubs.March 24Assigned RHPs Saul Gonzalez and Ben Hecht to Chicago Cubs.March 25Optioned RHP Adrian Sampson to Iowa. Assigned OF Felix Stevens and IF Yelson Santana to Chicago Cubs.March 26RHP Chris Clarke returned to Chicago Cubs from Seattle Mariners.March 27Traded IF Zach McKinstry to Detroit Tigers for RHP Carlos Guzman. Optioned IF Christopher Morel to Iowa. Sent RHP Rowan Wick outright to Iowa.March 28Selected the contract of C Luis Torrens from Iowa. Signed free agent LHP Jake Aldrich to a minor league contract. Source
Regular season Game log
Legend Cubs win Cubs loss Postponement Eliminated from playoff raceBoldCubs team member
|-style=background:#bfb;" | 1 || March 30 || Brewers || 4–0 || Stroman (1–0) || Burnes (0–1) || — || 36,054 || 1–0 || W1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 2 || April 1 || Brewers || 1–3 || Strzelecki (1–0) || Assad (0–1) || Williams (1) || 31,363 || 1–1 || L1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 3 || April 2 || Brewers || 5–9 || Lauer (1–0) || Taillon (0–1) || — || 33,266 || 1–2 || L2 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 4 || April 3 || @ Reds || 6–7 || Cruz (1–0) || Smyly (0–1) || Law (1) || 11,941 || 1–3 || L3 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 5 || April 4 || @ Reds || 12–5 || Alzolay (1–0) || Farmer (0–2) || — || 13,399 || 2–3 || W1 |-style=background:#bbb;" | – || April 5 || @ Reds || colspan="8"|Postponed (rain) (Makeup date: Sept 1 as a split doubleheader) |-style=background:#bfb;" | 6 || April 7 || Rangers || 2–0 || Stroman (2–0) || Eovaldi (1–1) || Fulmer (1) || 29,094 || 3–3 || W2 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 7 || April 8 || Rangers || 10–3 || Steele (1–0) || Pérez (1–1) || — || 33,578 || 4–3 || W3 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 8 || April 9 || Rangers || 2–8 || Gray (1–1) || Taillon (0–2) || — || 28,807 || 4–4 || L1 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 9 || April 10 || Mariners || 3–2 || Thompson (1–0) || Brash (0–1) || — || 26,766 || 5–4 || W1 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 10 || April 11 || Mariners || 14–9 || Rucker (1–0) || Flexen (0–2) || — || 30,081 || 6–4 || W2 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 11 || April 12 || Mariners || 2–5 || Gilbert (1–1) || Stroman (2–1) || — || 26,944 || 6–5 || L1 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 12 || April 14 || @ Dodgers || 8–2 || Steele (2–0) || Syndergaard (0–2) || — || 52,298 || 7–5 || W1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 13 || April 15 || @ Dodgers || 1–2 || Miller (1–0) || Fulmer (0–1) || — || 52,375 || 7–6 || L1 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 14 || April 16 || @ Dodgers || 3–2 || Smyly (1–1) || Urías (3–1) || Boxberger (1) || 52,180 || 8–6 || W1 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 15 || April 17 || @ Athletics || 10–1 || Wesneski (1–0) || Muller (0–1) || — || 4,714 || 9–6 || W2 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 16 || April 18 || @ Athletics || 4–0 || Leiter Jr. (1–0) || May (2–3) || — || 5,196 || 10–6 || W3 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 17 || April 19 || @ Athletics || 12–2 || Steele (3–0) || Smith (1–1) || — || 12,112 || 11–6 || W4 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 18 || April 20 || Dodgers || 2–6 || Ferguson (1–0) || Fulmer (0–2) || — || 32,817 || 11–7 || L1 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 19 || April 21 || Dodgers || 13–0 || Smyly (2–1) || Urías (3–2) || — || 30,381 || 12–7 || W1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 20 || April 22 || Dodgers || 4–9 || May (2–1) || Wesneski (1–1) || — || 35,076 || 12–8 || L1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 21 || April 23 || Dodgers || 3–7 || Kershaw (4–1) || Stroman (2–2) || Graterol (1) || 33,494 || 12–9 || L2 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 22 || April 25 || Padres || 6–0 || Steele (4–0) || Snell (0–4) || — || 27,956 || 13–9 || W1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 23 || April 26 || Padres || 3–5 || Martinez (2–1) || Hughes (0–1) || Hader (9) || 28,955 || 13–10 || L1 |-style=background:#bfb;" | 24 || April 27 || Padres || 5–2 || Wesneski (2–1) || Lugo (2–2) || Boxberger (2) || 26,588 || 14–10 || W1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 25 || April 28 || @ Marlins || 2–3 || Puk (3–0) || Rucker (1–1) || — || 12,340 || 14–11 || L1 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 26 || April 29 || @ Marlins || 6–7 || Cabrera (2–2) || Kilian (0–1) || Scott (2) || 14,994 || 14–12 || L2 |-style=background:#fbb;" | 27 ||April 30 || @ Marlins || 3–4 || Scott (2–1) || Thompson (1–1) || Puk (5) || 20,345 || 14–13 || L3
|-style=background:#bfb;" | 28 || May 1 || @ Nationals || 5–1 || Smyly (3–1) || Gore (3–2) || — || 13,722 || 15–13 || W1 |-style=background:#fbb;"