15-Day IL
Injury Elbow
Est. Return 7/17/2026
2026 Stats
W-L
2-1
ERA
2.70
WHIP
1.38
K
19
SV
3
Rest-of-Season Projections
2026 Fantasy Outlook
Palencia took over closing duties for the Cubs last May and was lights out in the role, pitching to a 2.12 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 59:15 K:BB across his first 51 appearances before a strained right shoulder sidelined him for a few weeks in September. The 25-year-old was the only Cubs pitcher to record double-digits saves (22), good for a 50 percent team save share. Palencia also finished third among relievers with a 99.6 mph average fastball velocity; a pitch he tossed 71 percent of the time while occasionally mixing in a slider and splitter. Upon his return from injury, the right-hander pitched earlier in games, but he was deployed in important spots during the playoffs. Pencil him atop the Cubs' closer hierarchy for now, but keep in mind the team's front office will need to re-tool this pen after losing several key relievers to free agency. Chicago could sign a reliever or two with more closing experience, relegating Palencia to the highest-leverage moments earlier in games. Read Past Outlooks
Signed a one-year, $808,000 contract with the Cubs in March of 2026.
MRI reveals flexor strain
Palencia was diagnosed with a mild flexor strain in his right arm Saturday, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.
Analysis
Manager Craig Counsell said that Palencia will be shut down from throwing for about a week, at which point the team will re-evaluate him. A clearer timeline for his return to the bullpen may emerge once he's cleared to begin a throwing program. In the meantime, Caleb Thielbar, Jacob Webb and Phil Maton all could be in the mix for saves.
Manager Craig Counsell said that Palencia will be shut down from throwing for about a week, at which point the team will re-evaluate him. A clearer timeline for his return to the bullpen may emerge once he's cleared to begin a throwing program. In the meantime, Caleb Thielbar, Jacob Webb and Phil Maton all could be in the mix for saves.
Pitching Stats
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2026 MLB Game Log
2026
2025
2024
2023
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
15
Last 10 Games
17
Last 5 Games
18
How many pitches does Daniel Palencia generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Daniel Palencia generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2024
-36%
BAA vs RHP
2026
-69%
BAA vs RHP
| BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2024vs Left | .295 | 46 | 25 | 43 | 6 | |||
| Since 2024vs Right | .188 | 50 | 9 | 32 | 1 | |||
| 2026vs Left | .406 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 2 | |||
| 2026vs Right | .125 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 0 | |||
| 2025vs Left | .242 | 29 | 14 | 22 | 4 | |||
| 2025vs Right | .210 | 32 | 2 | 22 | 1 | |||
| 2024vs Left | .348 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 0 | |||
| 2024vs Right | .182 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 0 | |||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | |||||||
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2024
-31%
ERA at Home
2026
-87%
ERA at Home
| ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2024Home | 2.90 | 1.11 | 49.2 | 10.0 | 2.9 | ||||
| Since 2024Away | 4.19 | 1.57 | 34.1 | 10.7 | 4.7 | ||||
| 2026Home | 0.82 | 1.09 | 11.0 | 11.5 | 3.3 | ||||
| 2026Away | 6.35 | 1.94 | 5.2 | 7.9 | 3.2 | ||||
| 2025Home | 3.13 | 1.11 | 31.2 | 9.7 | 2.6 | ||||
| 2025Away | 2.57 | 1.19 | 21.0 | 11.6 | 3.0 | ||||
| 2024Home | 5.14 | 1.14 | 7.0 | 9.0 | 3.9 | ||||
| 2024Away | 7.04 | 2.35 | 7.2 | 10.6 | 10.6 | ||||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | ||||||||
Stat Review
How does Daniel Palencia compare to other relievers?
This section compares his stats with all relief pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 30 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
3.17K/9
10.3BB/9
3.2HR/9
1.1Fastball
99.5 mphERA
2.70WHIP
1.38BABIP
.349GB/FB
1.08Left On Base
89.1%Exit Velocity
84.0 mphBarrels/BBE
5.6%Spin Rate
2288 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
20.0%Swinging Strike
15.0%Prospect Rankings History
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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More Fantasy News
Placed on IL with inflamed elbow
The Cubs placed Palencia on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with right elbow inflammation, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Analysis
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Strikes out side, earns win
Palencia (2-1) worked around a walk to toss a scoreless inning of relief and earn the win in Monday's 5-4 victory over the Rockies. He struck out three.
Analysis
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Takes first loss Wednesday
Palencia (1-1) didn't record any outs and allowed a run on two hits and a walk to take the loss in Wednesday's 3-2 defeat to the Rockies.
Analysis
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Sharp again in non-save opportunity
Palencia tossed a scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout in Tuesday's 2-1 loss to the Athletics.
Analysis
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Shuts door on Atlanta
Palencia tossed a scoreless inning of relief to secure the save in Thursday's 2-0 win over Atlanta. He allowed one hit and struck out two.
Analysis
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Could miss start of playoffs
Palencia could miss the start of the 2025 playoffs after exiting Sunday's game against the Nationals with a shoulder injury, according to Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com.
Analysis
The Cubs initially tabbed the injury as shoulder tightness, but manager Craig Counsell later told reporters, including Levine, that, more specifically, Palencia was suffering from a posterior capsule strain in his right shoulder. It sounds as if Palencia will need a trip to the injured list, and based on recent players who've had these injuries, he could be sidelined without throwing for multiple weeks. That scenario would mean the Cubs would have to open the playoffs, providing they clinched a berth, without their closer. Even after a disastrous outing Sunday in which he didn't record an out, Palencia owns a 3.00 ERA with a 1.18 WHIP across 51 innings this season while converting 22 of his 25 save opportunities.
The Cubs initially tabbed the injury as shoulder tightness, but manager Craig Counsell later told reporters, including Levine, that, more specifically, Palencia was suffering from a posterior capsule strain in his right shoulder. It sounds as if Palencia will need a trip to the injured list, and based on recent players who've had these injuries, he could be sidelined without throwing for multiple weeks. That scenario would mean the Cubs would have to open the playoffs, providing they clinched a berth, without their closer. Even after a disastrous outing Sunday in which he didn't record an out, Palencia owns a 3.00 ERA with a 1.18 WHIP across 51 innings this season while converting 22 of his 25 save opportunities.