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As the only starting pitcher the Cubs acquired at the 2025 MLB Trade Deadline, Mike Soroka came into tonight’s start with a lot of pressure. And to begin, he looked great, striking out the side in the top of the first, with his breaking pitches looking particularly nasty. He gave up a solo homer in the second, but generally still looked pretty good. And then he didn’t come out for the third. Sigh. Mike Soroka Exits Starting pitcher Michael Soroka left today’s game after the second inning. Ben Brown is on the mound. pic.twitter.com/9hojrLBCFJ— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) August 5, 2025 No word was given (yet) on why Soroka left the game, but he was seen motioning to the Cubs trainer, and was definitely not expected to act as an “opener” tonight. At least, not publicly. To make matters more concerning, Soroka has an extensive injury history and experienced a significant drop in velocity for three straight starts coming into tonight (a trend that continued into his first two innings). I’ll update this post as soon as we know more, but for now, Ben Brown is in. For what it’s worth, the Reds starter, Nick Lodolo, also exited with what looked like a blister.