CHICAGO — As Craig Counsell searches for answers to stabilize his suddenly rocky bullpen, one name who won’t be rejoining the group this season is Ben Brown.“Ben is going to be out for the remainder of the season,” Counsell said before Thursday’s game. “After consulting with doctors, it’s just more rest. He’s just gotta rest more. This is a bone injury. There’s healing, but just not enough to allow the discomfort to go away. We just need to spend more time healing.”The news didn’t come as a surprise by this point, but it wasn’t long ago that Brown seemed to be nearing a return to the team. Brown went on the injured list June 24 with a stress reaction in his neck. The injury was a recurrence of an issue that ended Brown’s 2024 season prematurely.As Brown ramped back up this summer, he and the team were encouraged by his progress. The righty was on the verge of being sent for a rehab assignment, but he felt discomfort in his neck toward the end of an outing during a bridge game at the Cubs facility in Arizona on Aug. 26.“I think the frustrating thing for Ben is that this is multiple times where this has knocked him out for a long period of time,” Counsell said. “The answers are rest — which is a good answer, but sometimes a frustrating answer because athletes want to do something to fix things — and there’s just not much to do.”Counsell said imaging was done again, and although the area is healing, there are still signs of an “injury.” The original plan, as Counsell pointed out, was that Brown would move forward once there wasn’t discomfort. He did that successfully for a stretch, but the return of pain meant the only answer now is to allow the injury to completely heal.Ben Brown had a 4-2 record with one save and a 1.85 ERA in 20 appearances, including eight starts, this season. (Patrick Gorski / Imagn Images via Reuters Connect)Is there concern this could linger even longer or that it could impact his ability to pitch in the future?“It’s an injury that’s happened multiple times,” Counsell said. “I think that’s a concern. But in the end, we’re going to get to spring next year, and Ben’s going to be a healthy player.”