CINCINNATI -- Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman has been one of the best hitters in baseball in the second half of the 2026 season, and his hot streak extended from the field to the track. Bregman's horse won a race at Churchill Downs Thursday night, giving him and the Cubs reason to celebrate on a day off. Bregman had his entire team with him on a bus trip.
The timing was perfect with the off day lining up just before a three-game series in Cincinnati, roughly a 90-minute drive from Louisville, home of Churchill Downs. "It helps build the camaraderie, and it's fun," Bregman said. "I just think it's good to get the whole group together and having fun.
That's what it's all about. Building that team chemistry, and it was a great time. "That was probably a core memory for me right there.
We've won probably 25 or 30 races, but that was the most meaningful. In terms of the size of the race, that was probably the smallest one we've ever won, but it was probably the most memorable because of all the guys being there." Bregman's horse, Act of Parliament, was a winner with jockey Axel Concepcion. The Cubs' instagram account shared an 11-slide update of all the fun, which included second-year reliever Ryan Rolison dressed up in a horse costume, which he estimated felt like 100 degrees.
"Everyone was just going crazy watching the videos," said Rolison, who noted he would reuse the costume for Halloween. "We put the jockey up on our shoulders and I think he enjoyed that. Pedro [Ramírez] was walking me around by my ear.
That was quite the experience. It was awesome." Bregman isn't alone in his love for the horse track, as Cubs manager Craig Counsell also loved it. "We just had a fun day, that's the big thing," Counsell said "Churchill Downs is a historic place, like Wrigley Field.
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