Cubs place Steele, Lopez on injured list
The Cubs are sticking with the belief that an MRI exam on Justin Steele's sore left elbow showed promising results; just not promising enough to avoid a stint on the injured list.
So the Cubs placed both Steele and reliever Jorge Lopez (right groin strain) on the 15-day injured list before Wednesday's game. They called up newcomer Trey Wingenter and fellow right-hander Jack Neely from Iowa.
“We're hopeful and Justin's hopeful that if he feels better rather quickly here, we can make this be a minimum stay,” manager Craig Counsell said. “That's the hope right now and the goal right now and we'll work toward that.”
Steele was scratched from Tuesday's start and had an MRI, which he said showed no damage, just inflammation. The best-case scenario would have been for Steele to skip one start and return next week. When he was too sore to play catch Wednesday, the reality of an IL stint set in.
The Cubs' playoff hopes took a hit with two straight losses to Pittsburgh this week, but shutting down Steele for the season is not yet a consideration.
“Justin's going to pitch if he's healthy,” Counsell said. “That's how we're progressing right now. He's not going to pitch if he's not healthy. We'll see what the next 10 days bring. If w can get him back to normal, then he's going to pitch.”
Meanwhile, the Cubs plan to continue with the current five-man rotation, including Jordan Wicks and Kyle Hendricks, until Steele returns. Steele would be eligible to come off the IL on Sept. 16.
New Tiger in town:
The Cubs claimed right-handed pitcher Trey Wingenter off waivers from Boston on Aug. 2 and he made eight appearances at Triple-A Iowa before getting the call to Wrigley Field.
Wingenter has made 92 big-league appearances, mostly with San Diego from 2018-19. He was hit hard in two innings pitched for the Red Sox this year.
“Like everywhere, (the Cubs) want me in the zone,” he said. “When I'm attacking the zone, I'm really tough to score on, so they're reinforcing that.”
Wingenter has a connection in the Cubs clubhouse. The Alabama native spent two years as a teammate of Keegan Thompson at Auburn.
“He was the guy from when he showed up freshman year, he was throwing big innings on the weekends,” Wingenter said of Thompson. “He was kind of our horse from the start, and even let him hit a little bit You still see some of the same stuff he had in college when he was 18, 19., the nice curve ball and all that stuff.”
Around the horn:
Anthony Rizzo returned to the Yankees lineup Sunday after recovering from a broken arm. So he's on track to make his return to Wrigley Field on Friday for the first time since being traded in 2021. … Shota Imanaga entered Wednesday's action with a 6.43 strikeout-to-walk ratio, second-best for an MLB rookie pitcher since 1950 (after Masahiro Tanaka's 6.71 in 2014). Imanaga's ratio is third-best in Cubs' franchise history, after Jon Lieber in 2002 and Fergie Jenkins in 1971.