Cubs send Assad down to Triple-A; Teel has rehab setback

The Cubs sent Javier Assad back down to Triple-A Iowa before Sunday's city series finale, and manager Craig Counsell said the plan is to stretch him out and be a starter. Assad has been working in the bullpen since Matthew Boyd returned from his first stint on the injured list on April 22.

Boyd is now back on the injured list after having surgery to repair torn meniscus in his left knee. This time, the Cubs moved Ben Brown to take his place in the rotation and that's gone very well.

“If you just kind of look at this thing right now — starting pitching, where we're at, Matt still being a pretty good chunk of time away,” Counsell said. “Making sure should something else happen, we've got somebody equipped. We're transitioning Ben to this role, but the shortness of his stints (4 innings) affects you.”

It seems likely Brown (1.60 ERA) will remain in the rotation indefinitely, even when Boyd returns.

The Cubs called up left-hander Ty Blach, a seven-year MLB veteran with a mix of starter and relief experience. He last pitched in the big leagues in 2024 with Colorado.

Early in his career, Blach made two appearances for the San Francisco Giants against the Cubs in the 2016 NL division series. He was the winning pitcher in Game 3, which made him the first Creighton product to win a postseason MLB game since Bob Gibson.

Midwest rehab

Craig Counsell mentioned the Cubs will have some transactions coming up later in the week. One that seems probable is left-handed reliever Caleb Thielbar returning from a hamstring strain.

Thielbar was back in the Cubs clubhouse Sunday after pitching an inning for the South Bend Cubs on Saturday night in Appleton, Wis. He allowed 1 hit and a walk, but no runs.

The Cubs also moved reliever Hunter Harvey (right triceps inflammation) to the 60-day injured list.

In that South Bend-Wisconsin game on Saturday in the Midwest League, the starting pitcher on the other side was Cary-Grove's Quinn Priester, on a rehab assignment with the Brewers. Priester is having a rough time trying to come back from right neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome. He gave up 7 runs in 1 1/3 innings on Saturday, and in four rehab appearances he's at 16 runs allowed in 6 1/3.

Teel suffers setback

White Sox catcher Kyle Teel had a setback Saturday during his rehab stint at Triple-A Charlotte, but it's not related to the hamstring injury that kept him out since the World Baseball Classic.

Sox manager Will Venable said Teel got his spike caught during a swing and experienced right knee soreness. He'll take a couple days off and take it from there.

Also, outfielder Austin Hays (left calf strain) will begin a rehab assignment Tuesday in Charlotte.