Pete Crow-Armstrong gets second day off, Cubs waiting on Kyle Tucker

Pete Crow-Armstrong was missing from the starting lineup for the second day in a row as the Cubs sought to beat the rain and sweep a three-game series against Atlanta on Wednesday.

Essentially, the Cubs are trying to do the same thing they did with Kyle Tucker last month — give PCA a couple days to rest, reset and hopefully snap out of a hitting slump.

Crow-Armstrong did come off the bench to play center field in the ninth inning on Tuesday, but Kevin Alcantara was there most of the game. Willi Castro was Wednesday's starting center fielder.

“Obviously, he played in the ninth inning but didn't hit at all yesterday, really took the day off from hitting,” manager Craig Counsell said before the game. “So he'll do his normal work today, and then obviously have (Thursday) off as well. Then going into the last three-and-a-half weeks of the season, hopefully a little bit refreshed.”

Since Tucker took his two-day break and homered in Anaheim on Aug. 22, he's posted a 1.289 OPS — third best in MLB during that time.

Tucker was also not in Wednesday's lineup. He left Tuesday's game after six innings due to calf tightness. Counsell said there was no injury update. The plan is to let Tucker rest and heal, then see how he feels Friday morning before the Cubs host Washington.

Amaya progress slows:

Catcher Miguel Amaya, out since Aug. 13 with a left ankle sprain, had to slow his rehab, according to Craig Counsell.

“We've kind of plateaued, I would say,” Counsell said. “This week we've had to back off some things. So just the nature of an ankle sprain, you get to a place and then you've got to slow down a little bit and let some healing take place. So nothing has changed as far as timetable but hasn't made a lot of progress this week.”

After missing roughly 11 weeks with an oblique strain, Amaya turned his ankle while stepping awkwardly on first base in his first game back at Toronto. It's possible he returns before the regular season ends, but the clock is ticking.

Cubs stock minors:

The Cubs have been stacking up reinforcements at Triple-A Iowa the past few days. Former Rockies left-hander Austin Gomber started for the I-Cubs on Tuesday and threw five scoreless innings on just two hits.

The Cubs also signed former Phillies right-hander Joe Ross, who spent most of his big-league career in Washington. According to the Des Moines Register, they're also signing veteran speedster Billy Hamilton, 34, who played for the Cubs in 2020. The Cubs released their best pinch-runner, Jon Berti, on Aug. 13.

Naperville native Nicky Lopez joined Iowa on Aug. 9 after playing for the Cubs earlier this season.

“Those are kind of scenarios (in case) something you don't really plan on happening happens,” Craig Counsell said. “You just want to make sure you have players that could fill in. So it's worst-case scenario planning, but you still have to do it.”

Meanwhile, pitcher Jameson Taillon (groin strain) will make a rehab start for Iowa on Thursday, while reliever Ryan Brasier (groin strain) is set to pitch in Des Moines on Friday.

Infielder Ben Cowles, acquired from the Yankees last year in the Mark Leiter Jr. trade, was claimed off waivers by the White Sox.