Chicago Cubs updates: Dansby Swanson progressing with injury — and Javier Assad rejoins team on taxi squad
MIAMI — Dansby Swanson’s unfamiliarity with an oblique strain creates a little uncertainty for the Chicago Cubs shortstop about what his path back might entail.
Swanson traveled with the Cubs to Miami for their three-game series against the Marlins that kicked off Friday night at LoanDepot Park. He went through lighter pregame work after having a heavier schedule Thursday. Swanson feels he has been doing a lot to get back on the field as soon as possible, following the guidelines for return to play set by the training staff.
The 32-year-old acknowledged he’s not sure where he is at within his rehab progression, which has included fielding grounders and hitting, since he has never dealt with an oblique injury before.
“Going into this, the biggest key for me was how to work with a sense of urgency but also with a se nse of still being cautious and careful, but not being so cautious and careful that you’re not urgent,” Swanson said Friday. “They obviously have a good plan. They put together a lot of good things, and I just go at it with my best literally every day and obviously had good results so far and feeling good. Now, what that looks like to get back into like playing, I don’t know. We haven’t really had those conversations.”
Swanson anticipates there will be an adjustment to game speed and pace of play when he does return. Ideally he will have a little bit of a buffer to get back into the flow of the season before the end of September into the playoffs. He has been able to keep his eyes and mind engaged by standing in against a Trajekt Arc pitching machine that can mimic any pitcher’s delivery.
“I hate that it happened, and it’s obviously like pretty rare for me, but at the end of the day, you can’t go back and change it,” Swanson said of his injury. “I feel like I’ve always shown up for my teammates every day when I’m playing, but also there’s plenty of ways I can do that now too without playing. So that’s something I’ve enjoyed. And the other day, as bad as I want to be back out there, I can still be present and enjoy this, too, in a way. I know that sounds kind of weird, but just being optimistic and positive is usually a good trait of mine, so just have basically as much fun as I can with it.”
Swanson landed on the injured list Aug. 17 and was expected to be out four to six weeks. The Cubs are hoping it’ll be the short end of that timeline, which would mean a return before the playoffs. The nature of oblique injuries, which can linger stubbornly, means the Cubs are repeating rehab days with Swanson to make sure he doesn’t reaggravate it. They want to get to the point of making sure his oblique can handle full-speed game-level swings and be able to make the awkward moves that sometimes occur, especially on the defensive side.
“There’s a difference between feeling it and then still being injured,” manager Craig Counsell said. “You have to push through. You have to push some things, and that’s just always the balance with these things. This is a muscle that is overused in our sport. You can’t avoid it on a daily basis. There’s no way we can hide it or stay away from it. You’re going to use it every single day, so it’s got to be ready to go when you get back into it every day.”
Javier Assad to rejoin pitching staff
As Cubs pitchers gathered in right field for their pregame work Friday, right-hander Javier Assad emerged from the clubhouse to join them.
Assad was on the team’s taxi squad for their series opener, but he is expected to factor into their pitching plans this weekend, Counsell said. Assad can be recalled from Triple A as soon as Saturday, the end of the required 15 minimum days spent in the minors after the Cubs optioned him.
As of first pitch Friday night, the Cubs listed their starters for Saturday and Sunday in Miami as to be determined. They could opt to slot Assad into the rotation Saturday and have left-hander Matthew Boyd pitch Sunday’s series finale. That would give right-hander Clay Holmes extra rest and line him up to get the ball in Monday’s opener in Milwaukee. With an off day Thursday, it would allow the Cubs to reassess if they want to utilize a six-man rotation for another turn or make adjustments to the regular rotation as needed for next weekend’s series at Wrigley Field.
Assad has thrived in whatever role the Cubs have asked of the 29-year-old. He has a 2.24 ERA in 64⅓ innings since the beginning of May.
More injury updates
Right-handers Edward Cabrera and Shelby Miller are continuing to progress in their rehab assignments with Triple-A Iowa as they look to help the Cubs bullpen down the stretch.
Cabrera and Miller were both scheduled to pitch Friday for Iowa, with Cabrera expected to enter the game midinning to help him prepare for his new relief role. If Miller’s appearance goes well and the veteran feels good afterward, he is slated to pitch again Saturday for his first back-to-back outings since coming back from his second Tommy John surgery.
Counsell, though, again cautioned about the nature of the rehab process and didn’t want to get too far ahead of things in regard to Miller pitching consecutive days, adding, “At some point we’d definitely want him to go back to back.”
Cabrera (blister) allowed one run and struck out two in his first rehab appearance as a reliever Tuesday. He will have additional rehab outings after Friday’s, though he likely won’t get a chance to pitch back-to-back days with Iowa because of the limited games left in the season.
“We’re going to put him through some different scenarios, so to speak,” Counsell said. “And we’ve got a couple more things we’d like to cover.”