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After two rough outings, Cubs pitcher Thompson goes on injured list

Keegan Thompson didn't look right in his last two starts and it turned out, there was a reason.

The Cubs placed the right-handed pitcher on the injured list Saturday with low back tightness and recalled right-hander Anderson Espinoza.

Thompson allowed 5 runs in 3⅔ innings against Milwaukee on Friday. His previous start was even shorter, exiting in the second inning of a loss in Cincinnati on Aug. 14.

"All that stuff, it's not shocking that it happened, right?" manager David Ross said. "It's affecting his pitching. Is it something we're super long-term concerned about? No, it's not. It makes a lot of sense to make sure we take care of this."

Overall this season, Thompson has been a pleasant surprise for the Cubs. After starting in the bullpen, he joined the rotation in mid-May. Even with the two short outings, he has a 9-5 record on 3.97 ERA on the season.

Workload could be a concern. Thompson, 27, has surpassed 100 innings pitched, a number he hadn't reached since 2018.

"As much as he wants to keep going, it just makes no sense," Ross said. "We'll get him back out there in some capacity is our hope and I think we have a lot of confidence in that."

With a doubleheader looming on Tuesday against St. Louis, Ross said the Cubs will likely bring someone up from the minor leagues.

So this could be another chance for Caleb Kilian, who made his last start for Iowa on Wednesday, or Matt Swarmer, who has split time between starting and the bullpen since going back to Iowa.

Madrigal feeling healthier:

Nick Madrigal went 3-for-4 in Friday's win over the Brewers, his fourth multihit game this month. Since coming back from a groin injury, he's hitting .325 in 13 games.

After the game, he talked about his journey to feeling better. When traded from the White Sox to the Cubs last July, he was recovering from a torn hamstring.

"I've talked to doctors, therapists, and they said it would take a good amount of time to feel completely 100 percent," said Madrigal, who legged out an infield hit in the first inning on Friday. "And then there's a chance I may never feel 100 percent.

"The last couple weeks I feel like I've kind of taken the next step as far as starting to feel normal again. It's one of those things that all year long it's a little bit tight here and there. Especially this last week I feel like I've been able to run and not worry about it."

Mixed results:

Right-hander Hayden Wesneski had a strong outing for the Iowa Cubs on Saturday, allowing 1 hit and no runs over 5 innings, with 5 strikeouts at Indianapolis.

After joining the Cubs from the Yankees in a trade for reliever Scott Effross, Wesneski had a couple of rough starts for Iowa, giving up 12 earned runs in just 5 innings. ...

Left-hander Wade Miley canceled his planned bullpen session on Friday because he couldn't get loose. Miley has been out with a left shoulder strain since June 10, but has made four minor league rehab starts. ...

Adbert Alzolay was expected to throw a bullpen session in Arizona on Saturday as he continues to come back from right elbow soreness.

Twitter: @McGrawDHSports

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