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Cubs place Steele on IL, recall catcher Amaya

The Cubs placed pitcher Justin Steele on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to June 1, with a left forearm strain before Saturday's game at San Diego.

Steele left the mound after throwing three perfect innings on Wednesday against Tampa Bay. The Cubs also recalled catcher Miguel Amaya from Iowa.

This move means Steele will miss at least two starts. He said after the game Wednesday he didn't think the injury was anything major. So the Cubs are being cautious, but are probably hopeful Steele will be able to return as soon as the home series against Baltimore on June 16-18.

At the moment, Marcus Stroman and Steele rank second and third, respectively, in National League ERA. Steele is at 2.65 and Stroman 2.59. Hayden Wesneski is the obvious candidate to fill Steele's spot in the rotation.

Amaya made his major-league debut with the Cubs on May 4 and played six games while Yan Gomes was out with a concussion. When sent down, Amaya played in Triple A for the first time in his career and hit .313 in 15 games for Iowa.

Tucker Barnhart was in Saturday's starting lineup at catcher, with is an unusual pairing with pitcher Drew Smyly. There was no immediate word on any issues with Gomes.

The Cubs could also use help in the bullpen, since Brandon Hughes, Julian Merryweather, Adbert Alzolay and Mark Leiter Jr. all saw work in Friday's 2-1 victory over the Padres. It was the first Cubs victory for Jameson Taillon, who threw 5⅔ innings.

Dansby Swanson was the hitting star in Friday's victory, going 3-for-4 with a solo home run. Ian Happ got the other RBI on a fielder's choice.

Twitter: @McGrawDHSports

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