SAN DIEGO – The results of left-hander Justin Steele’s MRI on Thursday were promising. The imaging showed a minor strain in his left forearm. Steele is scheduled to play catch Saturday.
“We’re holding back to see exactly how he feels before we make any kind of long-term decisions,” manager David Ross said.
Steele’s catch play will help inform the decision. The options include putting him on the 15-day IL – which would likely mean he’d miss two starts – skipping his next start, or pushing his next start back a couple days.
“It was obviously really good news to hear there was just a mild strain in the muscle,” Steele said. “That’s what we wanted to hear.”
A muscle strain has a quicker recovery time than damage to ligaments or tendons. Steele said the tightness he felt during his start Thursday, when he exited after throwing three perfect innings against the Rays, stretched across the middle of his forearm. It’s loosened up since.
“Everything’s headed in the right direction,” Steele said.
There’s no good time to lose a starter with a 2.65 ERA, the fourth-best mark in the National League among starters who had thrown at least 50 innings entering Friday, but the Cubs have the depth to adjust if Steele does miss a start or two.
The Cubs recalled Hayden Wesneski, who began the season in the rotation, in a bullpen role on Tuesday. It would be an easy transition for him to fill in for Steele. Wesneski threw 3 ⅔ innings Wednesday after Steele left the game and was charged with one run. So, he’s lined up.
Javier Assad is also stretched out and did an admirable job piggybacking Jameson Taillon when he came back from injury last month.
“That’s a position you really want to be in as an organization, as a team,” Steele said. “When something happens, the guy you’re bringing up right after him you feel really confident in. And I feel like that’s the situation we’re in with people like Wesneski, Assad and whoever else the case may be.”
In other injury news
Outfielder Cody Bellinger (bruised left knee) started his running progression Friday at Petco Park before the Cubs opened a four-game series against the Padres. He also took batting practice off a pitching machine on the field.
Ross said Bellinger went through those activities pain-free.
“He’s been doing a lot of throwing, a lot of hitting,” Ross said. “Once the running comes, we feel like we can try to speed things up.”
The Cubs are in the middle of discussions about whether Bellinger will need to go on a rehab assignment before returning. They have not yet made a decision, Ross said.
Bellinger hasn’t played in a game since May 15, when he hurt his knee coming down from a leaping catch against the Minute Maid Park fence. He has been tracking pitches in the bullpen but has yet to face live pitching.