NEW YORK – The Cubs put shortstop Dansby Swanson on the 10-day injured list on Saturday, ending questions about his availability in the Cubs’ final series before the All-Star break.
Swanson bruised his left heel trying to beat out a double play Wednesday in Milwaukee and hasn’t since that game. So, the team was able to backdate the move to Thursday. He’ll be eligible to return as early as July 16, the series finale against the Red Sox.
“Let’s err on the side of giving him the extra two days coming off the break,” Ross said before the Cubs’ 6-3 loss Saturday, “and hopefully he’s ready to go by then. That’s the hope.”
Swanson is also hopeful, but not making any promises.
“Obviously unfortunate we’re in this position,” he said. “The biggest thing was just from a timing standpoint, and getting the four days of the break. I feel like it was, in a way, a good insurance policy to not lose some of the retroactive days and things like that. So, it stinks. But we had to make the best decision possible for the group, and hopefully I’ll be back out there soon.”
In Swanson’s absence, Nico Hoerner has been filling in at shortstop and Christopher Morel has been playing second base. In a corresponding move, the Cubs recalled utility player Miles Mastrobuoni from Triple-A. He started at third base and recorded two of the Cubs’ five hits.
Swanson dealt with a similar injury in 2019, to his right heel. It sidelined him for a month, but he said this current heel issue is less severe. And he’s going into this IL stint with background knowledge on the rehab process and most effective treatment.
“I’ve always used custom orthotics,” he said as an example, “but there’s a certain way you can kind of alter them a little bit to help alleviate some pressure.”
Major League Baseball announced Swanson’s replacement in the All-Star Game, Diamondbacks middle infielder Geraldo Perdomo, on Friday. Swanson said the next day that he doesn’t plan to travel to Seattle for the event.
“A little too far just to go to watch,” he said.
Not so Smyly
Cubs lefty Drew Smyly was out of the game before the fifth inning for the third start in a row. He gave up solo home runs to Giancarlo Stanton and Josh Donaldson in the first and second innings. He surrendered a two-run double to Harrison Bader in the third. Over the course of his outing, he issued four walks.
“I need to be more aggressive in the strike zone,” Smyly said. “It feels like I’ve – the last like five, six starts – just been nibbling a little bit, trying to be maybe too perfect hitting spots on the corner of the zones.”
Smyly’s struggles have come after being a model of consistency early in the year. After a rough first start, he threw five or more innings and allowed two or fewer runs in nine straight starts. He posted a 1.78 ERA in that stretch and carried a perfect game bid into the eighth inning against the Dodgers.
“The All-Star break will be nice just to have a little mental reset and get away for a little bit,” Smyly said. “But it wasn’t too long ago where I was having a lot of good outings in a row.”