As expected, the Cubs activated Justin Steele from the 15-day injured list, as the left-hander is scheduled to start today’s game against the Orioles. Steele will take the place of Patrick Wisdom, as Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link) reports that Wisdom is being placed on the 10-day IL due to a right wrist sprain.
Wisdom was replaced by pinch-hitter Ian Happ in the sixth inning of yesterday’s 10-3 Cubs win over Baltimore, a move that seemed like in-game strategy at the time but could have been related to Wisdom’s wrist problem. The 31-year-old infielder also has only two hits in his last 36 plate appearances, so it is possible this wrist sprain might have occurred a while ago, and Wisdom was trying to play through the discomfort.
The recent slump has dropped Wisdom’s slash line to .196/.285/.467 for the season, with 14 homers over 208 plate appearances. While that production still translates to a slightly above-average 102 wRC+, it continues Wisdom’s trend of being a power-centric bat who offers little beyond the long ball. Wisdom has hit .213/.298/.465 with 67 homers over 1117 PA with Chicago since the start of the 2021 season.
Wisdom has played mostly third base this season, with a handful of appearances as first base and in both corner outfield spots. Nick Madrigal has been seeing regular work at third base since being recalled from Triple-A a little over a week ago, and the Cubs might prefer to see what the 26-year-old Madrigal can do with more frequent playing time, which might make it tough for Wisdom to work his way back into the lineup once he returns from the IL.
Steele returns after missing only slightly more than the minimum 15 days, which is a great outcome given the ominous nature of forearm strains. However, Steele’s strain didn’t involve any structural damage, so the southpaw was able to make a quick recovery. Steele has been excellent in 2023, posting a 2.65 ERA over 68 innings while relying on outstanding control and one of the league’s best soft-contact rates.
Today/tomorrow probably the biggest days of the season for the Cubs. Absolutely need Steele to walk off that mound today and get through tomorrow with no arm issues.
Certainly he has made it through all check points clearly up to now, but there is always that anxiety going full out in competition.
Steele looks like he’s back and Ross has settled on Leiter Jr and Alzolay as the high leverage guys (by default).
To me, the Cubs need a third baseman (unless Morel can do it); a first baseman (not giving up on Mervis because of his performance; I’ve always said he’s not an everyday player long-term) a centerfielder (I know PCA is coming but every prospect is a suspect); and while we have plenty of outfielders in the system, we need a power bat and someone that can hit leadoff. Along with an ace starter and a closer. But other than that, we’re ready to win the WS.
The player I see making the most sense for CHC at 3B is Ryan McMahon, but alas COL rarely makes meaningful in season trades even if they’re completely out of the playoff race. Anything is possible, though.
I actually think that the cubs will spend on Matt Chapman this off-season. He gives us some much needed power, and I feel that the cubs are not willing to do anything major in the trade market, short of getting rid of Stroman and bellinger.
Rizzo stumbled out of the gate as well. Mervis will figure it out but it’s gonna take a minute. He has 30 HR power and they’re not gonna give up on him being everyday at 1B.
Agree rondon. They’re not going to give up on Mervis before they give him every opportunity to attempt to be the guy they are hoping he can become. I wish they had called him up earlier than they did, while they were still going good, in late April. There’d have been less urgency for him to prove his worth.
I just hope they don’t sign any FA to a costly long term contract. Costly short term, I’m ok with. They have a lot of talent on the verge.
I think Bellinger is the new first baseman and Alzolay is the new closer. Agree that an upgrade at third is desperately needed.
Also need a RF/#4 hitter that has more than 22 RBIs.
I’d like to see what Seiya would do, if he stopped taking the first pitch in each AB. It’s as if he has a mental block, and it usually starts each of his ABs with him down, 0-1 in the count. I don’t care how good of a hitter you are, that is a huge disadvantage.
I can’t imagine the coaches haven’t spoken to him about that.
I’d like to see what Suzuki could do hitting 8th until he figures it out. As is, there are a lot of RBIs dying on the bases. Hosmer has more RBI/PA than Suzuki. Nearly everyone on the team is better at driving guys in than Suzuki
Yeah, he’s a passive hitter, I don’t get why Ross keeps hitting him in the heart of the order.
Division is there for the taking. The man of steel and Bellinger are key. They have the luxury of having three third basemen. Ride the hot hand. No need to buy anything at deadline other than a reliever. I can see an NL Central crown sewn up by last week of September and a first round loss in October. If Bellinger plays in the rest of this seasons games at the level he was playing at prior to the latest injury the team will have an interesting decision
to make.
Starting Wednesday, they are only going to need four starters for a while with the London trip. If Mervis would be eligible to return in time for Saturday in London, I could see them bringing him back for a lousy Cardinals bullpen in an oddly shaped stadium for baseball.