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Cubs’ Ben Brown Diagnosed With Stress Reaction In Neck

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Cubs right-hander Ben Brown was placed on the injured list with a neck strain last week, but the team has now diagnosed him with a more ominous-sounding stress reaction in his neck, reports Patrick Mooney of The Athletic (X link). It’s expected that Brown will be out longer than the 15-day minimum on his current IL stint, though a firm timetable isn’t yet known.

“We’re still trying to figure out how long and what it means and what he can do,” manager Craig Counsell told the Cubs beat regarding Brown’s updated diagnosis. “It’s a unique injury for a pitcher, so we’re trying to just get some more opinions.”

Acquired from the Phillies in the 2022 trade sending David Robertson to Philadelphia, the now-24-year-old Brown made his big league debut this season. He’s been quite good in 15 appearances with the Cubs — eight of them starts. In 55 1/3 frames, Brown has pitched to a 3.58 ERA with a terrific 28.8% strikeout rate, a solid 8.6% walk rate and a 38.9% grounder rate. Brown has only yielded 0.81 homers per nine frames. He’d recently stepped into a consistent rotation role — his last four outings were starts — and posted a 3.60 ERA with a 25-to-6 K/BB ratio in 20 innings.

Brown’s injury dovetails with the return of fellow rookie Jordan Wicks, who was out for six weeks due to a forearm strain. Also 24 years old, the left-handed Wicks came on in long relief of Brown when Brown exited after four innings. He tossed 3 1/3 frames that day and held the Reds to one run in that time. With Brown shelved, Wicks seems likely to step into the No. 5 spot in the rotation behind Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon and Javier Assad.

Wicks made seven starts last season and barely kept his rookie eligibility intact. He’s up to 61 innings in his big league career (26 1/3 of them this year) and owns a 4.43 ERA with a 20.1% strikeout rate, 7.8% walk rate and 43.3% ground-ball rate. Wicks tossed 126 innings last season and, after missing six weeks of the current year, shouldn’t need to worry about soaring past that workload. But given his own injury earlier this season and some questionable depth in the rotation — particularly in light of veteran Kyle Hendricks’ struggles — it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Cubs look into some rotation help at next month’s deadline, assuming the team is still in contention for a Wild Card spot. Chicago is currently 7.5 games behind Milwaukee in the NL Central but just one game out in the NL Wild Card chase.

Cubs Notes: Suzuki, Hoerner, Wicks, Thompson

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1:34PM: Hoerner has a small fracture in his right hand, Counsell told Maddie Lee and other reporters, and the Cubs are still deciding whether or not a stint on the injured list is the ideal course of action.  Team doctors have okayed the possibility of Hoerner playing if the swelling and discomfort in his hand dissipates.

9:05AM: The Cubs’ rough stretch continued with yesterday’s 3-2 loss to the Reds, which dropped Chicago into a tie with Cincinnati for second place in the NL Central.  After spending a good chunk of the season’s first six weeks battling for the division lead, the Cubs are 7-16 over their last 23 games, thanks in large part to a lack of hitting.  Since May 13, the Wrigleyville club has a collective 79 wRC+, ranking 29th of 30 teams in that span.

More bad news might’ve come for the lineup on Friday, when Seiya Suzuki left the game due to discomfort in his left side.  Suzuki was hit in the side by the ball while stealing second base in the first inning, and told MLB.com and other media after the game that his side “tightened up” before he eventually left in the sixth inning.  The move was described as precautionary, in part because Suzuki has already spent four weeks on the injured list this season due to a left oblique strain.

That absence halted a strong start to Suzuki’s 2024 campaign, and the outfielder hasn’t looked the same since his return.  Suzuki had an .893 OPS over his first 68 plate appearances, but has hit .234/.298/.415 in 104 PA since being activated from the IL.  It could be that a couple of days off might help Suzuki both heal his contusion and act as a refresher for his season, even if Chicago needs all the help it can get at the plate at the moment.  The Cubs don’t play on Monday, so if Suzuki doesn’t show improvement today, it’s possible he might sit both games this weekend to see if he can be fully ready for Tuesday and the start of the Cubs’ series with the Rays.

If Suzuki’s injury seems relatively minor for now, Nico Hoerner’s issue with his right hand could be a larger concern, as the second baseman already missed Friday’s game due to swelling and soreness.  Hoerner was hit by a Hunter Greene fastball on Thursday, describing the situation to reporters (including Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times) as “always scary.  A lot of small bones in that area, and unfortunately, it happens a decent amount.  But it seems like I got pretty lucky….Hopefully it’s just bruising and something that cleans up once you get inflammation out of there.”

Hoerner’s status is still unknown, as he will be getting more tests done since his first set of x-rays were “somewhat inconclusive,” in the words of manager Craig Counsell.  It could be that Hoerner’s hand is still too swollen for a fully accurate examination, as a smaller fracture might exist even if he has escaped without any obvious breaks.  As Hoerner told Lee and company, he broke a small bone in his right wrist after a similar HBP incident in 2019.

It has been something of a typical season for Hoerner, who is batting .252/.344/.352 with two homers over his first 241 trips to the plate.  His 105 wRC+ just about matches the 104 wRC+ he averaged from 2021-23, and he is continuing his penchant for making a lot of contact but very little of it solid.  One plus is a greatly increased walk rate, and Hoerner’s 10% walk rate is now ahead of his elite 9.5% strikeout rate.  On the defensive side, Hoerner’s metrics round out to about average, which is a big dropoff for a fielder (and reigning Gold Glove winner) who is usually among the league’s best at second base.

David Bote started at second base yesterday in Hoerner’s stead, and could be in line for quite a bit of regular action if Hoerner is forced to the IL.  The Cubs may be facing a depth issue in the infield since Nick Madrigal suffered a fractured hand (also after being hit by a pitch) in a Triple-A game earlier this week.  Miles Mastrobuoni and Luis Vazquez are both on the 40-man roster, so one of those infielders would almost certainly be the recall if Hoerner needed to miss time.

The Cubs did get some reinforcements back Friday when left-hander Jordan Wicks and right-hander Keegan Thompson were each activated from the 15-day injured list.  Thompson was optioned to Triple-A, after being sidelined since the middle of May with a viral infection.

Wicks remains on the Major League roster, and Counsell indicated the southpaw will work out of the Cubs’ bullpen for now in a long relief role.  Wicks started his five previous MLB appearances this season while filling in for some other injured Cubs pitchers, but since Chicago is enjoying some rare rotation health at the moment, Wicks will join the relief corps and will likely be the first man up should another injury arise.  Wicks hasn’t pitched since April 23 due to a forearm strain that thankfully ended up being relatively minor in nature, rather than a precursor to a longer-term issue.

Cubs Moving Kyle Hendricks To Bullpen

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The Cubs are moving Kyle Hendricks to the bullpen for the time being, manager Craig Counsell told the team’s beat (X link via Patrick Mooney of the Athletic). Counsell indicated the team is hopeful that the veteran right-hander will be able to move back to the rotation in the future, but he’ll first need to improve his results.

Hendricks has been a starting pitcher for his entire career. For the first seven years of his MLB tenure, he was an unconventional top-of-the-rotation arm. Hendricks’ pristine command and ability to keep the ball on the ground more than overcame middling velocity and strikeout totals. He won the ERA title during Chicago’s curse-breaking 2016 season and picked up a pair of top 10 finishes in Cy Young balloting.

Things haven’t gone as smoothly over the last three and a half years. Hendricks posted a near-5.00 ERA in both 2021 and ’22. He returned from a capsule tear in his shoulder to turn in a 3.74 ERA over 24 starts a year ago. That convinced the Cubs to trigger a $16.5MM option for this season. While it wasn’t a particularly surprising move at the time, that’s a decision the front office surely wishes it could have back.

Opposing lineups have teed off on Hendricks through his first seven starts of 2024. He has allowed 37 runs over 30 2/3 innings. Hendricks has conceded 10 home runs and has a career-low 7.7% swinging strike rate. His 48.2% grounder percentage and 7.3% walk rate are each respectable, but opponents have put together a massive .362/.411/.638 slash line over 151 plate appearances.

A lower back issue sent Hendricks to the injured list at the end of April. Following a three-week absence, he returned to start a pair of games against the Pirates. Hendricks tossed five innings of one-run ball in his first outing back but was tagged for eight runs in 4 2/3 frames last week. Counsell acknowledged after the game that the Cubs needed better production from that rotation spot.

They’ll try to patch that together for the time being. The Cubs are planning a bullpen game on Thursday against the Braves in what would have been Hendricks’ spot. They’ll eventually need to settle on a fifth starter behind a strong front four of Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon and Javier Assad. Righties Ben Brown and Hayden Wesneski are capable of logging multiple innings, and the Cubs could welcome back left-hander Jordan Wicks before too long.

A forearm strain sent Wicks to the injured list on April 28. Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune tweets that the former first-round pick will soon head on a rehab assignment after getting through a bullpen session this afternoon. While Wicks had a 4.70 ERA through his first five starts, a strong 25.9% strikeout rate offers reason for optimism that he can manage better results after being reinstated.

The injury news wasn’t all positive. Montemurro adds that reliever Adbert Alzolay is headed for a second opinion after being diagnosed with a flexor strain last week. Alzolay saved 22 games with a 2.67 ERA over 64 innings a year ago. He has had a much tougher start to the 2024 campaign, allowing 13 runs (nine earned) over 17 1/3 frames.

Cubs Notes: Swanson, Hoerner, Smyly, Wicks, Hendricks

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The Cubs are expecting to welcome shortstop Dansby Swanson back from the injured list prior to Tuesday’s series opener against the Braves, as noted by Kyle Williams of the Chicago Sun Times. Williams relayed that club manager Craig Counsell told reporters today that Swanson is “heading in a good direction” as he participates in baseball activities in preparation for his return.

Swanson has been on the injured list for just over a week due to a right knee sprain, although he had been playing through the issue since he first suffered the injury back on April 25. In the 13 contests he appeared in from April 25 onward before hitting the shelf, Swanson slashed an anemic .159/.229/.227 at the plate while committed two errors in the field. If those struggles were the result of the injury, the 30-year-old’s return to action figures to offer a huge boost to the Cubs as evidenced by a strong 2023 campaign where he slashed a respectable .244/.328/.416 (104 wRC+) while playing elite defense at shortstop.

The absence of Swanson has been exacerbated by a bout of hamstring tightness that has sidelined second baseman Nico Hoerner, who is an above-average defensive shortstop in his own right and had been handling the position in place of Swanson prior to his own injury. Hoerner, who has impressed with a solid .269/.361/.391 slash line (119 wRC+) to this point in the 2024 campaign, has not yet been placed on the injured list despite the fact that the Cubs aren’t certain when he’ll be able to return to action. Counsell indicated to reporters (including Williams) that if Hoerner isn’t ready to play tomorrow the club will likely wait until Tuesday to make an IL decision regarding Hoerner thanks to their day off on Monday.

The Cubs have missed their typical double play combo dearly, as they’ve been forced to rely on utility infielders Miles Mastrobuoni and Nick Madrigal as their fill-in options at shortstop and second base, respectively. The duo have managed wRC+ figures of just 35 and 62 respectively while offering nowhere near the Gold Glove award-winning skills of Swanson and Hoerner. Shortstop prospect Luis Vazquez has hit fairly well at the Triple-A level this season despite his glove-first reputation and is already on the club’s 40-man roster, making him a possible alternative should Hoerner require a trip to the shelf.

Looking toward the pitching staff, Counsell provided good news to reporters today as he noted that lefties Drew Smyly and Jordan Wicks both threw bullpen sessions on Friday and are nearing rehab assignments. Smyly appears to be slightly further along between the two, as Counsell indicated that he expected the lefty to begin his rehab assignment “early next week” without identifying a specific timeline regarding Wicks. The return of both southpaws figures to significantly bolster Chicago’s starting pitching depth; Wicks had a 4.70 ERA and a strong 3.26 FIP in five starts prior to hitting the shelf with a forearm strain, while Smyly began the season in the bullpen but has made at least 22 starts for the Cubs in each of the past two seasons.

That starting pitching depth figures to be particularly valuable to the Cubs given the deep struggles of veteran right-hander Kyle Hendricks. The 34-year-old soft-tosser was lit up to the tune of a 12.00 ERA and 7.70 FIP in five starts this season before he was sidelined by a low back strain in late April. He returned from the shelf last week and appeared to have potentially turned a corner after throwing five innings of one-run ball against the Pirates, but a start yesterday against those same Pirates proved to be disastrous as he surrendered eight runs (seven earned) on a whopping eleven hits in just 4 2/3 innings of work.

Asked about Hendricks’s deep struggles after yesterday’s game, Counsell made clear to reporters (including Patrick Mooney of The Athletic) that the Cubs need more from the right-hander going forward.

“We certainly need better,” Counsell said of Hendricks’s performance this year. “That’s not going to work. And that’s not going to be good enough.”

When asked if Hendricks will remain in the rotation going forward, Counsell noted that the club is dealing with a number of pitching injuries and is “going to need innings,” but also acknowledged that the club will need to “see what’s going on” regarding the veteran righty. Speculatively speaking, it’s easy to imagine the return of Wicks and Smyly offering the Cubs the sort of healthy pitching depth they’d need, alongside Hayden Wesneski and Ben Brown, to more seriously consider moving on from their longest-tenured player should Hendricks’s results not improve.

Cubs Place Jordan Wicks On 15-Day IL, Select Richard Lovelady

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The Cubs announced a quartet of roster moves today, including the placement (retroactive to April 25) of left-hander Jordan Wicks on the 15-day injured list due to a left forearm strain.  Chicago also optioned southpaw Luke Little to Triple-A Iowa, while calling up righty Daniel Palencia from Iowa and selecting the contract of left-hander Richard Lovelady.

News of Wicks’ injury broke yesterday, as the left-hander was an early scratch from what was supposed to be a start in tonight’s game against the Red Sox.  It isn’t surprising that Wicks was placed on the IL for at least precautionary reasons, though the severity of the strain isn’t yet known.  Speaking to Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune and other reporters today, Wicks didn’t feel too concerned about the strain, though the forearm soreness first arose prior to his previous start and resurfaced afterwards.

The 24-year-old Wicks was selected 21st overall in the 2021 draft, and made his MLB debut in the form of seven starts and 34 innings for the Cubs last season.  A respectable (if not totally inspiring) 4.41 ERA over that first taste of the majors put Wicks in the running for a rotation job heading into Spring Training, though Jameson Taillon’s injury helped clear Wicks’ path to a starting role.  Justin Steele was then lost to the IL on Opening Day and both Kyle Hendricks and Drew Smyly were also injured within the last week, so Wicks’ forearm strain only continues the string of health woes hitting the Cubs early in the season.

Wicks had performed pretty well over five starts and 23 innings in 2024, or at least better than his 4.70 ERA would indicate.  A .358 BABIP and a 64.3% strand rate helped inflate that ERA almost a full run beyond Wicks’ much more palatable 3.62 SIERA, and his 25.9% strikeout rate is well above the league average.  Batters have been making solid contact against Wicks’ offerings, though he has also fooled his share of hitters with a chase rate that sits in the 88th percentile of all pitchers.

With Wicks out for at least the 15-day minimum, the Cubs will have to again dig into their starting depth.  Shota Imanaga has emerged as the ace of the staff in his outstanding rookie season, youngster Javier Assad has looked very sharp over five starts, and Taillon is now back from the IL.  Beyond this trio, rookie Ben Brown might now be sticking in the rotation, and Hayden Wesneski could be stretched out into starter’s duty.  Veteran Julio Teheran is available at Triple-A, and Steele might not be too far away, as he is expected to begin a minor league rehab assignment this week as he recovers from his hamstring strain.

Palencia has some starting experience in the minors but has worked exclusively as a reliever during his two Major League seasons.  He could get some multi-inning work if Wesneski is indeed bumped back into the rotation, while Lovelady should take on a strict (and possibly short-term) bullpen role.

Lovelady signed a minor league deal with Chicago during the offseason, and his 5.84 ERA over 12 1/3 innings (10 appearances) for Triple-A Iowa is one of the more misleading stat lines in recent memory.  Despite a 33.3% strikeout rate, 1.7% walk rate, a 53.8% grounder rate and zero homers allowed, Lovelady still has a 5.84 ERA, due mostly to an extreme .564 BABIP.

The 28-year-old southpaw will now get another look in the majors after posting a 5.26 ERA over 65 previous big league frames with the Royals and A’s since the start of the 2019 season.  Lovelady missed all of 2022 recovering from Tommy John surgery, and resurfaced last year to deliver a 4.63 ERA across 23 1/3 innings for Oakland.

NL Central Notes: Wicks, Junis, Carlson

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The Cubs are in for their second bullpen game in as many days tomorrow, as Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune was among those to relay that left-hander Jordan Wicks has been scratched from his scheduled start tomorrow due to forearm tightness. Right-hander Hayden Wesneski will start the game in Wicks’s place just three days after pitching 2 1/3 scoreless frames against the Astros Thursday afternoon.

It’s not currently clear how serious Wicks’s injury is or if a stint on the injured list will be required, but a lengthy absence would be a major blow to the Cubs. The club’s first-round pick in the 2021 draft, Wicks has pitched solidly for the Cubs through five starts this season, posting a roughly league average 4.70 ERA and a much stronger 3.25 FIP in 23 innings of work. An trip to the shelf for Wicks would further exacerbate Chicago’s early-season injury woes. Hurlers Justin Steele, Kyle Hendricks, Drew Smyly, and Julian Merryweather are all currently on the injured list (though the former may be back soon) while the positional corps has lost both Seiya Suzuki and Cody Bellinger from its outfield mix.

The laundry list of injuries has left the Cubs somewhat thin in terms of rotation options, with both Ben Brown and now Wesneski stepping in to make starts after previously pitching out of the bullpen for the big league club. Chicago signed veteran right-hander Julio Teheran to a minor league deal in earlier this month, and the 33-year-old righty and lefty Thomas Pannone among the club’s top non-roster depth options for the rotation.

More from the NL Central…

  • Brewers right-hander Jakob Junis suffered a scary incident earlier this week when he was struck by an errant fly ball during the club’s pregame workouts prior to a game against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. Fortunately, Junis is back traveling with the team and spoke to Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel yesterday. The right-hander noted that he underwent an MRI and CT scan, both of which came back clean, before he was released from the hospital. Now that he’s back with the team, it appears Junis is set to continue rehabbing from the shoulder impingement that has cost him most of the season to this point. Per MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy, Brewers manager Pat Murphy recently indicated that the club may look to bring Junis back into the fold as a reliever rather than build him up to start. It’s something of a surprise given the recent injuries suffered by lefties DL Hall and Wade Miley, though it’s possible that a multi-inning relief role could allow the Brewers to maximize Junis’s innings in the short-term.
  • Cardinals outfielder Dylan Carlson has missed the entire season to this point after suffering a sprained AC joint in his left shoulder just before Opening Day. Fortunately, however, it appears that the 25-year-old could be nearing his season debut. According to MLB.com’s Injury Tracker, Carlson is set to begin a rehab assignment in the near future if he comes out of a hitting session today pain-free. The return of Carlson would be most welcome for St. Louis, as the club recently optioned struggling youngster Jordan Walker to the minor leagues. With Carlson and Tommy Edman both on the injured list, that’s left the club to rely on Michael Siani and Alec Burleson as major contributors to the outfield mix alongside Lars Nootbaar and Brendan Donovan.

Cubs To Begin Season With Wicks, Assad In Rotation; Smyly In Bullpen

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With Opening Day now one week away, the Cubs made some decisions on their starting pitching plan to begin the year. Manager Craig Counsell told members of the club’s beat, including Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune, that left-hander Jordan Wicks and Javier Assad will have rotation jobs to open the campaign. Veteran lefty Drew Smyly, meanwhile, will head to the bullpen. In a separate tweet, Montemurro confirms that righty Jameson Taillon will start the season on the injured list. In terms of the catching group, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times relays that both Jorge Alfaro and Joe Hudson have been told they won’t make the team but are staying in big league camp for now.

The Cubs came into camp with a front four of Justin Steele, Kyle Hendricks, Shota Imanaga and Taillon, with one spot available for guys like Wicks, Assad, Smyly, Hayden Wesneski or Caleb Kilian. In early March, Kilian was diagnosed with a teres major strain and will be out for several months, taking him out of the competition.

Taillon was dealt much smaller issues but they nonetheless slowed his progression. He initially had some soreness is his calves and that was followed by some lower back tightness. He still has not appeared in an official Spring Training game and will begin the season on the IL. He told Bruce Levine of WSCR on the weekend that he was planning to throw off a mound this week, which shows some progress, but he’s likely still a few weeks away from readiness.

With Taillon out of action, there were two open spots at the back of the rotation, which will go to Wicks and Assad. Wicks is one of the club’s top pitching prospects and he made his major league debut last year with a 4.41 earned run average in seven starts. In 91 1/3 innings of minor league work, he had a 3.55 ERA, 26.5% strikeout rate and 8.6% walk rate.

He only struck out 16.3% of hitters in his first taste of the majors, but in a fairly small sample of 34 2/3 innings. For what it’s worth, he’s posted a 2.60 ERA this spring, though with a modest 16.9% strikeout rate. But he has also limited his walks to 2.8% and it’s a small sample of 17 1/3 innings. He’ll get a chance to take a step forward at the major league level to start the season. He still has a full slate of options, so the Cubs could easily send him back to the minors when Taillon is healthy if they so choose.

Assad has a bit more experience, having served in a swing role for the Cubs over the past two years. He has a 3.06 ERA in 147 innings over 41 appearances, including 18 starts. His 20.2% strikeout rate and 9.9% walk rate are both slightly worse than league average but he’s kept 44.7% of balls in play on the ground and was in the 78th percentile of qualified pitchers last year in terms of average exit velocity. He has allowed seven earned runs in nine innings this spring. He has a couple of options and could wind up in the minors later but the Cubs have used him as a long reliever out of the bullpen in the past.

That long relief role could perhaps be taken by Smyly, who was also in that role for a time last year. The Cubs signed him to a two-year, $19MM deal last offseason but he struggled in 2023 and wound up moving to the bullpen on multiple occasions. He finished last year with an even ERA of 5.00, but it was 5.62 as a starter and 2.51 out of the ’pen. That latter number was in a small sample of 28 2/3 innings but the Cubs will be hoping his stuff will play up in shorter stints. Spring results are to be taken with a grain of salt but he hasn’t done much to win back a rotation job lately, with a 7.71 ERA, 15.1% strikeout rate and 9.4% walk rate in 11 2/3 innings.

His past experience as a starter could have him working multi-innings stints as a reliever, but he could also be utilized as a situational lefty. The only other southpaw reliever currently on the roster is Luke Little, who has just 6 2/3 innings of major league experience and notable control issues in the minors.

As for the catchers, it’s not too surprising they won’t make the club. The Cubs have Yan Gomes and Miguel Amaya set to be their primary catching tandem. Gomes is a 12-year veteran coming off a solid season while Amaya has been a notable prospect for a while and made his major league debut last year. It’s unclear if either Alfaro or Hudson have opt-outs in their minor league deals, but it seems they will be staying in camp for the time being.

Cubs Announce Several Roster Moves

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The Cubs announced several roster moves this afternoon. The club selected the contracts of right-handers Shane Greene and Tyler Duffey, while transferring infielder Nick Madrigal and right-hander Michael Fulmer to the 60-day IL to clear space on the 40-man roster for the duo. Right-hander Hayden Wesneski and left-hander Jordan Wicks were optioned to the minors to make room for the duo on the active roster. In a separate pair of moves, second baseman Nico Hoerner was placed on the 10-day IL with a left knee contusion while infielder Jared Young was recalled to replace Hoerner on the active roster.

Greene is in the tenth season of his big league career, having debuted as a member of the Yankees back in 2014. From 2017-2020, Greene was a strong set-up option at the back of the bullpen for the Tigers and Braves, posting a 3.25 ERA and 4.04 FIP in 221 1/3 innings of work, including his lone All Star campaign in 2019. Unfortunately, he’s struggled badly since then with a 6.83 ERA in 27 2/3 innings since the start of the 2021 campaign. Greene was selected to the major league roster by the Cubs earlier this year, but recorded just one scoreless inning before being outrighted off the 40-man roster. Now he’s back for the final game of the season, with the Cubs having been eliminated from postseason contention last night.

Duffey, 31, spent his entire career as a member of the Twins prior to the 2023 campaign. Since his debut in 2015, he’s posted a 4.57 ERA and 3.96 FIP in 475 innings of work with Minnesota. Upon hitting free agency last offseason, Duffey signed on with the Cubs on a minor league deal but is only just cracking the big league roster despite a solid 3.77 ERA in 45 1/3 innings of work at the Triple-A level. That’s in part thanks to a elevated 12.6% walk rate. Still Duffey posted a solid 29% strikeout rate and will now appear in the ninth big league season of his career, should he get into today’s game.

Departing the roster to make room for the pair of veterans are Wesneski and Wicks, a pair of youngsters who each got auditions in the Chicago rotation this season. Wesneski posted a 4.72 ERA and 5.52 FIP across 87 2/3 innings of work with the big league club, while Wicks sported a sterling 3.00 ERA and solid 3.96 FIP through six starts before getting shelled during last night’s game against the Brewers in Milwaukee, which raised his season stats in the majors to a 4.41 ERA and 4.70 FIP. Both youngsters figure to enter Spring Training next season as potential options for the Cubs at the major league level.

Meanwhile, Hoerner heads to the IL after fouling a pitch off his knee during Friday’s game and sitting out on Saturday. With the Cubs having been eliminated from postseason contention last night, clearly the club saw no reason to have Hoerner play through the injury on the last day of the season. It was a strong campaign for Hoerner, who slashed .283/.346/.383 in 688 trips to the plate while going 43-for-50 on the basepaths and playing elite defense at second base. Taking Hoerner’s place on the active roster is Young, a 27-year-old rookie who made his MLB debut with the Cubs last year. Through 65 trips to the plate in the big leagues the past two seasons, Young has slashed .224/.308/.466 while playing first base and right field.

The moves are purely procedural for both Madrigal and Fulmer, who were already on the injured list through the end of the season.

Cubs Place Michael Fulmer On 15-Day Injured List

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The Cubs have put Michael Fulmer on the 15-day injured list due to a right forearm strain.  The placement is retroactive to August 25.  The move creates a roster spot for Jordan Wicks, who has been promoted to make his MLB debut in a start against the Pirates tonight.

Fulmer’s checkered injury history includes an ulnar nerve transposition surgery in 2017 and a Tommy John procedure in 2019, so another forearm-related issue is certainly a major concern for the 30-year-old right-hander.  The severity of his current strain isn’t known, but it would certainly seem like Fulmer could miss more than the minimum 15 days, perhaps simply as a precaution given his past injuries.  As such, the possibility exists that Fulmer’s 2023 season could be in jeopardy, given the lack of time remaining on the MLB calendar.

Winning AL Rookie Of The Year honors with the Tigers in 2016, Fulmer’s injury-related absences eventually saw him move to full-time relief pitching, which gave his career a second act.  After posting a 3.17 ERA over 113 1/3 innings with the Tigers and Twins from 2021-22, Fulmer signed a one-year, $4MM free agent deal to join the Cubs last winter.

The bottom-line performance hasn’t quite been there, as Fulmer has a 4.47 ERA over 56 1/3 frames for the Wrigleyville squad.  However, a 3.96 SIERA basically matches Fulmer’s 3.80 SIERA from 2021-22, so it could be that things are just balancing out after a bit of good fortune in the previous two seasons.  Fulmer has greatly improved his hard-hit ball rate and whiff rate (both sit in the 90th percentile of all pitchers) and his 27% strikeout rate is the best of his career.  On the downside, Fulmer has struggled with his control for the second straight year, with his 11.6% walk rate ranking in the bottom 10th percentile of all pitchers.

A lot of Fulmer’s struggles came earlier in the season, as he had a 1.83 ERA over 34 1/3 innings and 32 appearances prior to a rough outing last Monday, when he gave up three runs over just a third of an inning against Detroit.  Since Fulmer also pitched a scoreless inning on Thursday, it’s probably safe to assume that his forearm strain didn’t emerge during that Monday game.

Fulmer’s absence creates another hole in Chicago’s bullpen, though Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune (X link) writes that Brad Boxberger is set to make another rehab outing with Triple-A Iowa on Sunday.  Boxberger hasn’t pitched since mid-May due to a forearm strain of his own, but the veteran reliever looks to be on his way back to action.  The news isn’t as good for Nick Burdi, who has also been out since May dealing with appendicitis, but the righty is now dealing with ulnar nerve irritation.  More will be known about Burdi’s condition after he is re-evaluated in a few days’ time.

These bullpen injuries could explain why Drew Smyly will be headed back to the bullpen to provide some extra depth, while the Cubs turn to a younger arm like Wicks to try and fill the rotation gap left by Marcus Stroman (whose season is also in question due to a rib cartilage fracture).  It makes for a lot of pitching questions for a team in a pennant race, as the Cubs currently hold the third NL wild card spot and are still within range of the Brewers for first place in the NL Central.

Cubs To Promote Jordan Wicks

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2:07PM: Wicks will actually start today’s game, as the team informed reporters (including Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune) that Javier Assad will now start Sunday instead of today.

10:13AM: The Cubs are set to call up left-hander Jordan Wicks, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers (X links).  There had been plenty of speculation that Wicks was on the verge of a call-up, and now the southpaw (who turns 24 on September 1) will get an early birthday present Sunday when he makes his MLB debut in a start against the Pirates.

Wicks was the 21st overall pick of the 2021 draft, drawing Chicago’s attention after a standout collegiate career at Kansas State.  That success has translated into a pretty quick rise through the farm system, as Wicks has now reached the majors a little over two years since his draft date.  Making his Triple-A debut just this past June, Wicks has a 3.82 ERA, 22.2% strikeout rate, and 9.8% walk rate over the limited sample of 33 innings for Triple-A Iowa.

This was enough to earn Wicks at least one start at the big league level, as it is possible he might be quickly ticketed back to Triple-A after helping the Cubs get through an extended stretch of games.  Marcus Stroman’s injury seemed to herald Drew Smyly’s return to the rotation, but Chicago has instead decided to keep Smyly in the bullpen, creating the need for a new starter on Sunday.  Wicks has pitched beyond the fifth inning only once in his 20 minor league games this season, so Sunday’s game might be more of a piggyback situation, with Smyly or other relievers stepping in before Pirates batters can face Wicks for a second time.

Still, even a cup of coffee in the majors is a huge moment in Wicks’ career, and it can serve as an audition for a longer look once rosters expand in September, or going into next season.  Stroman can opt out of his contract and the Cubs might not exercise Kyle Hendricks’ club option, leaving some possible rotation spots open heading into Spring Training.  Wicks has an opportunity to turn some heads and get himself into that conversation, with his minor league resume already standing out.

ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel ranked Wicks 51st on his preseason top-100 listing, though Wicks has yet to crack the top 100 for either Baseball America or MLB Pipeline in their preseason or midseason rankings.  BA places Wicks as the eighth-best prospect in the Cubs’ farm system and Pipeline has him 10th, and all of the pundits feel he can become a big league-caliber starter in the middle or back of a rotation.  Wicks’ outstanding changeup is the highlight of his five-pitch arsenal, though his slider is the only other offering that shows above-average potential.  For more on Wicks’ development, James Fegan of the Chicago Sun-Times published a piece today with quotes from Wicks and Triple-A pitching coach Ron Villone about the youngster’s approach on the mound.

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