The Chicago Cubs will face the Oakland Athletics in the rubber match of their three-game series on Wednesday afternoon. This will be the final time a team from Oakland will ever play at Wrigley Field (presumably). The game will also feature the return of All-Star pitcher Justin Steele.
On August 27, Steele pitched five innings of two-run baseball for the Cubs en route to his fifth win of the season. That was a game against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. The following week, he was slated to face off against their ace, Paul Skenes, at Wrigley. However, Steele was scratched from his start.
The report was that Steele felt some tendinitis in his left elbow, causing concern. As the outside world ran in circles, waiting to discover the injury’s severity, Steele underwent an MRI. He and manager Craig Counsell both said the results were promising, and it would be unlikely a stint on the injured list would be unnecessary. The next day, he was placed on the 15-day injured list.
Many thought this meant Justin Steele’s season was over, and the Cubs would opt to keep him on the shelf for the remainder of 2024. The team is still fighting for a playoff spot, but the chances are getting slimmer by the day. Apparently, the Cubs are still going for it because here comes Justin Steele.
Before the start of a gutwrenching loss to the Oakland Athletics Tuesday night, the Cubs announced that left-handed pitcher Justin Steele would be reinstated from the injured list to start against the A’s on Wednesday afternoon. After his stint on the shelf due to a scare with his throwing elbow, Steele will take the mound for the first time in three weeks.
The MRI findings were promising enough to feel Steele could continue in 2024. If it were anything more than a little flare-up, the Cubs would have immediately shut him down for the year. Now, if healthy, he should make at least two starts before the season ends.
The question is this – why push it? Steele will presumably remain an essential part of this starting rotation for years to come. The Cubs are six games behind the New York Mets for the final wild-card spot to make the playoffs. Chances are as slim as ever.
Justin Steele is a gamer and wants to be on the mound. Craig Counsell has to feel better about his chances when his ace starts the game for him. But in a lost season where injury already took away several of his starts, sending him out there with just two, maybe three starts remaining feels risky.
