Even after Monday’s loss to the Brewers, the Cubs still have a lot to watch as the season moves toward October. Matthew Boyd worked into the eighth inning and Pete Crow-Armstrong launched his 41st homer, but Milwaukee still took the opener and locked up the season series. That setback stings, yet the bigger picture remains encouraging, with Fangraphs putting Chicago’s playoff odds at 99 percent.
That means the focus shifts to the guys on the mend, and there are a few notable names moving in the right direction.
Dansby Swanson is the next Cub to take a step forward in his oblique rehab. He’s scheduled to move to higher-velocity BP later this week, which is the kind of checkpoint the club has been waiting for.
The goal is straightforward: get the Gold Glover back, and ideally give him enough time to shake off the rust before the playoffs begin. It’s been an uneven year for Swanson, who is set to play in the fewest games of any season in his Cubs career.
Even with 3.1 bWAR, his .216 average is a career low and his .300 OBP doesn’t offer much comfort. Still, his defense matters, and it matters a lot for a team that already excels in the field and leans on that support behind its pitching.
Justin Steele is also making progress in Triple-A Iowa. His second rehab outing was a clean step forward: two innings, 27 pitches, 18 strikes, one run, two hits.
He worked with a fastball sitting in the low 90s, and while it remains too early to know whether he’ll return to the big-league club this season, the Cubs are at least seeing positive signs. If Steele does come back this year, the expectation is that it would be out of the bullpen.
Given how Chicago’s relief group stumbled again in Monday’s loss, the need for help is obvious.
Shelby Miller is checking off important boxes too. He pitched on back-to-back days for the first time in his rehab assignment with Iowa, which is exactly the sort of test the Cubs wanted before considering him for the MLB staff.
Miller has already pushed his fastball into the upper 90s, and now the main question is how he responds after the recent increase in workload. The results matter less than the process at this stage.
What matters is that he’s trending ahead of schedule, and the Cubs could use every available arm as the season winds down.
In Other News...
Cubs Catching Depth Suddenly Has Another Name To Watch
The Cubs have spent much of the season sorting through their catching depth, and another veteran option has quietly entered the mix on the market. Christian Bethancourt cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Indianapolis by the Pirates after being designated for assignment in September, a move that came without him appearing in a game for Pittsburgh after his roster addition.
Bethancourt now has the choice to accept the assignment or test free agency, and no decision has been announced yet. For a club like the Cubs, always looking to shore up organizational depth behind the plate, a player with parts of eight major league seasons on his rsum is the sort of name that at least deserves a look while the winter roster picture continues to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Former Cubs Arm Just Became A Bullpen Option Chicago Can't Ignore
The Rays had to make a roster move after Taylor Walls went down, and the ripple effect reached a familiar name for Cubs fans. Tampa Bay selected Nick Madrigals contract from Triple-A to add infield depth, then cleared space on the 40-man by designating Hunter Bigge for assignment. For Chicago, the transaction is worth watching because Bigge was once in the Cubs organization and now finds himself available at a time when bullpen help is always in demand.
Bigges path has been slowed by injuries, and his season has not gone the way he or the Rays wanted. Even so, a right-hander with previous organizational ties and open availability can quickly become the kind of arm a club checks on, especially one looking for usable relief depth without spending much. Whether the Cubs make a move is still unresolved, but the opportunity is there for a team that knows how thin the relief market can get. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Bullpen Suddenly Has A Late Season Question Cubs Will Notice
The Brewers had to shuffle their bullpen mix after placing right-hander Grant Anderson on the 15-day injured list with right biceps inflammation, a setback that arrives at a point in the season when every late-inning arm matters. To fill the spot, Milwaukee called up right-hander Brandon Sproat from Triple-A Nashville, giving the club another option while it waits out Andersons recovery.
Pat Murphy said there is no structural damage, and Anderson is expected to be back after Sept. 22, which keeps the door open for a postseason return. For the Cubs, who are watching every piece of the division race, it is a small but meaningful development because Milwaukees bullpen depth has been one of the reasons the Brewers have been so hard to shake. [Read more 🡒]