Justin Steele is on track to come off the IL and return to Chicago Cubs rotation during the upcoming homestand

DENVER — When Justin Steele, a left-hander, was placed on the disabled list about two weeks ago, he had high hopes.

The good news is that Steele’s diagnosis of left elbow tendinitis prevented a more serious situation and preserved his chances of making a recovery before the season ended. Steele is expected to come off the injured list and open the Chicago Cubs’ next homestand against the Oakland Athletics and Washington Nationals after tossing a 40-pitch bullpen on Saturday afternoon at Coors Field.

There won’t be a miraculous run to the postseason to coincide with Steele’s imminent comeback. After falling to the Rockies 6-5 in 10 innings on Saturday night at Coors Field, the Cubs blew a perfect start by scoring two runs in six or more innings. This placed them in danger of getting swept. Porter Hodge, the closer, turned in a

There won’t be a miraculous run to the postseason to coincide with Steele’s imminent comeback. After falling to the Rockies 6-5 in 10 innings on Saturday night at Coors Field, the Cubs blew a perfect start by scoring two runs in six or more innings. This placed them in danger of getting swept. In the ninth inning, closer Porter Hodge let up a two-out, two-run home run that knotted the score.

The Cubs want to make sure that after Saturday’s significant intensity test, Steele feels well and recovers well on Sunday. In essence, manager Craig Counsell restated, “If he’s healthy, he’s going to pitch.”

“There are no more physical boxes here that we can check.”

When the Cubs return to Chicago, Steele, who is eligible to come off the injured list on Monday, plans to be in game action and expects to have a touch-and-feel off the pitch.

“The most important thing is the relief I get from throwing and not feeling anything—it’s like a weight is lifted off my shoulders,” Steele remarked on Saturday. “Because nobody’s necessarily 100% when you’re pitching and grinding through a season, but when you keep at it and eventually figure out what it was, get some peace of mind, and then get it feeling right, it just feels really good to play catch and not feel anything.”

Steele has been the pitcher the Cubs have needed since missing five weeks at the beginning of the season due to a hamstring injury sustained during his opening-day start. He lived up to his breakthrough campaign from the previous year, when he was named to his first All-Star Game and ended fifth in the National League Cy Young Award voting.

Through 22 starts, Steele has a 3.09 ERA and 130 ERA+. Since starting full time in 2022, the 29-year-old has provided consistency in the rotation. His 3.10 ERA in that span is tied with New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole for the eighth-best ERA while his 10.3 fWAR ranks 14th in the big leagues.

When dealing with an ailment, the mental aspect can often be the most difficult, but in this instance, it has been helpful to have clarity about what he is dealing with.

“It’s been more liberating mentally to just know that I’m throwing and not feeling anything—that freedom of not necessarily pitching around anything,” Steele remarked. In terms of that sort of thing, I’m simply mentally playing catch a lot more freely. My bullpen won’t be as concerned with my arm’s discomfort and other little details and more focused on completing tasks beyond the plate.

Steele should ideally be back to help his club go to the postseason, but because the Cubs’ season is scheduled to conclude on September 29, it is not in the cards to shut him down. strategies.

Pitching innings has significance no matter what, according to Steele, “especially at the end of the season when you’re heading into the offseason and need to demonstrate your health.”