Left-hander Justin Steele has done everything the Cubs have asked, now it’s time to make room for him.
If there’s a silver lining to take from the Cubs’ 2021 season, it’s been the emergence of both talent and depth with some of the team’s young pitchers. While Adbert Alzolay has been the headliner of the group, left-hander Justin Steele and right-hander Keegan Thompson opened eyes with their performance early this season out of the bullpen.
Now that the Cubs are turning their attention to 2022 and beyond, getting those young starters time in the rotation this season has become an important part of seeing what the team has going forward.
To make room for their youth movement in the Cubs rotation, the Cubs will have to get creative over the final two months of the season.
“We will be as creative as possible,” manager David Ross said. “I think there is a willingness for everybody to continue to make starts and we’ll move some things around and make some adjustments as we go.
“Things change really fast in our day-to-day. Who’s healthy, who’s not, who’s available. But we’ll get creative. Making sure we’re still keeping guys healthy is a priority for us and making sure guys can continue to compete.”
Steele is going to get the first crack in the team’s rotation and since going down to Triple-A Iowa to get stretched out, he’s been lights out. The left-hander has a 0.87 ERA over 20 1/3 innings in five starts since July 1.
Steele has checked off every box the Cubs have had for him since heading to Iowa. While there’s nothing set in stone, Steele making his next start in the big leagues wouldn’t be a shock.
“We’re gonna map some things out here,” Ross said. “Talk to all the starters and figure out exactly where he fits in. We’ve got a plan. We’ll communicate that to him and the rest of the group really soon. But we should see him sooner rather than later.”
The balancing acts the Cubs are attempting to pull off in the second half is allowing their youth to have every opportunity to compete in the big leagues, keep starters like Kyle Hendricks and Alec Mills on their schedules and watch the workload of right-hander Adbert Alzolay.
One way the Cubs could make sure to accomplish all of those goals is using a modified six-man rotation.
In the short term, a six-man rotation allows Steele a spot in the team’s rotation, providing the opportunity for further development. It also rewards a pitcher like Mills, who has pitched well since being in a starter role full-time and has a 3.55 ERA since June 15.
Alzolay is up to 98 1/3 innings pitched this season and while the Cubs have allowed him to start without restrictions, he is just 27 1/3 innings away from his career-high as a professional. The team is monitoring his workload as the season winds down.
“These guys, they’re all on board. I think the veterans understand,” Ross said. “They’ve been around long enough they understand the situation where we’re in and a couple extra days for them to work on things or a couple of days off is not going to hurt the body or the mind to take breaks and root guys on and help teach.”
Going to a six-man rotation takes care of the Cubs for the time being, but when Thompson is ready, the team will likely have a decision to make with one of its veteran starters. Thompson is a few weeks behind Steele and would likely be ready toward the end of the month.
“They’ve been good,” starter Jake Arrieta said. “The young arms that we have, a couple of pieces we’ve gotten trades and guys that have been in the system. They’re looking forward to showcasing their stuff and showing that they have the ability to stay at this level and it’s been nice to see.”
from Chicago Sun-Times - All https://ift.tt/3ywAHKW
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