Bad News for Cubs Starting Rotation vs. White Sox

The Chicago Cubs have been without Marcus Stroman for the past couple of weeks, but as of this last weekend the right-handed pitcher was penciled in to return to the starting rotation against the White Sox on Wednesday. Unfortunately, Stroman will not be coming back to the mound as anticipated.

Stroman was placed on the 15-day injured list at the beginning of August because of inflammation in his right hip. The team and Stroman himself thought he would only miss the minimum time on the injured list and during their games against the Toronto Blue Jays, he was still planning on pitching Wednesday. It turns out Stroman has suffered a setback and is now experiencing a rib issue that will extend his absence.

Stroman was outstanding in his first 16 starts of the 2023 season, posting a 2.28 ERA in 98.2 innings. However, beginning with a blister issue against the St. Louis Cardinals in London on June 25, the right-handed pitcher struggled big time and seeing him eventually land on the injured list wasn’t all too surprising.

It was more than just Stroman regressing, as his pitches looked off during the month of July. From June 25-July 31, he made seven starts and allowed 30 earned runs in 30 innings, with opponents hitting .318 against him. In his last three starts prior to the IL stint, Stroman failed to go beyond four innings.

Meanwhile, the Cubs have made a roster move prior to Tuesday’s series opener against the White Sox at Wrigley Field. Right-handed pitching prospect Caleb Kilian has been demoted back down to the Iowa Cubs at Triple-A to make room for right-handed reliever Michael Rucker.

Kilian, 25, made two appearances during his latest call-up, pitching a scoreless inning against the New York Mets and then allowing three runs during Sunday’s loss to the Blue Jays.

Rucker, 29, has made 34 appearances with the Cubs this season. He’s posted a 5.03 ERA in 39.1 innings. His 2023 season has been up and down, getting off to a solid start in April, struggling in May, only giving up one run in June, but then struggling again in July that led to his demotion to Triple-A.

Rucker has allowed one run in six innings with the Iowa Cubs in two appearances since he was optioned to the Iowa Cubs at the end of July.