Chicago Cubs All-Star Set To Return Wednesday for Postseason Push

The Chicago Cubs will be getting one of their star pitchers back from the injured list this week against the Oakland Athletics

Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

The Chicago Cubs will welcome back one of its top pitchers for the series finale against the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday. 

Cubs manager Craig Counsell announced on Tuesday that Justin Steele would be activated off the injured list and will start in Wednesday’s game. The move is not yet official, but the Cubs intend to push back the rest of their rotation a day with this move.

Steele has been out since the end of August as he was placed on the team’s 15-day injured list with left elbow tendinitis.

On Saturday, the former Cubs All-Star threw a 40-pitch bullpen on the road in Colorado. He recovered well, which ultimately led to the decision to remove him from the injured list in time for the series finale against Oakland at Wrigley Field. 

Steele will be making his first start since Aug. 27 where he picked up the win on the road against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He allowed two runs on six hits across five innings of work and picked up six strikeouts in the outing. Before heading to the injured list, Steele posted a 3-0 record with a 2.03 ERA in month of August. 

This will be the second time this season that Steele has been activated off the injured list. He was out for the month of April after suffering a left hamstring strain on opening weekend against the Texas Rangers.

"Feeling good, bullpens have been going well," said Steele on a recent interview with 670 The Score in Chicago. If Counsell and the rest of the Cubs intend to keep Steele in the rotation for the rest of the season, he would have three more scheduled starts including the final game of the year at Wrigley against the Cincinnati Reds. 

The Cubs are still in the hunt to play baseball in October, but the chances are very slim. They head into Tuesday’s game five games outside the final spot in the National League Wildcard race. With only 12 games remaining, it is likely that they would require some help from other teams to complete the improbable run. According to Fangraphs, the Cubs hold a 0.2% chance at the postseason. 

The game on Wednesday is scheduled for 2:20 pm EST and will be available on Marquee Sports Network and NBC Sports California.