Chicago Cubs Place Steele on Injured List, Announce Surprising Corresponding Move

The Chicago Cubs have placed starter Justin Steele on the 15-day injured list and announced a corresponding move.
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The Chicago Cubs may have dodged a bullet with starter Justin Steele. 

But the wound inflicted is still going to hurt in the interim. 

The Cubs announced that they have placed Steele on the 15-day injured list with a mild forearm strain. The MRI he received brough back relatively good news as it showed no structural damage.

However, it is a blow for Chicago as they will lose Steele for at least a couple of starts after the lefty has compiled a 2.65 ERA in 68.0 innings pitched this season. 

His injured list date has been listed as June 1. 

In a corresponding move, the Cubs have called up catcher Miguel Amaya from Triple-A Iowa. Amaya made his MLB debut earlier this season.

It's a surprising move as Chicago could have elected to bring up a pitcher in place of Steele for depth or reinforcement. Instead, they chose a catcher with little experience and bring him into a mix that already includes Yan Gomes and Tucker Barnhart. 

How it fits into the day-to-day plans is still to be determined. 

Chicago will next take the field on Saturday night against the San Diego Padres. Drew Smyly will take the mound for the Cubs and face Yu Darvis of San Diego. 

The Cubs will look to create a winning streak and earn the series win. 

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Kade Kistner
KADE KISTNER

Kade Kistner is the publisher and beat writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Cubs. An alumnus of Tulane University, Kade graduated in 2017 with a degree in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Kade commissioned into the United States Navy and attended Naval Flight School in Pensacola, Fl. He served as a Naval Aviator and was stationed in Jacksonville, Fl. During his time in school and the Navy, Kade began covering the MLB and NFL with USA Today, SB Nation, and Sports Illustrated. Kade covered the New Orleans Saints, Texas Rangers, and numerous other teams within the Sports Illustrated network before launching Inside the Phillies, Inside the Astros, and Inside the Cubs. You can follow him on Twitter at @KadeKistner, or if you have any questions or comments he can be reached via email at kwkistner@gmail.com.