Cubs’ Marcus Stroman Out Indefinitely With Rib Cartilage Fracture
The Chicago Cubs were supposed to welcome back right-hander Marcus Stroman from the 15-day IL ahead of Wednesday’s cross-town showdown at Wrigley Field against the White Sox. Only that didn’t happen.
Instead, they’re now unsure if the 32-year-old will be able to pitch again in 2023 after suffering a right rib cage cartilage fracture, extending an IL stint that began on August 1st due to right hip inflammation.
Stroman threw a trio of bullpen sessions during Chicago’s six-game road trip through New York and Toronto earlier this month, maxing out at 50 pitches in one of those outings. That tentatively had him on track to return to game action a night ago.
Everything changed when the two-time All-Star reported discomfort in his side on Sunday, prompting the team to send him for an MRI during Monday’s off-day, which revealed a fracture inside his rib cage.
“I have no idea. That’s the honest truth,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said on Wednesday of Stroman’s season potentially being at risk. “We don’t really know at this point. Obviously, we’ll give him a real rest period and see how he feels. But I mean, again, it’s not a real common pitching injury. I’ve never seen that before.”
The Cubs have kept their heads above water in Stroman’s absence, going 9-5 without one of their top starting pitchers, placing them in a three-way tie for the final NL wild-card seed with the Cincinnati Reds and Miami Marlins.
But they’ll have to continue to count on Javier Assad, who held the White Sox’s offense to three runs (two earned) over six innings on Wednesday, lowering his ERA to 3.11 on the season. Drew Smyly may also play an important role as he shifts to the No. 5 spot in the rotation.
“Disappointed, obviously,” Ross said. “We’ve just got to wait and see just how long and how much pain he’s actually in. Getting him back, we’re going to have to rely on him being symptom free. So, how long that takes, nobody really knows. So, it’s just kind of up in the air.”
Chicago is holding out hope that Stroman finds a way to return at some point down the stretch. But if he doesn’t, the onus will be on a group that includes Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon, Kyle Hendricks, Assad and Smyly to carry on without him.
That, of course, will be easier said than done.
The 5-foot-7 hurler had enjoyed a strong second season with the Cubs prior to landing on the IL, posting a 3.85 ERA and 3.58 FIP with 111 strikeouts over 128.2 innings in 23 starts. He excelled to a 2.96 ERA in the first half – fourth best among qualified NL pitchers.
Stroman can opt out of the three-year, $71-million contract he signed with the Cubs in 2022 after this season concludes. While he’s still likely to become a free agent next winter, a season-ending injury would undoubtedly affect his market value.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: Arturo Pardavila III. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.