The Chicago Cubs are fortunate to have the All-Star break coming up as they try to deal with the loss of starter Jameson Taillon to a right calf strain.
Manager Craig Counsell used Drew Pomeranz as the opener Saturday in an 8-6 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals and will have only one more outing to fill before the break.
Counsell said the off day Monday will give them time to decide who starts in Taillon’s spot next week in the New York Yankees series at Yankee Stadium. Matthew Boyd, who pitches Sunday in the series finale against St. Louis, could go Friday in New York on his usual rest, giving Counsel the option of postponing the decision until next Saturday.
Chris Flexen, who gave up a two-run single and a solo home run in 3 2/3 innings Saturday, appears ready to fill the Taillon-created void in New York, though not necessarily as a starter.
“Flexen has been stretched out so he’s a candidate to throw more innings,” Counsell said before Saturday’s outing. “Don’t worry about that word (starter), is what I would suggest.”
Counsell paused for a moment and added: “I don’t mean to preach there.”
But preaching about pitchers as “out-getters” instead of categorizing them as starters, middle relievers and closers, is what Counsell has been doing most of his managerial career.
Why stop now?
Pomeranz walked two and gave up a bloop single while recording only one out. The two runs on Thomas Saggese’s single off Flexen in the first were charged to Pomeranz, ending the left-hander’s streak of not allowing an earned run at 26 games and 23 2/3 innings since joining the Cubs’ bullpen in late April.
Pomeranz was the last major-league pitcher with a perfect 0.00 ERA, with a minimum of 20 games. Since he was out of the major leagues due to injuries from August 2021 until this April, the earned runs were the first given up by Pomeranz in nearly four years — since July 27, 2021, with the San Diego Padres.
Taillon will likely miss around a month with what an MRI revealed was a moderate calf strain. He said Saturday it happened while running sprints after a bullpen session.
“Unfortunately I was on my last rep and literally almost done for the day and felt it grab on me,” he said. “Typical bullpen day. It just came out of nowhere.”
Taillon said he’s never had a calf strain before and has avoided soft tissue injuries over his long career. He plans to continue working through a plan to try and condition his arm while recovering from the calf strain in hopes of being ready to return to the mound once it heals.
With Justin Steele out for the season after left elbow surgery and Shota Imanaga missing most of May and June with a hamstring injury, Counsell has had to audible with his rotation plans several times. Cubs president Jed Hoyer is still trying to acquire a starter, but might not feel the need to rush things before the July 31 trade deadline. Taillon’s turn in the rotation would come up only twice from the start of the second half until the deadline.
“What a luxury to have a guy like Chris Flexen throw multiple innings, or call up a guy like Jordan Wicks who is more than capable of getting big-league hitters out,” Taillon said.
