When a team loses a launcher leaving for the season, it is never easy to fill this gap, especially when this player is a pillar of the rotation. THE Chicago Cubs Treat this headache right now, because they determine how to move forward without left -handed Justin Steelemissing The rest of the 2025 season To undergo reconstructive elbow surgery.
Steele has been one of the team’s first -line starters and was one of the most coherent starters in baseball in recent seasons. Since he became full of full -time in 2022, he has a 3.10 MPM, which ranks ninth in MLB during this period.
Advertisement
How to replace a starting launcher at the start of the MLB season?
Most would say that you turn to the commercial market, but take a step for the starter is easier to say than to do.
The biggest target for any team this season would be the former winner of the NL Cy Young Award Sandy Alcantarawhich is likely to be moved on this year's commercial deadline. But don't expect the Miami Marlins have a quick trigger finger this year as they did last season, when they treated Luis Arceerz in May.
Not only is Alcántara much more precious than Arraez, but also given the start of the start of the launcher among the teams who seek to compete for the playoffs – including cubs, New York Mets And Baltimore Orioles – There is no reason for Miami to rush.
Justin Steele started four games for the Cubs before an elbow injury puts him away for the season. (Photo of Matt Dirksen / Chicago Cubs / Getty Images)
(Matt Dirksen via Getty Images)
In the meantime, CUBS rotation solutions will have to be found internally, at least until the commercial market begins to take shape. So, what Chicago options does it?
Advertisement
The team's healthy entries include ACE Shota Imanagaright veterans Jameson Taillon And Matthew Boydand the second year right -hander Ben Brown. As a team, the Cubs could be much worse than they are currently. They still have one of the best arms of Imanaga baseball, and Taillon and Boyd are viable options in the middle of the rotation.
But for a team that has aspirations in playoffs, is it enough? Probably not.
Right -handed Javier Assad was a revelation for the Cubs in 2024, going 7-6 with a respectable ERA of 3.73 in 29 departures. Assad, who started the season on IL and has not launched since spring training due to moderate oblique tension, will start a rehabilitation assignment this week. If things go well, it would be the obvious choice to go back to rotation, by filling the void at the moment.
Advertisement
Left -handed Jordan Wicks will probably also have another blow for cubs this season. Wicks, the choice of draft in the first round of the Cubs in 2021, could not take a foothold in the rotation despite some opportunities, mainly due to injuries. However, since he is one of the team's arms with a great league experience, it would not be surprising to see him at Wrigley Field in the near future.
The Dark Horse option to spend time in Chicago's rotation this summer would be the first round choice in 2023 Cade Horton. He is currently launching Triple-A Iowa, with electric stuff and an MPM of 1.23 so far. If the cubs encounter another need apart from the absence of steele, Horton could be a viable option on the road, even if Assad returns to rotation or if the cubs move via trade.
For a team with its views of the playoffs, it is crucial to have as much dynamic weapons as possible. Chicago's plan could be similar to what the Detroit Tigers did last season with their best pitch prospect, Jackson JobeOn the way to the playoffs.
Offensively, the 11-8 Cubs have one of the best alignments in baseball, and they offer their launcher a lot of support with the most races marked throughout baseball. But the difference between reaching the playoffs and being outside by watching could be to plug the flight after the Steele injury. The good news for Chicago is that it is early, and it is time for the team to assess all of its options, both internally and on the commercial market.
