SAN DIEGO — Left-hander Justin Steele felt good after playing catch Saturday, but the Cubs decided against rushing him back and put him on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to Thursday, with a strained left forearm.
Manager David Ross said he expects Steele will miss only two starts.
‘‘Pretty confident in that,’’ Ross said before the Cubs’ 6-0 loss to the Padres in which they managed only two infield hits and struck out nine times in seven innings against Yu Darvish.
In a corresponding move, the Cubs recalled catcher Miguel Amaya from Triple-A Iowa, giving them an extra right-handed bat until they need more pitching. Right-hander Hayden Wesneski is scheduled to take Steele’s place in the rotation for now.
After it became clear Steele would have to miss at least one start, Ross said the Cubs weighed whether it was smart to get him ready to pitch in the finale of the road trip next Sunday in San Francisco.
The way the rotation maps out, thanks to days off on either side of the 10-day trip, Steele will be eligible to return before his first scheduled start back at Wrigley Field. But if the Cubs hadn’t put Steele on the IL, they would be playing down a man for most of the trip.
Steele’s catch session Saturday helped the Cubs gauge where he was at.
‘‘He actually felt pretty decent,’’ pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said. ‘‘So for us it’s, like, ‘OK, if we can keep this to a minimum, can we work backward from there?’ ’’
If Steele’s recovery goes smoothly, Hottovy expects him to throw two bullpen sessions before his return. He likely will be throwing off the mound by the end of this week.
‘‘It’s important to make sure we give him the rest he needs in the front end,’’ Hottovy said.
Wesneski will return to the rotation after two weeks in Triple-A and one relief outing back in the big leagues. He threw 3⅔ innings and was charged with one run after Steele left his start Wednesday against the Rays.
‘‘[Wesneski] did a fantastic job,’’ Hottovy said. ‘‘It’s not easy, no matter what it looks like, having to come in the game and get hot quick and do all that on the mound.’’
The Cubs don’t have to worry about lining up Wesneski. Because he last pitched on Steele’s start day, he just falls into his schedule.
‘‘There’s still the component of, ‘OK, how do we get to his start now?’ ’’ Hottovy said. ‘‘Making sure we’re using the right pieces. We’re gonna have one less arm in the bullpen, at least for the time being. You know, how do we make sure we manage that without overusing guys?’’
Looking at the opposing pitching matchups coming up, the Cubs chose Amaya’s bat over a replacement arm in the bullpen in the short term. Plans could change, Ross cautioned, if they’re forced to go deep into the bullpen.
The addition of Amaya also gives Ross more opportunity to pinch-hit for a catcher in the middle of a game.
‘‘Miggy earned the ability to get another call-up with how he performed last time,’’ Ross said. ‘‘Putting himself on the map and filling in while Yan [Gomes] was down [last month] was really important. And he did a really nice job of coming in and proving he’s well on his way to being an everyday big-leaguer.’’
