Marcus Stroman’s bullpen session Monday at the Cubs’ complex in Arizona seems to have gone off without a hitch.
“It was clean,” manager David Ross said before the Cubs’ 11-8 win over the Giants on Tuesday night at Wrigley Field. “No real issues. He’ll throw another one soon.”
The team will evaluate how Stroman — on the mend from fractured rib cartilage — recovers Tuesday before discussing next steps. But Ross cautioned against raising expectations too high.
“He’s got to build up a pretty good pitch count, start facing hitters, maybe throw some live [batting practice],” Ross said. “He’s got a little ways to go.”
Ross said Stroman, who hasn’t pitched in a game since late July, is excited about how his work in Arizona has gone. And he has progressed faster than expected in the first steps of his throwing program.
His cartilage injury came on the heels of an issue with his right hip that likely affected his mechanics and eventually landed him on the injured list. From that standpoint, a minor-league rehab assignment could make sense.
“I don’t know if it makes sense to take a guy from throwing bullpens or live BPs and throwing them into a pennant race from where he’s at,” Ross said. “But that’s where I stand right now with a healthy rotation that’s pitching really good, and [where] everybody is doing well. And hopefully that continues all the way to in the season, and then that’s a good problem to have.
“I think a healthy version of him is a good thing for us, however we use that.”
What if Stroman is healthy enough to play in games but not built up to a starter’s workload before the end of the season?
“Right now, we’re just getting him built back up as far as we can,” Ross said. “We’ll see what the timeframe is.”
Comeback kids
Christopher Morel stepped on the plate and waved to the crowd Tuesday after his three-run homer increased the Cubs’ lead to 10-6 in the seventh inning. The rally began with a game-tying two-run shot from Seiya Suzuki, who finished 4-for-5 with three RBI. Jeimer Candelario doubled, and Yan Gomes singled to put runners on first and third. Nick Madrigal then hit a chopper up the third-base line. Giants third baseman Casey Schmitt fired home as Candelario ran hard, but his errant throw crossed the basepath, and catcher Patrick Bailey lost the ball. The Cubs took a narrow 7-6 lead, which Morel expanded on shortly after.
“Unbelievable by the guys — picking me up, picking everybody else up,” said starter Kyle Hendricks, who finished with a no-decision. “A day like that, with the wind blowing out, you’ve just got to keep it close.”
Hendricks falters
Hendricks was charged with four earned runs in 5⅓ innings. His first pitch of the game was a bad omen — a fastball up and over the middle of the plate, which Giants leadoff man LaMonte Wade Jr. drove over the fence.
Bad luck helped run up the score for the Giants — an error here, a ball dropping for an RBI there. The second homer Hendricks surrendered, to Mike Yastrzemski in the third, barely got out. But he also gave up two smoked doubles to Wilmer Flores and Joc Pederson to open the sixth.
