The Cubs’ slide started with a blow to their rotation depth. And now, with the team on the precipice of a starting pitching boon, the coming weeks will show whether that development can spark a rebound.
Veteran right-hander Kyle Hendricks is expected to join the team in Chicago this week, where the Cubs will decide when to slot him into the rotation. Prospect Ben Brown has impressed in Triple-A. Javier Assad will soon be eligible to be recalled whenever the Cubs need him next. And rookie Hayden Wesneski has his objectives set to hone his execution in Iowa.
“My experience as a farm director [with Cleveland] is it’s always feast or famine,” Cubs general manager Carter Hawkins said at the beginning of the month.
Right-hander Jameson Taillon’s groin injury last month happened to fall during a famine stage: Adrian Sampson (now on the 60-day IL with a meniscus injury) was hurt, Assad wasn’t fully stretched out after beginning the season in the bullpen, Brown was in Double-A, Hendricks hadn’t yet begun his rehab assignment.
That marked the beginning of a 9-20 stretch for the Cubs, which has included lapses in each facet of the game, from starting pitching, to the bullpen, to the offense.
“Obviously, you don’t want to lose games,” left-hander Justin Steele said after throwing six shutout innings in the Cubs’ 2-1 loss Sunday to the Phillies. “But, I feel like as a team, everybody’s showing up every single day doing the right things to prepare for the game.”
The offense has received a recent boost from Christopher Morel’s call-up and Seiya Suzuki finding his rhythm at the plate. Now, the rotation is set for an addition.
After Hendricks’ last rehab outing, manager David Ross said that as long as Hendricks recovered well and stayed healthy, the team would look at a slot to line him up in the rotation.
Though Ross wouldn’t specify a timeline, that slot could come as soon as the Cubs’ series against the Reds this weekend, when they’ll need a fifth starter.
“The mechanical stuff that we’ve really honed in on in the bullpen sessions has really gotten him back into feeling like he’s more like himself,” pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said, “and he’s executing pitches the way he wants to.”
The Cubs have used their recent off days to make a four-man rotation work since optioning Wesneski to Triple-A a week ago. They needed extra help in a short bullpen, and Wesneski had given up seven runs in his last start, all on home runs to left-handed Twins hitters.
“He’s got the mix to be able to get lefties out at a high, high level,” Hottovy said. “It was just about executing all those.”
Early in the year, Wesneski’s slider, his bread-and-butter pitch, was a little off. So, the Cubs had him cut back on his cutter usage to simplify the process of getting back the shape of his slider. But the cutter is a key pitch for Wesneski against lefties. And when he reintroduced it, he wasn’t throwing it as hard as usual.
“The biggest thing for me with him is, now that the shapes are good, now that he’s gotten things where he wants to, it’s about, go execute your pitches,” Hottovy said. “... And then, if shapes start changing and we need to readjust something – a grip, or a tweak or something – we can. But just go back to the compete mode and go get guys out.”
Wesneski threw five shutout innings in his first Triple-A start of the year Saturday. He also issued four walks.
Rotation questions remain. Will Hendricks’ offseason adjustments translate to a bounce-back season? How quickly will Wesneski make adjustments in Triple-A? But soon, the Cubs’ starting pitching depth could be a strength again.
METS AT CUBS
Tuesday: Kodai Senga (4-3, 3.77 ERA) vs. Drew Smyly (4-1, 2.86), 6:40 p.m., Marquee, 670-AM
Wednesday: Tylor Megill (5-2, 3.88 ERA) vs. Marcus Stroman (3-4, 3.05), 6:40 p.m., Marquee, 670-AM
Thursday: Carlos Carrasco (0-2, 8.68 ERA) vs. Jameson Taillon (0-3, 8.10) 6:40 p.m., Marquee, 670-AM
