Justin Steele Cleared to Resume Throwing, Starting Role Not Realistic This Season

Justin Steele has been with the Cubs for a little while now as he works his way back to throwing again following a setback in his recovery from elbow reconstruction last year. While the internal brace procedure he underwent typically yields a much quicker return to competition than full Tommy John ligament replacement, the Cubs were already slow-playing his rehab before a flexor strain shut the lefty down. Steele had gotten back to throwing plyos a little while back and has now been cleared to resume throwing a baseball, but time is working against him.

Craig Counsell had previously noted that the plan was to use Steele in shorter bursts, assuming everything goes well from here on out, and the manager reiterated that to reporters in Baltimore on Wednesday. With less than 12 weeks in the season, just getting Steele competition ready at all is no mean feat. Being able to ramp him up to five innings or more would be nigh impossible.

“Stretching out as a starter is really not realistic with the calendar,” Counsell admitted.

Even if it’s as a reliever, getting Steele back at all would provide a huge emotional boost. It’s also entirely possible he doesn’t come back at all this year, especially if there are any other setbacks with this latest round of his recovery. Given how much they are losing from the rotation after this season, the Cubs are not going to risk Steele’s availability in the future just for a few innings from him in September.