The Chicago Cubs could see one of their starting pitchers return sooner rather than later. According to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Sun-Times, cubs right-hander star is making steady progress in his recovery from a strained left oblique. Gonzales reported that Assad threw a 40-pitch bullpen session on March 22 and is set to face live hitters next as part of his rehab process.
Assad was placed on the 15-day injured list on March 17, putting him roughly at the midway point of his recovery. However, with Opening Day approaching on Thursday, it’s unlikely he will be ready in time. If he remains sidelined, he is expected to miss at least one or two starts.
In Assad’s absence, the Cubs have right-handers Ben Brown and Colin Rea as potential fill-ins for the fifth spot in the rotation. FanGraphs notes that Assad has two minor league options remaining, giving the team flexibility to send him down if he needs additional time to build up his pitch count. Alternatively, he could make a few bullpen appearances at the major league level before rejoining the rotation.
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Assad had a strong 2024 season as a full-time starter, logging a career-high 147 innings with a 3.73 ERA. He leaned heavily on his sinker, throwing it 35.4% of the time—by far his most-used pitch—while his cutter was his second-most frequent offering, making up 21.6% of his pitches.
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