Chicago Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman has not pitched since July 31 due to an injury that was not initially thought to be serious. On Wednesday, however, the Cubs admitted that things are worse than they initially appeared.
Stroman is dealing with a right rib cartilage fracture, the Cubs announced Wednesday. The team had no timetable for his return.
Stroman was originally placed on the IL with right hip inflammation on Aug. 1, but was expected to miss only one start. However, he experienced more pain during a bullpen session on Sunday, prompting the team to shut him down again and send him for further tests instead of bringing him back on Wednesday as they initially hoped.
If Stroman is gone for any extended period of time, the Cubs’ playoff hopes will suffer. He was an All-Star this season and had a 3.85 ERA when he went on the IL. He was viewed as a trade candidate before the Aug. 1 deadline until the Cubs got hot and abruptly changed course.
The Cubs are 3.5 games out of first in the NL Central and one game back of the final NL wild-card spot entering play Wednesday.
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