Cubs’ Craig Counsell provides 2 big injury updates

Both pitchers threw live batting practice, and according to Counsell, they came out of the session in good shape. Brown, who has been sidelined since June with a stress reaction in the C5 vertebra of his neck, and Steele, working his way back from a flexor strain that derailed his return from elbow surgery, “felt great” after facing hitters, Counsell said. That’s a significant checkpoint for two pitchers whose injury timelines have been anything but smooth this season.

Brown first landed on the injured list in late June after dealing with recurring discomfort in the same area of his neck that cost him most of the 2024 season. Steele, meanwhile, has been working back from a UCL procedure last April and hit his own setback in late April when a flexor strain pushed his timetable well past its original Memorial Day target.

Counsell said both pitchers are now slated for another round of live batting practice or bridge games in Arizona early next week, the next building block in their respective throwing programs. If Brown continues to progress without complications, the plan calls for him to rejoin the Cubs in Chicago and begin an official rehab assignment, a clear signal that his return to the big-league mound could finally be coming into view after a frustrating summer.

Steele’s path remains a bit more gradual given the layered nature of his elbow recovery, which has already required him to build back up through bullpens, live at-bats and now bridge outings before any minor league assignment. Still, the fact that both pitchers are trending in the right direction at the same time gives Chicago’s pitching staff a much-needed jolt of optimism.

For a Cubs rotation and bullpen that has weathered a steady stream of injury updates throughout 2026, Counsell’s dual report offers a rare and welcome bit of good news heading into the stretch run.