Cubs bullpen loses Fulmer to forearm strain
PITTSBURGH - With the arrival of pitcher Jordan Wicks, the Cubs placed reliever Michael Fulmer on the 15-day injured list with a right forearm strain.
There have been signs of Fulmer not being at full strength. He gave up runs in four of his seven more recent appearances, but he also delivered on Aug. 16 against the White Sox, coming in with the bases loaded and nobody out and striking out three straight batters, setting the stage for Christopher Morel's walk-off home run.
"He's been dealing with it for a while," manager David Ross said. "Been having to manage that with off-days, pitch, little uncomfortable, two days off. You're just kind of chasing your tail, you know? Something's going on.
"I think the rest really pays off for him. Then he pitches and it's tender again and just not bouncing back the way it needs to, so hopefully a little bit of a rest, we'll be able to lean back on him in 15 days."
Ross compared it to Justin Steele taking a couple weeks off with the same injury earlier this season. Hayden Wesneski was suggested as someone who could take over Fulmer's role of being tough on right-handed hitters.
"It's all hands on deck," Ross said. "The thing we're going to miss about Fulm is how well he handled coming in with traffic, having some of those holds. We're going to have to find somebody to pick up the slack in those moments."
Call-up conundrum:
The Cubs can call up two players from the minors when rosters expand to 28 on Sept. 1, most likely one pitcher and one position player. Who they'll call up is an ongoing debate.
CF Pete Crow-Armstrong is the top prospect, but the Cubs aren't planning to bench Cody Bellinger or Mike Tauchman this late in the season. OF Alexander Canario has been ridiculously hot lately. They could also add an experienced player like David Bote for pinch-hitting.
"Somebody's probably not going to come up and start," manager David Ross said. "There's not a lot of playing time for whoever that is. The good thing about Triple A is it's going all the way basically until we end, so there's still development opportunities for young players."
Whether or not to add someone to the 40-man roster will be a consideration. Some players need to be added to avoid being exposed to the Rule 5 draft. Others do not.
"There are a lot of possibilities," Ross said. "That's the sign of a good team, lot of healthy players that are performing well."
Around the horn:
From mlb.com's Jordan Bastian: Ian Happ has reached base in 54 consecutive games against the Pirates. That's tied with Stan Musial for the longest streak all-time against the Pirates. So if Happ reaches base Saturday, he'll move past Stan the Man. ... Nico Hoerner was not in the starting lineup Saturday, just as a day of rest. ... Before Saturday's game, the Pirates inducted four players into their team Hall of Fame: Kent Tekulve, Elroy Face, Dick Groat and Bob Friend. Face attended the ceremony at age 95 and threw out a first pitch.
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