Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell had been looking for an opportunity to give center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong a day off from being in the lineup.
Crow-Armstrong’s 135 games played coming into Tuesday tied him with shortstop Dansby Swanson for most by a Cub this year. After playing an important role defensively and offensively in Monday’s comeback win against the Atlanta Braves, Crow-Armstrong wasn’t in the lineup Tuesday with Atlanta starting lefty Joey Wentz.
Counsell instead opted for the right-handed hitting Kevin Alcántara, who was called up Monday and gives the Cubs a viable center-field backup option for Crow-Armstrong. The 23-year-old Alcántara earned a late September call-up last year, appearing in three games and collecting one hit in 10 at-bats.
When evaluating the Cubs’ upcoming schedule, Counsell felt this was a good day to give Crow-Armstrong a day on the bench.
“Look, Pete’s been out there a whole bunch and it’s because of his defense, he’s so valuable on defense, no matter what’s going on at the plate,” Counsell said Tuesday. “And so for that reason, he’s had very few off days.”
Crow-Armstrong, 23, has been grinding as he tries to recapture the first-half magic that earned him an All-Star Game start. Over his last 28 games, Crow-Armstrong has posted a .158/.214/.218 slash line with three doubles and one home run in 113 plate appearances.
“He’s not been swinging the bat that well, I mean, that’s not a secret to anybody,” Counsell said. “So, I think that’s just a player in the moment figuring out ‘what’s the best way for me to make something good happen here in that situation?’ That’s what he thought (bunting with two strikes Monday).”
How Carlos Santana’s playing time will fit
What role Carlos Santana will have in the lineup is still being figured out.
Counsell has been platooning Michael Busch in most starts against lefties, opting for Justin Turner, who was in the lineup Tuesday versus Wentz. How that playing time divide continues to shake out with Santana now in the fold remains unclear, especially with the defense he can provide at first base.
Counsell noted that the point of adding Santana was to fortify the Cubs’ roster. He regretted giving an at-bat to Santana in the ninth inning of Monday’s tied game, calling it unfair to the veteran because he hadn’t played in a major-league game in six days following his departure from Cleveland. Counsell plans for Santana to get some baseball work in before putting him in the lineup.
“We’re going to try to play what we think are the best lineups, and to do whatever we can to win games,” Counsell said. “And there are some close decisions kind of every day when you do that, even with the players we’ve had all season. So that’s just decisions we’ll have to make on a daily basis.”
Michael Soroka is feeling good after live batting practice
Right-hander Michael Soroka checked off another box in his rehab progression.
Soroka threw 34 pitches in two innings of live batting practice Tuesday afternoon at Wrigley Field. It marked another encouraging step for Soroka as he works back from the right shoulder strain he sustained one month ago. He will likely throw again Saturday, though the Cubs are still determining what setting that will entail. He will need to go on a rehab assignment before coming off the injured list.
Soroka has been encouraged by his velocity showing an uptick from what he experienced in the month leading up to his shoulder injury.
“It’s exciting to have it again,” Soroka said Tuesday. “Keeping it is just about staying on top of the things that we did the last couple weeks, to open up some range with the shoulder again and make sure that we’re not pinching what was ultimately in range.
“That’s the funny thing about velocity is you can’t necessarily always feel what that number on the gun is. That’s kind of the weird part about the last month before I came here was that it still felt fairly similar. It was just the velocity was somewhat gone, and now we’re back at the point where we’re out there, and it feels normal, and it’s, it’s back in the mid-90s, and we’re happy with that.”
Reliever Ryan Brasier, who has been out since Aug. 22 with a left groin strain, also threw live batting practice on Tuesday and will begin a rehab assignment this weekend.