All signs point to surprise sub for Justin Steele in the Chicago Cubs' rotation

While just how long Justin Steele will be out of the Chicago Cubs’ rotation is still very much up in the air, what is known is that he will miss at least one start after landing on the 10-day IL. It’s been believed that swingman Colin Rea might take his spot this weekend.

However, there are some rumblings that the club might go with a bit of a surprise sub. It seems as though there are at least some signs that a minor leaguer might get the call rather than pulling Rea out of his long-man status.

Des Moines Register/USA Today reporter Tommy Birch, who covers the Iowa Cubs as part of his beat, reported earlier this week that Jordan Wicks was slated to take the hill today. However, that is no longer the plan as Trevor Ricards is now the probable starter for the Iowa Cubs. The plot thickens as there is no probable starter for Wicks, so this isn’t simply a matter of him being pushed back a day.

The assumption here would be that he’s no longer making a start for Iowa and will instead be taking a turn for the Chicago Cubs. Granted, at the moment this is nothing more than an assumption. 

Jordan Wicks might be the first option to replace Justin Steele

On the other hand, we mentioned Wicks would likely be among the candidates to step in for Steele, especially if he’s out for any real time. His callup would make quite a bit of sense, what with Javier Assad on the IL as well and Cade Horton working his way back from injury with some rather short starts at the AAA level.

Wicks made 7 starts in 2023, going 4-1 with a 4.41 ERA and 10 starts out of 11 appearances in 2024, notching a 2-4 record and a less-than-impressive 5.48 earned run average. 

For now it’s just wait and see who makes the start for the Chicago Cubs on Sunday but until then it’s up to Matthew Boyd and Ben Brown to go as deep into their starts as possible as the pen will almost certainly be called on early on Sunday.