Beleaguered former Cubs pitcher hits a snag in his injury recovery

There was a time when Marcus Stroman was a Chicago Cubs fan favorite. He was one of the best arms on a staff that fell short of a playoff team. Then, there was a rather public breakup.

Stroman left Chicago and signed with the New York Yankees, and for the most part, the pitcher has had a fraught relationship with the Big Apple. And now he's hurt. Though he's trying to return and become the pitcher, he knows he can. A pitcher the Yankees are happy to have on the roster.

Marcus Stroman’s injury setback clouds return hopes after rocky Yankees start

Unfortunately for the former Chicago Cubs star, his latest comeback attempt suffered a setback. Stroman is trying to return from a left knee injury that's had him out for a month. However, NY manager Aaron Boone told assembled media on Sunday that there's still some discomfort after throwing a live batting practice session.

"He's gotten a lot of treatments on it and stuff," Boone said. "It just can't kind of get over that final hump to really allow him to get to that next level on the mound. We'll try and continue to get our arms around it and try and make sure we get that out of there."

Stroman hasn't pitched since he allowed five runs in two-thirds of an inning in a game against the San Francisco Giants on April 11. At the time, it was a relief that the former Cubs hurler was injured, which explained his ineffectiveness.

Now, there's no timeline for when Stroman might return. The pitcher's knee issues appear to be a bit confounding, as the Yankees can't quite grasp the problem and how to fix it. He's had scans to make sure it's not a torn ACL or MCL, and those came back negative.

It's another sad story for a former Chicago Cubs pitcher who has struggled with injuries as he heads toward the end of his career. Here's hoping he finds a way to get back to pitching well in 2025.