Cubs Injury Update: Jed Hoyer on Justin Steele, Shelby Miller hope, Dansby Swanson

Justin Steele starts a minor-league rehab assignment on Wednesday night with the Iowa Cubs, and for the time this season, Jed Hoyer did leave the door open to Steele potentially returning to Chicago Cubs before the end of the regular season.

Speaking with reporters before the Cubs' loss to the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night, Hoyer offered a blunt assessment about the potential of Steele's return. In other words, the Cubs won't bring Steele back for the mere purpose of bringing him back. The Cubs aren't in a position to do so. If Steele proves ready and capable of helping the big-league pitching staff, then the decision will be made.

Jed Hoyer makes it clear what needs to happen before Justin Steele's return

A best-case scenario would be Steele emerging as a bulk-option out of the bullpen just ahead of the playoffs. Not only would that alleviate some of the concern the Cubs currently have in the bullpen, it would give them a piggy-back option for whoever is the Game 4 starter of a playoff series. That said, there's still a ways to go before Steele is at that point.

Shelby Miller resumes minor-league rehab after odd appearance over the weekend

During the latest episde of the Cubbies Crib Podcast, we discussed the odd appearance Shelby Miller had with the Iowa Cubs last Friday. He was pulled after reaching 15 pitches, and despite being scheduled to pitch on back-to-back days, he didn't make an appearance on Saturday or Sunday.

The fear was that Miller some form of a setback. Fortunately, it appears that Miller is fine. Miller made an appearance for the I-Cubs on Tuesday, tossing a scoreless inning. His fastball was sitting at 97 MPH, as has been the case throughout his rehab assignment.

Miller pitching for the Cubs this season still isn't viewed as an expectation, but at this point, if he's still finding success in the weeks ahead, it's a lever that will have to be pulled.

Dansby Swanson resumes hitting, but Cubs won't skip steps in his recovery

Dansby Swanson continues to make progress in his recovery from an oblique strain, and has resumed hitting. Craig Counsell told reporters on Tuesday that Swanson will have several days of just hitting, considering that is one of the biggest hurdles to clear from an oblique strain. Swanson remains on track to return around the end of the regular season, and his health will be an important storyline for the Cubs heading into the playoffs.

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