As expected, the Cubs placed reliever Pedro Strop on the 15-day DL on Wednesday afternoon with a left groin strain. Strop left Tuesday night’s game in the ninth inning after aggravating the injury that occurred five days earlier. Strop was trying to avoid the disabled list but will now sidelined for three to four weeks with a moderate left groin strain.
The Cubs recalled lefty Zac Rosscup from Triple-A Iowa to take Strop’s place on the active roster. Rosscup was optioned to Iowa last Saturday when the Cubs activated Jake Arrieta from the DL. Due to the injury to Strop, the Cubs could recall Rosscup before he spent the mandatory 10 days in the minors after being sent down. This will be Rosscup’s third different stint with the big league club this season.
With Pedro Strop on the shelf and Zac Rosscup back up, the Cubs still have an eight-man bullpen and will remain a man short on the bench. The Cubs have struggled all season to score runs and the 13-man pitching staff limits Rick Renteria’s options.
The Cubs’ bullpen consists of Hector Rondon, Neil Ramirez, Justin Grimm, Brian Schlitter, Carlos Villanueva, James Russell, Zac Rosscup and Wesley Wright.
The team has not given a timeframe on when Jose Veras will be ready to return from his rehab assignment with Tennessee. The Cubs have one healthy reliever on the 40-man roster not with the big league club that can pitch in the majors, Blake Parker. Plus, Mr. No-Hitter Chris Rusin.