Taillon scratched with back issue
PITTSBURGH — Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon felt what he called a ‘‘little tweak’’ in his back Tuesday while warming up for his scheduled bullpen session in between starts.
It wasn’t nearly as bad as the back injury he suffered in spring training, which kept him in bed for three days and delayed his progression enough to land him on the 15-day injured list to begin the season.
‘‘But enough to say something and try not to push through that day,’’ Taillon said before the Cubs’ 7-2 victory Friday against the Pirates.
He originally was lined up to pitch Friday, but the team pushed back his start to address the issue. Right-hander Javier Assad started in his place.
Taillon will test his back by playing catch Saturday, then — provided that goes well — by throwing off a mound.
‘‘Even if it’s five to 10 [pitches],’’ Taillon said, ‘‘just to make sure we have our confidence up. And then if I tell them I’m good to go, we know that I can go out there and rip it off the mound and not just go out there and wing it and put the team in a bad spot.’’
If Taillon’s back passes those tests, he might start Sunday.
‘‘I’m anticipating [Saturday] going well and being out there Sunday,’’ he said.
Taillon has been a big part of the rotation’s dominant stretch in the last few weeks. The Cubs entered play Friday with a 2.11 ERA from their rotation since Taillon returned from the IL on April 19, the best mark in the majors during that stretch. And Taillon (1.13 ERA) hasn’t allowed more than one earned run in any of his four starts.
‘‘I feel like I’ve been doing everything in my power to be proactive about this and to not let something like this happen,’’ said Taillon, who has added a back and core routine to his customized warmup program. ‘‘So I can, in a way, kind of live with it, just because I feel like I’ve been doing all the right work and stuff. But it’s still frustrating.’’
Best-laid plans
The Cubs planned for rookie right-hander Ben Brown to be available out of the bullpen earlier this week against the Padres,
but manager Craig Counsell stayed away from using Brown when Taillon’s back issue cropped up.
Brown tentatively was in line as a backup option if Taillon wasn’t ready to pitch Sunday. But when Assad went only 4⅓ innings Friday, Brown came in for 3⅔ scoreless innings in relief, earning his first majorleague victory.
Injury update
Left-handers Jordan Wicks (strained left
forearm) and Drew Smyly (impingement in right hip) threw bullpen sessions Friday. Smyly, who is making slower progress, will throw another.
Wicks’ session went well, and he’s ready to move to the next step, which is set to be a multi-inning bullpen session Monday. After he graduates from that stage of his rehab, the Cubs plan to have him throw a live batting-practice session and go out on a rehab assignment. ✶