Cubs Place Adbert Alzolay on IL with Right Forearm Strain, Recall José Cuas

It seemed like just a matter of time before beleaguered former closer Adbert Alzolay was placed on the IL. Whether his struggles were really due to a right forearm strain or this is just a way to give him time to clear his head and clean up his mechanics, the situation had clearly come to a head. The leadoff homer he surrendered in the bottom of the 10th inning on Sunday was his sixth of the season in 17.1 innings, as many as he gave up in 77.1 frames over the last two seasons combined.

Update: Craig Counsell said prior to the series opener in Atlanta that Alzolay’s elbow was sore during Sunday’s win and that he was getting imaging on Monday. The manager said the issue is “concerning” and that they won’t have a timeline for return until they know exactly what’s wrong. As easy as it is to be skeptical — and I’ll admit to being a little flippant myself — this sounds like more than just a perfunctory explanation for a phantom injury.

His slider and cutter have been particularly bad, combining for a value of -3 runs that puts him in the 13th percentile across all pitchers. For reference, he was in the 92nd percentile with 10 runs last year. Things can get better, if only because they have to, you just have to hope that whatever physical and mental maladies are impacting him can be cleared up before long.

Cuas was optioned for less than a day after coming up to replace Yency Almonte and then being removed from the active roster to clear space for Kyle Hendricks. He’s a relatively fresh arm for a team that has precious few of them these days.