Cubs Roster Moves: Brandon Kintzler to IL, Pedro Strop Activated
As he left the field on Monday night, Brandon Kintzler could be seen grabbing at his upper chest, much to the mutual discomfort of Cubs fans. After trying to throw Tuesday to see how he felt, the Cubs have decided to put him on the injured list with right pec inflammation.
Maddon said Kintzler came out of his delivery to Chapman, trying to do a little too much. Fig the strain happened there. Again, not serious but taking the 10 days
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) August 6, 2019
In the corresponding move, Pedro Strop will be activated off the injured list after dealing with neck tightness. Hopefully this is just a minor setback for Kintzler, who has been one of the Cubs’ most effective relievers in 2019. He has posted a 2.33 ERA/0.93 WHIP in 46.1 innings of relief this season.
With Craig Kimbrel already hitting the injured list this week, Kintzler going down leaves the bullpen in a state of flux. Kyle Ryan and David Phelps combined to close down the A’s on Monday night, so it will be interesting to see how Joe Maddon deploys his relievers in the coming days should the Cubs be in some tight games.
