Justin Steele Still Weeks from Throwing Baseball, Matthew Boyd Starting Sunday for I-Cubs, Jaxon Wiggins Still Not Game-Ready -

Jordan Wicks opened his 2026 debut by allowing five runs in the first inning, adding to existing pitching problems. Matthew Boyd is progressing after left meniscus arthroscopic cleanup and is set for a rehab start with Triple-A Iowa, though he may need additional minor-league work depending on how he feels. Justin Steele is back to strength work after a flexor strain setback, but throwing a baseball is still weeks away, putting a July return at risk. Jaxon Wiggins has elbow inflammation and has been limited to bullpen work, with no clear timeline for game readiness. Ty Blach re-signed on a minor league deal after roster moves involving Caleb Thielbar.

"Jordan Wicks allowed five runs in the 1st inning of his 2026 debut, and the Cubs’ pitching troubles didn’t improve from there. Reinforcements are on the way, but they won’t arrive for well over a week. That delay leaves the rotation and bullpen facing a stretch without the help they were expecting soon."

"Matthew Boyd has made excellent progress from an arthroscopic cleanup of his left meniscus, to the point that he'll make a rehab start with Triple-A Iowa on Sunday. He'll probably need at least one more outing in the minors to ramp up, though a lot will depend on how he feels after this next one. The next start becomes the key checkpoint for how quickly he can move forward."

"Justin Steele suffered a setback in his recovery that forced him to shut down for several weeks. He's improved enough from that flexor strain to get back to strength work, after which he'll start throwing plyos, but it's going to be several weeks before he's back to throwing a baseball. That puts a July return in jeopardy."

"Jaxon Wiggins was scratched from his April 10 start with what Cubs farm director Jason Kanzler explained was just a matter of being strategic with their pitching deployment. It turns out that Wiggins was suffering from elbow inflammation that has kept him out of live action, though he's been throwing bullpens in Arizona since earlier this month. Wiggins hasn't gotten stretched back out to game readiness and Jed Hoyer provided no specifics about a timeline for his return."

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