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Cubs' Daniel Palencia: Strikes out side, earns win
Rotowire
Palencia (2-1) worked around a walk to toss a scoreless inning of relief and earn the win in Monday's 5-4 victory over the Rockies. He struck out three.
After a leadoff walk in the top of the ninth inning, Palencia proceeded to strike out the next three Colorado hitters on 14 pitches. The righty then earned the win when the Cubs scored twice in the bottom of the ninth to erase a 4-3 deficit. Palencia is still sitting on only three saves, though he's mostly pitched well with a 2.70 ERA and 19 strikeouts across 16.2 innings this season, and the save opportunities should come if Chicago gets back on track following a rough patch.
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Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong: Hits for cycle in win
Rotowire
Crow-Armstrong went 4-for-4 with a single, a double, a triple, a home run and two total RBI in Monday's 5-4 win over the Rockies.
Crow-Armstrong recorded his first career MLB cycle in reverse order, as he led off the bottom of the first inning with his 13th home run of the season, then followed that up with a triple, double and single in order. The star outfielder added a sacrifice fly in the eighth for good measure. Crow-Armstrong is red hot at the plate right now, as he's batting .452 over his last 10 games with 10 extra-base hits, and he's looking more and more like the breakout player from the start of last year.
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Cubs' Justin Steele: Continuing to make progress
Rotowire
Steele will throw plyo balls for the next week and then progress to throwing a baseball, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
The club has already ruled Steele out through the All-Star break, but he's moving in the right direction. Montemurro notes that he'll be around the team for the next three weeks while continuing his rehab, and he could resume throwing a baseball as early as next Monday, which would be the first step in building up his throwing progression. The Cubs have yet to provide a firm timetable for Steele's return.
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Cubs' Matthew Boyd: Throwing off mound Tuesday
Rotowire
Boyd (knee/shoulder) will throw an up-down bullpen session Tuesday, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
The Cubs will make a decision about next steps for Boyd after the bullpen session. Boyd had been slated to rejoin the big-league rotation this past weekend following last month's meniscus surgery, but that was scrapped after he developed left shoulder soreness after a bullpen session. Following the setback, it seems likely that the Cubs will ask Boyd to make another rehab start. However, more clarity on that front will be available after Tuesday's session.
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Cubs' Carson Kelly: Receiving night off
Rotowire
Kelly is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Rockies.
Kelly will hit the bench after he started behind the plate in three of the Cubs' last four games. Moises Ballesteros will get the nod at catcher in the series opener.
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Cubs' Seiya Suzuki: Drawing back into lineup
Rotowire
Suzuki (knee) will start at designated hitter and bat cleanup Monday against the Rockies.
Suzuki was scratched from the starting nine ahead of Sunday's 5-1 loss to the Giants, but manager Craig Counsell suggested that Suzuki was held out as a precaution after he had been forced out of Saturday's win due to right knee discomfort. The 31-year-old's knee appears to have responded well enough to the day off for the Cubs to feel comfortable inserting him back into the lineup Monday, albeit in a non-defensive role. Suzuki will carry a season-best 10-game hitting streak into the contest.
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Cubs' Doug Nikhazy: Removed from 40-man roster
Rotowire
The Cubs designated Nikhazy for assignment Monday.
Nikhazy was a casualty of the Cubs needing to free up a spot on the 40-man roster for the addition of right-hander Yosver Zulueta, who was acquired via trade. A waiver claim by the Cubs in late April, Nikhazy has turned in an 8.44 ERA and 30:21 K:BB over 26.2 innings covering six starts and two relief outings with Triple-A Iowa.
The Cubs acquired Zulueta from the Mariners on Monday in exchange for cash considerations.
Seattle designated Zulueta for assignment Wednesday, but he'll regain a spot on the 40-man roster with his move to a new organization. The right-hander has posted an inflated 5.75 ERA over 20.1 innings in 22 appearances with Triple-A Tacoma so far this season, but he boasts impressive velocity and has struck out 21.4 percent of the batters he's faced. The Cubs are expected to assign him to Triple-A Iowa.
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Cubs' Colin Rea: Takes another loss Sunday
Rotowire
Rea (5-5) allowed four runs on six hits across 4.2 innings and took the loss in Sunday's 5-1 defeat to the Giants. He walked three and struck out two.
Rea worked as the bulk pitcher behind opener Ryan Rolison, and the former struggled upon entering the contest. The veteran righty has now taken the loss in his last two appearances, during which time he's allowed 11 runs across 9.1 innings, which has pushed his season ERA up to 5.35. Rea doesn't strike out many batters, with only a 6.8 K/9 on the year, and that limits his margin for error as well as his fantasy upside. He'll look to get back in the win column in his next scheduled appearance, which is currently lined up for Saturday against the Blue Jays, though it's unclear if he'll start of work behind an opener again.
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Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong: Stays hot Sunday
Rotowire
Crow-Armstrong went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in Sunday's 5-1 loss to the Giants.
Crow-Armstrong did his job as Chicago's leadoff hitter, but the rest of the lineup failed to produce much. The talented center fielder is in the middle of a hot stretch, as he's now riding a five-game hitting streak and is batting a robust .405 over his last 10 contests with four home runs and four stolen bases. Crow-Armstrong is a dynamic player capable of producing both power and speed, just as long as he's making consistent contact at the plate.
Hoerner is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Giants.
The Cubs will go with Pedro Ramirez at second base in the series finale while the slumping Hoerner receives his first day off since May 25. While starting each of the Cubs' last 17 games, Hoerner slashed just .200/.250/.229 with zero home runs, two stolen bases, three RBI and three runs.
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Cubs' Seiya Suzuki: Scratched from starting nine
Rotowire
The Cubs scratched Suzuki (knee) from the lineup for Sunday's game against the Giants.
After exiting in the fourth inning of Saturday's 6-1 win due to right knee discomfort, Suzuki had been included in the Cubs' initial lineup for Sunday's game as their designated hitter. However, manager Craig Counsell indicated that the Cubs just wanted to be conservative with Suzuki by holding him out for the series finale, which will give the 31-year-old more time to recover from the knee issue. Moises Ballesteros will end up getting the nod at DH on Sunday in place of Suzuki, who will put his 10-game hitting streak on hold, unless he's called upon for a pinch-hitting situation. Suzuki would still seem to have a good chance at rejoining the starting nine for Monday's game against the Rockies, either at DH or at his usual spot in right field.
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Cubs' Ryan Rolison: Serving as opener
Rotowire
Rolison will serve as the Cubs' opening pitcher for Sunday's game against the Giants in San Francisco, Vinnie Duber of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Rolison has been an effective relief option this season with a 2.25 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 24:12 K:BB over 24 innings, and he's now set to make his first start of the season and the second of his MLB career. The left-hander has covered more than one frame in eight of his 20 appearances with Chicago and is likely to give way to Colin Rea after working an inning or two Sunday.
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Cubs' Colin Rea: Set to follow opener
Rotowire
Rea won't start Sunday's game against the Giants, but manager Craig Counsell said the right-hander is expected to "be involved" in the pitching plan, Vinnie Duber of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Ryan Rolison will instead start Sunday's series finale as an opener, lining up Rea to fill a bulk role out of the bullpen. The 35-year-old surrendered seven runs during his last start but was effective in the three outings prior to that with a 3.57 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over 17.2 innings.
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Cubs' Seiya Suzuki: Playing through knee issue Sunday
Rotowire
Suzuki (knee) will serve as the Cubs' designated hitter and No. 5 batter in Sunday's game against the Giants.
Though the Cubs will turn to Michael Conforto to cover right field, the right knee issue that forced Suzuki out of Saturday's contest in the fourth inning won't keep him out of the lineup entirely Sunday as he looks to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. Given that Suzuki tweaked the same knee in the World Baseball Classic and opened the season on the injured list, it wouldn't be surprising if the Cubs limited him to DH duties for the next few games as a precaution.
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