New injuries, moves for fill-in help show Cubs still desperate for pitching as trade deadline nears
<p>You could probably hear Trent Thornton breathing his sigh of relief on the other side of Lake Michigan.</p><p>The Cubs’ righty reliever came out of Monday night’s game after taking a 109-mile-an-hour liner off his foot, but Tuesday, the news seems good, that he’ll likely need just a few days to get back on the mound.</p><p>With the team’s bullpen already riddled with injuries, he didn’t want to be another.</p><p>“I do not want to go on the IL at all,” Thornton said Tuesday. “Whatever I need to do, put a Band-Aid on it, I’ll be good.</p><p>“I’m willing it that it’s going to feel fine and be good to go by later this week.”</p><p>Thornton, with a 2.70 ERA in 30 innings, has been one of several Cubs pitchers to step into unexpected roles while the staff has faced an avalanche of injuries that has threatened to bury the team.</p><p>The Cubs were thrilled they weathered the storm enough to finish the first half in playoff position.</p><p>But those clouds have not passed.</p><p>Earlier Monday, righty Phil Maton’s inflamed knee sent him to the IL for the third time this season.
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<p>You could probably hear Trent Thornton breathing his sigh of relief on the other side of Lake Michigan.</p><p>The Cubs’ righty reliever came out of Monday night’s game after taking a 109-mile-an-hour liner off his foot, but Tuesday, the news seems good, that he’ll likely need just a few days to get back on the mound.</p><p>With the team’s bullpen already riddled with injuries, he didn’t want to be another.</p><p>“I do not want to go on the IL at all,” Thornton said Tuesday. “Whatever I need to do, put a Band-Aid on it, I’ll be good.</p><p>“I’m willing it that it’s going to feel fine and be good to go by later this week.”</p><p>Thornton, with a 2.70 ERA in 30 innings, has been one of several Cubs pitchers to step into unexpected roles while the staff has faced an avalanche of injuries that has threatened to bury the team.</p><p>The Cubs were thrilled they weathered the storm enough to finish the first half in playoff position.</p><p>But those clouds have not passed.</p><p>Earlier Monday, righty Phil Maton’s inflamed knee sent him to the IL for the third time this season. He’ll be out a while, with manager Craig Counsell saying Tuesday that Maton faces three weeks of inactivity after receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection.</p><p>Maton signed a two-year deal as part of Jed Hoyer’s attempt to build a strong bullpen for the second straight winter. To this point, those efforts have been far less successful than they were in 2025, with Maton’s lack of production — he’s got a 6.18 ERA — among the culprits.</p><p>Other signees, like lefty Hoby Milner (appendectomy) and righty Hunter Harvey (triceps inflammation), have been sidelined for long stretches.
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- <p>You could probably hear Trent Thornton breathing his sigh of relief on the other side of Lake Michigan.</p><p>The Cubs’ righty reliever came out of Monday night’s game after taking a 109-mile-an-hour liner off his foot, but Tuesday, the news seems good, that he’ll likely need just a few days to get back on the mound.</p><p>With the team’s bullpen already riddled with injuries, he didn’t want to be another.</p><p>“I do not want to go on the IL at all,” Thornton said Tuesday. “Whatever I need to do, put a Band-Aid on it, I’ll be good.</p><p>“I’m willing it that it’s going to feel fine and be good to go by later this week.”</p><p>Thornton, with a 2.70 ERA in 30 innings, has been one of several Cubs pitchers to step into unexpected roles while the staff has faced an avalanche of injuries that has threatened to bury the team.</p><p>The Cubs were thrilled they weathered the storm enough to finish the first half in playoff position.</p><p>But those clouds have not passed.</p><p>Earlier Monday, righty Phil Maton’s inflamed knee sent him to the IL for the third time this season.
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New injuries, moves for fill-in help show Cubs still desperate for pitching as trade deadline nears
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