PITTSBURGH — The Cubs plan to activate Jorge Soler for this weekend’s showdown against the St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field.
Soler — who has been on the disabled list with a strained oblique muscle since Aug. 24 — will try to show that his game is now in playoff shape.
Soler joined advanced Class-A Myrtle Beach during its postseason run and will stay with the Pelicans through the Carolina League championship. The Pelicans were in position to clinch the Mills Cup on Wednesday night in South Carolina.
That should leave two-plus weeks for Soler to prove he’s healthy enough to be a difference-maker in October (though manager Joe Maddon clearly won’t stop his mix-and-match approach, and the Cubs have multiple options in the outfield).
[MORE CUBS: This is nice for Cubs, but Jon Lester signed up to win World Series]
Listed at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, Soler is at least a presence in the lineup or a right-handed bat off the bench. The rookie has hit .265 with seven homers, 42 RBIs and a .710 in 90 games with the Cubs this season.
While winning the division appears to be an extreme long shot — the Cubs woke up on Wednesday in third place and trailing the Cardinals by seven games with 18 left to play — this weekend could still be a playoff preview.
MLB
Here’s how the Cubs will align their rotation for the Cardinals: Dan Haren starts Friday, Saturday will be a bullpen day (with Travis Wood, Trevor Cahill or Clayton Richard likely starting) and Jon Lester will start Sunday.