Justin

Steele

Levine mentions that Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said Steele could “help in the pen at some late summer point.” Steele is working back from elbow surgery and a setback he suffered earlier in May, so the team is clearly being cautious with him. While he may pitch innings for the Cubs later this summer, it no longer seems like he needs to be stashed in redraft fantasy leagues.

It was Steele’s first throwing session since suffering a setback when he was diagnosed with a flexor strain in late April that delayed his throwing progression. The 30-year-old lefty is roughly 14 months removed from Tommy John surgery and figures to make it back to Chicago’s rotation mix at some point in the second half. There should be a clearer return timetable once he progresses to facing hitters and is close to embarking on a minor league rehab assignment. It seems unlikely he’ll make it back before August.

While Cubs manager Counsell termed this as “good news,” it doesn’t sound like Steele has made much progress from April, when it was believed he would be out until after the All-Star break. At this point, his timeline might be closer to August. Fantasy managers in redraft leagues certainly don’t need to keep holding him at this rate.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell told reporters Steele will be sidelined until after the All-Star break in July following the setback. The 30-year-old left-hander has been working his way back from last year’s Tommy John surgery and recently progressed to facing hitters in live batting practice sessions. He underwent imaging that didn’t reveal any structural damage, but has been diagnosed with a flexor strain, after experiencing discomfort while throwing over the weekend.

Steele continues to make gradual progress in his recovery from last season’s Tommy John surgery. He’s nearly a calendar year removed from the procedure at this juncture and should be ready for a minor league rehab assignment at some point later this month. He’s on track to return to Chicago’s rotation at some point in May or June, barring any setbacks.

Steele has already progressed to facing hitters in live batting practice and should be cleared to head out on a minor league rehab assignment at some point in April. The 30-year-old southpaw underwent Tommy John surgery last April and is on track to return to Chicago’s rotation at some point in May or June.

Steele noted that he’s finished with his follow-up visits to Dr. Keith Meister who performed the operation and that he has been cleared to start throwing curveballs in his bullpen sessions. The 30-year-old southpaw wants to return by June so that he’s hitting his stride in October. He has found himself going just inside the top 400 picks in recent NFBC drafts, with the expectation that fantasy managers will get nothing from him for the first two months of the season.

Steele has been throwing since October, but this was the first time that he was able to get up on the mound and do so. Barring any setbacks, he remains on track to return at some point during the first half of the 2026 season.

Steele gets only a very slight increase over his $6.55 million salary from 2025 after being limited to four starts last April. He’s due back from Tommy John in the first half of 2026, and he’ll remain under Cubs control in 2027 before becoming a free agent for the first time.

Counsell elaborated that Steele won’t be ready for Opening Day but believes he’ll make it back to Chicago at some point in the first half. The 30-year-old southpaw made just four starts before undergoing season-ending UCL surgery, not a full Tommy John reconstructive procedure, in April. He was able to resume throwing in late October and figures to be ramping up his throwing program by the time spring training rolls around.