MESA, Ariz. – Cubs lefty Justin Steele came into camp about 20 pounds heavier and with a new changeup in his arsenal. Not to mention, he has a baby boy on the way. Steele and his girlfriend Libby Murphy are expecting their first child in July.

“That’s a big step,” veteran pitcher Kyle Hendricks said. “I told him, ‘Dad strength, it happens immediately, right?'”

To add to the positive changes in his life, Steele is expected to break camp in the Cubs’ major-league rotation – or as Cubs manager David Ross put it Tuesday morning, Steele has a “strong chance” of doing so. Entering his second season, Steele is lined up to pitch third in the rotation to start the year, while veteran Wade Miley continues to ramp up. Ross has not yet announced the rotation order.

“He’s looked really good,” Ross said Tuesday morning. “Building off of last year, ball’s coming out nicely, looks like he’s healthy and going to give us some really good starts.”

Steele went into the offseason knowing he wanted to put on at least a little weight. He’s been sitting between, and feeling good at, about 195 and 205 pounds.

“But over the course of 162 games, you lose weight,” he said. “So I wanted to come into this season with a little extra weight on me, so that when I start losing weight throughout the season, I’ll be ready for that.”

In the first week of camp, he weighed in at 222 pounds, expecting to lose 10 to 15 pounds during the season. He thanks Murphy, who is apparently quite the chef, for that weight gain.

As for the changeup, Steele wanted a bigger drop in velocity from his fastball. Last season, his changeup came in at 88 mph on average, about 5 mph slower than his fastball. He’s looking for closer to a 10-mph difference.

Steele started playing with changeup grips, burying the ball deeper into his hand.

The result has already caught the attention of Hendricks, who relies heavily on his own changeup.

“It’s just gonna be a game changer for him,” Hendricks told the Sun-Times. “His other stuff is elite. If you can just mix that in there, it’s gonna make his stuff even better.”

Steele’s slider and curveball are his go-to secondary pitches, generating whiffs 29.3 and 34.6 percent of the time last season, according to Baseball Savant. A slower changeup, Hendricks predicted, will throw off hitters’ timing even more.

Steele has yet to fully highlight his changeup in three spring starts. In this development stage, he wants to get ahead of hitters before mixing it in. Tuesday was not the day to do so.

“I was too busy trying to find the fastball,” he said with a smile.

Steele’s fastball command issues Tuesday led to four walks in less than three innings. With his pitch count climbing in the second inning, the Cubs took advantage of spring training rules, pulling him with two outs in the frame and then putting him back in for the third inning.

“I would have started flipping a lot more breaking balls or tried something a lot different,” Steele said of how he would have approached the game differently in the regular season. “But I really wanted to find that fastball command and hone it in.”

Spring training is, after all, a time to work through timing issues. Steele found himself forcing the fastball, his upper body getting ahead of his lower body.

Reset ahead of the third, Steele retired the side in order.

“I wanted to go back out there and fix what I was doing wrong,” Steele said. “And I was able to, so it was good to end on that note.”

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Billy Donovan wasn’t quite sure why Coby White has been so inconsistent in the shooting department lately.

The Bulls coach had his theories, he even offered up a few solutions, but as far as the exact issue with the third-year guard? That remained a head-scratcher.

White did have a huge impact in the loss in New Orleans last week, scoring 23 points on 9-for-15 shooting, as well as 5-for-8 from three-point range, but the two games previous to that showcase against the Pelicans, and the two since have been dismal.

The former North Carolina product scored just two points in the Toronto win, five against Milwaukee, and then followed up New Orleans by going scoreless in Cleveland and putting in just six against New York.

Even with his game against the Pelicans factored in, White entered the Wizards game shooting 14-for-42 (33%) from the field in his last five contests, as well as 6-for-23 (26%) from three.

“We want him to be aggressive, we want him to attack,” Donovan said. “In fairness to Coby a lot of his role this year has changed, and the things that he’s gone through physically. I give him credit in that he’s tried to keep his head in there even though things have changed for him, where maybe there hasn’t been that level of consistency for him just because game-to-game our team has changed. He’s the one that’s being impacted by that in a lot of ways.”

White has been thrown in and out of the starting lineup throughout the season, especially when DeMar DeRozan needed a breather and Zach LaVine was injured. The No. 7 overall pick from the 2019 NBA Draft has also seen his role change from rotation to rotation, sometimes playing with the ball in his hands and other times playing off the ball.

But this is also Year 3 for White, and considering the Bulls can start making a decision on his future with the organization this upcoming summer, it’s pretty much sink or swim these days.

Especially on nights like Monday, when the Bulls bench had very little going, getting outscored by New York’s bench 28-11.

“I’m not making excuses for him at all,” Donovan continued. “I think he’s made some positive strides from last year to this year defensively. And he’s still got to keep doing that. It’s important for him because I think when he gets his defense in there and we can get out in transition, the ball can find him. But we want him to be aggressive, want him to play downhill, want him to take his shots.”

Earn it

Donovan made it very clear on Tuesday that he won’t just be handing Patrick Williams minutes because he was a No. 4 pick overall. The forward has to earn them.

Williams has struggled since returning from left wrist surgery that cost him most of this season, and with everything at stake for the Bulls over the remaining six games, his coach wants to pick the right spots to play him. A lot of that depends on Williams.

“We’ve got to get him to be aggressive with his minutes,” Donovan said. “I’m just not going to put him out there for 25 or 30 minutes just for the sake of doing that. For the minutes he gets we need all-out Patrick.

“With young players there’s a very, very fine line of just giving a guy something without them earning it, and also not giving them the opportunity to grow, either. I’m not one of these guys that think you just take a young player and throw him out there.”

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MESA, Ariz. – Cubs reliever David Robertson could only smile when his locker mate Michael Hermosillo sent a breaking ball over the fence during live batting practice Tuesday.

“This is about as fun of an atmosphere as you can have,” Robertson said. “Facing your teammates, you just want to make sure you don’t hit one of them. I’m working on stuff, I’m not really too focused on strikeouts or walks or anything like that. If they put the ball in play, it’s good, it’s in the strike zone.”

Robertson threw to batters for the first time on Tuesday, returning to camp after the birth of his third child. He kept throwing back at home in Rhode Island, tossing a bullpen to a friend and even roping his neighbor into playing catch. The Cubs signed Robertson in the first week after the lockout ended.

“I know we’ve got eight days left ,” Robertson said Tuesday afternoon. “So, it’s crunch time. But I feel good physically. It’s a different camp, so I’m going to do the best I can to be ready.”

Robertson estimates he threw 25 pitches in a simulated inning on Tuesday. He’s expected to get into a game late this week.

“Trying to be ready for about 30 [pitches] in the game,” he said, “and then build up throughout the season.”

Robertson is one of the Cubs’ veteran additions with closing experience, along with Mychal Givens. But both spring additions got late starts to an already condensed spring training.

“I’ve done so many different roles, it doesn’t matter,” Robertson said when asked about the Cubs’ closer role. “I don’t really care. You can win games in the sixth and seventh innings, you can swing the momentum. If I’m asked to close, I’ll do my best. If I’m asked to throw the seventh, eighth inning, I’ll do that. If they want me to start one, I’ve done it before, I’ll do it again.”

Kelce on site

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce could be spotted around Cubs camp on Tuesday, another sign of baseball inching back to normalcy.

“That was really cool,” said Cubs left-hander Justin Steele, who started against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday. “I just said what’s up, introduced myself and stuff. I’ve had hima few times in fantasy football, so he’s pretty good at that.”

Did Steele tell Kelce that?

“No, I didn’t,” Steele said. “I’m sure he gets that a lot, so I was trying to lay it low.”

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PALM BEACH, Fla. — Last time Bears chairman George McCaskey attended the NFL’s annual meeting — three years ago, due to coronavirus-related cancellations — he was on top of the world. His team had skyrocketed to an NFC North title and believed it’d be competing for a championship.

It’s quite different this week at The Breakers, shortly removed from rebooting the organization by firing general manager Ryan Pace and coach Matt Nagy and replacing them with Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus.

The rebuild is off to a fairly quiet start, with more talent exiting Halas Hall than entering it. And McCaskey, who calls himself a fan, is doing his best to be patient. He has delegated football operations to Poles, who reports only to him and often tells him things that are prudent, but far from exhilarating.

“You have to balance your reactions emotionally… with what is necessary from a football perspective and as an executive of the team,” McCaskey said Tuesday. “Striking that balance is important, and Ryan’s been very patient with me.”

He credited Poles for showing fiscal “discipline” this offseason by resisting irresponsible spending.

Speaking of patience, McCaskey advises it when it comes to the frenzy of building a new stadium in Arlington Heights.

He values tradition, but hasn’t gotten ahead of himself on reckoning with the possibility of taking the Bears out of Soldier Field. He had little to say other than that the closing process on the 326-acre property could stretch into 2023.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell agreed that it’s too early for serious discussion about relocating, but saw the merit in that option.

“They’ve got a lot of work still to even complete the purchase of the property [and] they have a pretty lengthy lease still with the City of Chicago, but it’s important for teams to look long term,” Goodell said. “How are they gonna solve these issues? They don’t get solved overnight.

“The team’s looking to the long term: What’s best for the franchise, what’s best for the fan base? Stadiums are really important to that. What’s the condition [of Soldier Field] gonna be in 10 years? All of that’s important, and it’s important to continue that dialogue with the City of Chicago, also, at some point.”

The Bears’ lease runs through 2033. McCaskey has left open the possibility of working something out to stay at Soldier Field, but president Ted Phillips said in January, “Our focus for long-term development is exclusively on that property at Arlington Park.”

Other highlights from McCaskey’s seaside chat:

— When asked how long it’ll take the Bears to become a contender, he said, “The goal every year is to win a Super Bowl,” and pointed to the Bengals’ surprising run last season as cause for optimism.

— He was on board with trading star Khalil Mack for draft picks.

“Khalil is a great player and showed on many occasions for us how he can take over a game,” McCaskey said. “[Poles] explained to me the reasons why he thought the Bears should do it, and it made sense to me.”

— McCaskey said coach Brian Flores’ lawsuit against the league and three teams for racial discrimination didn’t impact the Bears’ decision to pass on him.

“We had a Zoom interview with Brian; We thought it went very well,” he said. “In the end, Ryan decided to go with another candidate.”

— His mother, Bears owner Virginia McCaskey, didn’t travel to Palm Beach, but is doing well after a medical issue in January that George described as “resolved.”

He added, “We’re all very grateful that she’s back to her regular routine, but she didn’t feel up to making the trip. She really feels bad about it, No. 1, because she really likes this place and, No. 2, didn’t have the opportunity to get to know Ryan and Katie [Poles] and Matt and Kelly [Eberflus] and their families a little bit better.”

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Out of Space is landing back on earth this summer.

The outdoor music festival returns for its fifth year, Aug. 4-7 at Canal Shores Golf Course (130 Central Street) in Evanston. Gates open at 5 p.m. and the music starts at 7 p.m. for all concerts.

The lineup for the festival includes:

Aug 4: Jenny Lewis & Trampled By Turtles

Aug 5: Elvis Costello & The Imposters, with Nick Lowe & Los Straitjackets and Nicole Atkins

Aug 6: Lucinda Williams & Waxahatchee, with Liam Kazar

Aug 7: Buddy Guy, with Todd Park Mohr of Big Head Todd & The Monsters, and Bobby Rush

The festival also features food and drink from local purveyors and art installations. Out of Space is the outdoor arm of Evanston SPACE.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. April 1. Visit outofspaceconcerts.com.

NOTE: The festival returns for its second incarnation on Sept 1-4 at Temperance Beer Co. (2000 Dempster) in Evanston. The lineup and ticket onsale for the September celebration will be announced at a later date.

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It took Kevin Lankinen three tries to break his stick over the post after allowing the Sabres’ game-winning goal Monday.

That entire escapade, starting with the ridiculous goal itself, sums up Lankinen’s Blackhawks season quite accurately. Nothing has come easily, and almost nothing has gone well.

Through 20 appearances and 18 starts, Lankinen is 4-9-5 with a 3.63 goals-against average and .886 save percentage. He ranks 65th and tied for 68th, respectively, in those two categories among 72 goalies league-wide.

In terms of goals saved above average — a more holistic stat comparing actual goals allowed to expected goals allowed — Lankinen’s minus-13.8 mark ranks 69th, ahead of only Detroit’s Thomas Greiss, Columbus’ Joonas Korpisalo and Seattle’s Philipp Grubauer.

Of course, just a few days ago, Lankinen seemed to be on an upward trajectory after finally reclaiming the Hawks’ starting goalie role.

He stopped 31 of 33 shots on March 19 against the Wild (shortly before the Marc-Andre Fleury trade), then 27 of 29 shots last Wednesday against the Ducks (right after the Fleury trade), then 17 of 17 shots through the first two periods Saturday against the Golden Knights.

“I see this as a big opportunity for myself,” he said after the Ducks game, adding that getting back into a regular starting rhythm would help.

“I wanted to be ‘The Guy.’ Obviously we had [Fleury] and the situation was a little different, but I’ve been working extremely hard and I think this is my time to shine. I’m going to make the most out of it.”

Considering all he endured the first five months of this season, missing extended time with both COVID-19 and a hand injury while playing only sporadically in Fleury’s shadow even when healthy, his poor numbers were somewhat forgivable.

A strong finish to this season would’ve lent support to the idea he just needs stability in order to thrive. His rookie-year breakout as a regular starter was one of the Hawks’ brightest moments of 2021, after all.

With 15 games left on the schedule, most of which he’s forecasted to start, it’s still possible he could prove that. But the briefness of his surge and his truly disastrous last four periods of goaltending — starting with the third period Saturday and continuing through Monday — are a concerning sign.

Facing unrestricted free agency this summer, Lankinen’s future with the Hawks rests on thin ice.

He has now allowed 11 goals on his last 54 shots faced. Some of those goals have been unlucky, but he has been lucky not to allow others, too — such as a wraparound early in the third period Monday that Seth Jones barely cut off, for instance.

His rebound control has been problematic and increasingly so. His March 10 start against the Bruins represented a particularly awful night of rebound control.

And his positioning has become suspect, too. Especially during scramble sequences or when the puck angle changes quickly, his movement is sloppy and overly aggressive, and he often loses his crease.

The aforementioned Sabres’ winner Monday was unlucky in one sense, as the broken-stick shot caromed off the end-boards at the perfect angle. But that wouldn’t have mattered had Lankinen not gotten stranded so far out of the crease and needed to slide back so recklessly.

The worst part of Lankinen’s struggles this season is that they’ve essentially overwritten all of his success from last season. His minus-13.8 GSAA has dwarfed his plus-1.9 GSAA from 2021. His career save percentage has fallen from .909 to .901.

When Hawks general manager Kyle Davidson looks this summer at the Hawks’ cloudy goaltending situation and maps out a plan moving forward, Lankinen probably won’t be included in it — barring a miraculous April run or a very explicit tanking directive for next season.

That’s fair, because he hasn’t shown he should be. But considering how promising his career once looked, it’s also a shame.

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It’s time for White Sox and Cubs fans to download a new app or bookmark a new website to watch their teams on some Friday nights.

MLB and Apple released the schedule for the first 12 weeks of “Friday Night Baseball.”

Apple and Major League Baseball announced earlier this month that Apple TV+ will carry a weekly doubleheader on Friday nights. Games will initially be available without the need for an Apple TV+ subscription.

Three White Sox games will be featured. The Cubs will appear twice.

The broadcasts on Apple TV+ will include pregame and postgame shows and will not be subject to local broadcast blackout restrictions.

The White Sox’ “Friday Night Baseball” schedule will be:

April 15: Tampa Bay Rays at White Sox, 6 p.m.

May 6: White Sox at Boston Red Sox, 6 p.m.

June 17: White Sox at Houston Astros, 7 p.m.

The Cubs’ schedule will be:

May 13: Cubs at Arizona Diamondbacks, 8:30 p.m.

June 24: Cubs at St. Louis Cardinals, 7 p.m.

Games can be seen on the Apple TV+ app or at tv.apple.com.

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