Catcher Willson Contreras has been ramping up his baseball activities over the last week and is inching closer to making his return. Contreras went on the 10-day injured list on Aug. 12 with a right knee sprain and has slowly been working his way back into game shape.
The Cubs’ catcher went through another full day of baseball activities before Friday’s game against the White Sox. Contreras has checked almost all the boxes the Cubs need to see before he ultimately makes his return.
He’ll likely head for Triple-A Iowa in the coming days to get a few games under his belt before coming back.
“Ran him through a full day of stuff today. I think he’s about ready,” manager David Ross said. “I think he wants a couple of at-bats, so we’ll probably get him on a rehab assignment and see how that goes. Play it day-to-day, but hopefully soon.
Right-hander Adbert Alzolay was back with the team on Friday after going on a rehab assignment in Iowa, throwing two innings in Des Moines on Wednesday. Alzolay, who has been on the IL since Aug. 14 with a left hamstring strain, will likely be activated in the coming days.
The Cubs are still taking things slow with Nico Hoerner, who has been out since July 29 with a right oblique strain. After Hoerner felt tension in the oblique during a rehab start last week, the team shut him down for a few days to allow that discomfort to subside.
Bote scratched with ankle sprain
Infielder David Bote was scratched from Friday’s game against the White Sox with a right ankle sprain. Bote was taken out of the lineup about an hour before first pitch after injuring the ankle during pregame batting practice.
He left the field under the watch of head athletic trainer PJ Mainville, walking with a noticeable limp as he made his way to the clubhouse.
Matt Duffy was originally in the lineup at third base, but shifted to second base after the injury. Patrick Wisdom moved to third base and Ian Happ started in left field after not originally being in the lineup.
He said it
Ross on managing as long as Tony LaRussa: “He’s a Hall of Famer. So it’s something that he obviously loves and that he’s been around a lot of winning. So the more you win, you definitely do definitely love coming to work every single day and I think the challenge is to the challenge of being, you know, and at this point in his career and trying to continue to do that, I think it’s I’m sure exciting for him and fun. I shouldn’t say no, because like if I had his career, I’d probably be chomping at the bit.
