Chicago Cubs left-hander Justin Steele is developing a knack for navigating out of stressful moments.
His time in the Cubs bullpen this year gave him much-needed big-league experience in working through tough spots. The organization believed the transition from reliever to starter would be valuable for a variety of reasons, including learning to handle major-league hitters and infusing Steele with confidence that he can be successful at this level.
Steele’s ability to escape jams came in handy again Monday night against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. He stranded six runners through the first three innings.
He got a flyout and strikeout to leave runners on first and second in the first, while his defense helped him avoid a potentially big inning in the second. Steele smoothly scooped Wade Miley’s sacrifice bunt and in the same motion tossed the ball with his glove to catcher Robinson Chirinos, who easily tagged out Tyler Naquin at home to keep it scoreless. Steele ended the inning with a popout.
Steele again found himself in trouble after back-to-back singles to open the third put runners on the corners. And he again deftly worked around it, striking out the next two hitters and inducing a flyout.
Cubs manager David Ross credited Steele for staying aggressive in those spots, mixing his pitches and not deviating from the game plan.
“Those situations, you have to be a little finer with your pitches, locate a little bit better,” Steele said. “Just some gritty moments. You kind of have to bite down and get after it.
“I’m not going to say I like those moments, but I like getting out of those moments,” he added with a laugh. “It feels good.”
Eventually, though, Steele put himself in a bad spot one too many times against a deep Reds lineup. He left a 2-2 fastball over the middle of the plate, where National League Rookie of the Year contender Jonathan India smacked it for a two-run homer in the fourth.
Those were the lone runs Steele allowed in his four-inning start, but the Cubs bullpen couldn’t keep it close, surrendering 12 runs — including eight in the seventh — in a 14-5 loss to the Reds.
The loss extended the Cubs losing streak to a season-high 12 games. The last time they had a losing streak that long was 2012 (also 12). The franchise record is 14 straight losses set in 1997.
“I’m always trying to get myself better for the team,” Steele said. “I’m going to go out there and do everything that I can do to win ballgames … and I’m going to compete my tail off every time. It doesn’t matter what the situation is, doesn’t matter what our record is. I don’t really pay attention to those things — whenever I have the rock, I’m going to go out there and compete.”
Steele needs to reduce the amount of traffic on the bases; three Reds baserunners reached on walks. He has given the Cubs competitive performances in his first two big-league starts, though, despite the offense failing to capitalize in either game.
“I think coming back to this environment, it probably made him extremely hungry down in the minor leagues to get his pitch count up and get back here and show what he can do and compete and have that confidence,” Ross said before the game. “He’s had a lot of success at this level.”
Steele was pleased with the effectiveness of his slider against the Reds after hot, humid conditions affected his grip on the pitch during his first start. He got four swings and misses with his slider, part of 13 whiffs he generated on 82 pitches — significant improvement after recording only four in 70 pitches over five innings versus the Milwaukee Brewers last week.
It was an encouraging development for the southpaw, who flashed a 97 mph fastball that averaged 94.
“Anytime you have a pitch work, it’s going to make your other pitches better because it’s going to get the timing off on the other pitches,” Steele said. “I was very pleased with my slider today, threw some good curveballs as well. But I would say I had a little more feel on my slider, so I was throwing it a little bit more.”
The Cubs’ path to a quick turnaround next year, in both the talent level on their big-league roster and their record, relies in part on what their rotation looks like. Steele, Adbert Alzolay and Keegan Thompson figure to factor into that group. Alzolay, on the injured list with a left hamstring strain, played catch with fellow banged-up teammate Willson Contreras (right knee sprain) in the outfield at Great American Ball Park before batting practice.
While the Cubs want to manage Alzolay’s workload down the stretch, the injury doesn’t sound like a reason for the team to shut him down for the rest of the season.
“The goal is to get as much experience as you can,” Ross said. “Adbert is growing (into) definitely a big part of this group. He’s had some really good outings and some not so good. He’s got to continue to work toward consistency. The more he can come out here and compete for us, the better.”
The Cubs will have money in the offseason to pursue free-agent starting pitching options to pair with veteran Kyle Hendricks or bolster depth that features Alec Mills and the young trio. Notable impending free agents include Kevin Gausman, Jon Gray, Zack Greinke, Clayton Kershaw, Marcus Stroman, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander.
Ross didn’t want to speculate on the route the Cubs might take to improve the rotation. He wants to focus on getting through the season and evaluating what they have. There are some attributes he considers valuable in starters.
“Veterans with experience that have success, I think if you want to be a championship-caliber team, you have to have some form of a No. 1,” Ross said. “Every contending team I’ve been on has some horses, so I think we’ve got a guy (in Hendricks) that’s definitely proven. I think you can add another big-time arm.
“We have to find out what we have here first and see how that kind of fits in the mix.”
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