Lefty Caleb Thielbar the latest Chicago Cubs reliever to land on the IL — and Nicky Lopez is back
LOS ANGELES — The injuries keep coming in the Chicago Cubs bullpen. Veteran lefty Caleb Thielbar is the latest Cubs reliever to land on the injured list, going on the 15-day IL with a left hamstring strain before Friday’s 6-4 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the opener of a six-game trip. It was the Cubs’ 10th straight victory.
The Cubs called up right-hander Vince Velasquez from Triple-A ...
LOS ANGELES — The injuries keep coming in the Chicago Cubs bullpen. Veteran lefty Caleb Thielbar is the latest Cubs reliever to land on the injured list, going on the 15-day IL with a left hamstring strain before Friday’s 6-4 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the opener of a six-game trip. It was the Cubs’ 10th straight victory.
The Cubs called up right-hander Vince Velasquez from Triple-A Iowa and moved reliever Porter Hodge (Tommy John surgery) to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man roster spot for Velasquez. They also added infielder Nicky Lopez to the 40-man roster after acquiring him from the Colorado Rockies on Thursday and designated infielder Scott Kingery for assignment. This marks the third time in the last five years Thielbar, 39, has gone on the IL because of this same injury to his left hamstring, which sidelined him for 16 days in 2022 and 18 days in 2024.
Manager Craig Counsell described this hamstring strain as mild, explaining Thielbar said this is a less-severe version of the ailment. The Cubs will know more about Thielbar’s timeline to return as they get through the week. “We’re hoping we can be fairly close to the minimum (15 days) here,” Counsell said before the series opener at Dodger Stadium.