The Chicago Cubs made a big-time acquisition in the offseason when they traded away Owen Caissie to the Miami Marlins for Edward Cabrera.
Unfortunately for Cabrera and the Cubs, injuries and inconsistency with walks and strikeouts have limited his ceiling this season.
The 28-year-old dealt with a blister and cramping earlier in the season, and now, on Wednesday, he landed on the 15-day IL after straining his hamstring in his start against the New York Mets on Tuesday.
Cabrera was injured in the fifth inning when he ran to cover first base on a groundball in between second baseman Nico Hoerner and first baseman Michael Busch. Hoerner made a slick sliding stop, but his throw forced Cabrera to stretch a bit, and the pitcher was only able to walk about three steps before falling in pain and grabbing at his left hamstring.
The righty was eventually carted and driven off the field.
When manager Craig Counsell saw what happened, all he could do is put his head down in disbelief. Cabrera adds to the growing list of injured Cubs' starting pitchers, joining Cade Horton (out for season), Justin Steele (60-day IL), Jameson Taillon (15-day IL), and Ben Brown (15-day IL). Shota Imanaga and Matthew Boyd have also missed time this year, though both are now healthy.
The former Marlin has an electric fastball and a nasty changeup that touches 95 miles per hour, but he's never really been able to put it all together. In 14 starts for Chicago this year, Cabrera has a 5.10 ERA, 21.0% strikeout rate, and a 9.4% walk rate. His 11.8% barrel rate allowed is towards the bottom of MLB.
In response to his injury, the Cubs added right-handers Gavin Hollowell and Vince Velasquez to their active roster.
When Could Edward Cabrera Return?
Cabrera is without a timetable for return, but the 15-day IL designation shows that there's potential that he's out for a while. A Grade 2 hamstring strain typically holds athletes out for 4-8 weeks, while a Grade 3 strain could take a few months to recover from.
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