Justin Steele’s Rehabilitation Journey with the Cubs

Left-hander Justin Steele has been eagerly anticipating the Chicago Cubs series in Arizona. Steele’s return journey to the Cubs following elbow surgery in April 2025 faced a setback due to a flexor strain, delaying his rehabilitation significantly. During the Cubs’ three-game series against the Diamondbacks, Steele is present as he progresses towards resuming his major league career. His recovery after the first live batting practice last week went well, and he has been engaging in daily catch practice without issues.

Steele is slated to conduct live batting practice sessions at the team’s facility in Mesa on Tuesday and Friday, potentially leading to the commencement of a rehab assignment. “It’s been a long road and feels really good to get towards the end of that tunnel,” Steele stated Monday. He expressed his eagerness to return and contribute to the team after observing their performance.

Steele is optimistic about pitching for the Cubs this season. Following the setback, discussions led to a decision for Steele to return in a bullpen role, as there wasn’t sufficient time to develop him as a starter. “I wasn’t going to have enough time to get stretched out to be a starter in an impactful way. So we just leaned towards the bullpen role and was able to build up quick,” Steele explained.

In his previous outing, Steele pitched against the Los Angeles Dodgers at the Tokyo Dome on March 19, 2025. Steele anticipates a lengthy rehab stint, requiring him to build up beyond 2-3 innings, which manager Craig Counsell reinforced Monday. Counsell emphasized the necessity of pitching in rehab games before returning to the majors: “I think we need to get him pitching in (rehab) games first — I don’t want to skip steps here, we’re not going to skip steps.”

Despite hopes for Steele’s availability in late September and the postseason, the Cubs aren’t yet confident in counting on Steele, 31, for that timeframe. The prospect of Steele’s presence, particularly in the postseason, is intriguing, contingent on his rehab performance. Steele noted, “It’s me probably pushing the envelope a little too much just trying to get back as fast as possible, trying to skip steps and stuff, but everything’s been going good this go around.”

His excitement is palpable, with Steele feeling better during this recovery phase than previous ones. Though the Cubs aim to proceed cautiously, they envision Steele fulfilling a reliever role. Meanwhile, right-hander Ben Brown, dealing with a stress reaction in his neck, is ahead of Steele in returning. Brown is also set for live batting practice and will fly back to Chicago following positive progress, potentially leading to his rehab assignment.