Chicago Cubs right fielder Kyle Tucker officially landed on the injured list on Tuesday due to a lingering calf issue.
Tucker was placed on the IL retroactively to Sept. 6 due to the left calf injury, which has kept him sidelined for a week now. suddenly last Tuesday, and it was initially unclear what led to his departure in the moment. Tucker revealed after the game that he had been dealing with soreness in his calf for a couple of days.
“It kind of felt like a little soreness the last couple of days, or whatever,” Tucker . … “I tried to do some treatment so I could get ahead of it earlier, before the game.
“Going into the game, it felt all right. And then, just kind of, as the game went, it just got a little more sore, or tight. Eventually I was just like I’d rather not try and test this much further and make it any more than it really is.”
With the IL stint, Tucker will be eligible to return now on Sept. 16 for a matchup against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Cubs called up Moisés Ballesteros to take Tucker’s place in the meantime.
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Tucker currently holds a .270 batting average with 22 home runs and 73 RBI this season, his first with the Cubs. He made his fourth straight All-Star Game appearance in July, and he’s going to be a key piece for the Cubs during this final stretch of the season.
The Cubs enter Tuesday’s matchup with the Atlanta Braves with an 81-63 record. That has them in second in the NL Central standings, 7.5 games back from the Milwaukee Brewers. They are leading the NL wild-card race, however, which would send the team back into the postseason for the first time since 2020. If Tucker is able to return on Sept. 16, he’ll be able to play in the Cubs’ final 12 games of the regular season.