Tepera targeting Friday vs. Cardinals for return originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Cubs are eyeing Friday against the Cardinals for reliever Ryan Tepera’s return from the 10-day injures list.
Tepera, who went on the IL last week with a left calf strain, threw live batting practice to Patrick Wisdom on Tuesday, according to Cubs manager David Ross.
“Everything looked good, throwing strikes, felt good,” Ross said. “All the feedback was great. So, he should be ready for Friday.”
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
On Wednesday, the Cubs will assess Tepera’s recovery from Tuesday’s live session before fully committing to a return date.
The setup man went on a streak of 18 scoreless outings from mid-May through mid-June, making him an integral part of the Cubs’ “Big Three” at the back end of the bullpen. But in Tepera’s last two outings, he gave up six runs combined in one inning.
“Just looks like he's working really hard right now,” Ross said last week in Milwaukee, “and I don't know if that's fatigue or just working through injuries. So, it made a lot of sense on a lot of levels to IL him, give him a little bit of a breath, and get him back hopefully in a short time.”
Click here to follow the Cubs Talk Podcast.
