PITTSBURGH – With the clock ticking on the regular season, and Cubs right fielder Kyle Tucker still not ready to return from the injured list with a nagging calf strain, he left Pittsburgh for Tampa on Wednesday morning to try a new approach.
Tucker, accompanied by a member of the Cubs medical staff, went to seek additional treatment at Optimal Performance & Physical Therapies. There, he’ll be working with Jeremy Maddox, a doctor of physical therapy, the Cubs said.
It’s a group Tucker has worked with in the offseason, as well as last year when he fractured his right shin while with the Astros, Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Wednesday.
“We’re aligned with Kyle in [that] this is the best way for him to make some improvements,” Counsell said. “Unfortunately, we plateaued and we weren’t making progress, and that’s frustrating for Kyle.”
Counsell said seeking outside help was Tucker’s idea, and the Cubs were on board because of that lack of progress in recent treatment, and the success he had with Optimal Performance & Physical Therapies last year.
Tucker was sidelined by the shin injury for three months. He returned in early September and posted a 1.041 OPS the rest of the regular season.
“We’re hoping for the same success and hoping to get him back on the field,” Counsell said.
Tucker is scheduled to rejoin the team in Chicago next week, when teh Cubs return for their final homestand of the season.
Tucker’s calf injury has lingered far longer than expected. The Cubs initially expected him to avoid an IL stint after he left the Cubs’ game against the Braves on Sept. 2 with a tight calf.
Two weeks later, though eligible to return from the IL, he still was symptomatic. There’s only a week and a half left in the regular season.
“We’re concerned because he’s not responding,” Counsell said when asked if Tucker’s season was in doubt. “We’re optimistic that he will play. But we are at the point where the days are running out. And it’s important that he plays in regular season games. … That’s why you’re willing to go to this extra step here to try something.”
Suzuki returns
Cubs right fielder Seiya Suzuki returned to the lineup Wednesday, after being sidelined by illness for five games. Counsell said before the game that the team would be monitoring Suzuki’s energy levels throughout the day.
Batting fifth in the order, Suzuki reached base once in four plate appearances, when he was hit by a pitch in the first inning. But he also made hard contact on a pair of fly outs before rookie Kevin Alcántara replaced him in right field in the bottom of the sixth inning.