The Cubs placed left-handed reliever Brian Duensing on the 10-day disabled list with left shoulder fatigue, the team announced Sunday. There’s no word yet on how long they expect to be without the reliever. In a corresponding move, right-handed reliever Dillon Maples was recalled from Triple-A Iowa.
It’s been a disappointing year for Duensing so far. In his first 35 appearances, the 35-year-old reliever paired a 6.92 ERA with an equally abysmal 6.9 BB/9 and 5.9 SO/9 through 26 innings. Whether the fatigue he’s experiencing is the symptom of a more serious issue has not been determined, but the Cubs are undoubtedly looking for the lefty to duplicate some of the career-high totals he posted in 2017.
Maples, 26, placed no. 12 in the Cubs’ farm system at the start of the season and has largely lived up to that ranking with a 3.20 ERA, 8.5 BB/9 and ridiculous 14.9 SO/9 across 25 1/3 innings. While scouts have praised his advanced pitch arsenal, the righty hasn’t yet paired his overpowering stuff with any sense of control -- in two months at Triple-A Iowa, he struck out 42 of 112 batters, then tempered that total with 24 walks. It’s not yet clear if he’ll be able to overcome those issues on a major league platform; during his season debut last month, he pitched two scoreless frames, allowing two walks and striking out three of eight batters.
