15-Day IL
Injury Elbow
Est. Return 9/20/2024
2024 Stats
W-L
5-5
ERA
3.09
WHIP
1.09
K
131
SV
0
Rest-of-Season Projections
2024 Fantasy Outlook
There was a lot to like with Steele coming into the 2023 season as a pitcher who kept the ball in the yard, threw a lot of strikes and generated a fair number of whiffs. Our 2023 outlook even said he could be in store for a nice fantasy season, but who saw him doubling his career win total and continuing the positive peripheral growth for a third consecutive season? If not for Blake Snell's amazing run or all of Spencer Strider's strikeouts and wins, Steele could have garnered more supporters for a Cy Young argument with the season he had. So what if he does not have the velocity of other pitchers when he can match results with the best of them? The amazing part is he does this using two pitches 97% of the time, which does leave him exposed to the third-time-through penalty. He may never be a 200-inning arm, but Steele is a pitcher on the rise approaching frontline status. Read Past Outlooks
Could return from IL soon
Steele (elbow) told reporters after his bullpen session Saturday that he expects to be activated off the 15-day injured list during the Cubs' upcoming homestand, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
Steele landed on the 15-day injured list Sept. 4 due to left elbow tendinitis. He threw a couple of bullpen sessions after some rest, and the 29-year-old southpaw appears to be nearing a return without the need for a rehab assignment. The earliest Steele can be activated off the IL is Sept. 18, which would be the series finale against the Athletics, though the Cubs could wait until the following series against the Nationals to activate Steele. He has a 5-5 record over 22 starts this season with a 3.09 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 131:34 K:BB across 128 innings.
Steele landed on the 15-day injured list Sept. 4 due to left elbow tendinitis. He threw a couple of bullpen sessions after some rest, and the 29-year-old southpaw appears to be nearing a return without the need for a rehab assignment. The earliest Steele can be activated off the IL is Sept. 18, which would be the series finale against the Athletics, though the Cubs could wait until the following series against the Nationals to activate Steele. He has a 5-5 record over 22 starts this season with a 3.09 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 131:34 K:BB across 128 innings.
Pitching Stats
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2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
88
Last 10 Games
87
Last 5 Games
85
How many pitches does Justin Steele generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Justin Steele generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-5%
BAA vs LHP
2024
-26%
BAA vs LHP
| BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2022vs Left | .230 | 106 | 29 | 73 | 8 | |||
| Since 2022vs Right | .242 | 327 | 91 | 310 | 25 | |||
| 2024vs Left | .170 | 30 | 7 | 15 | 1 | |||
| 2024vs Right | .229 | 101 | 27 | 90 | 10 | |||
| 2023vs Left | .267 | 42 | 8 | 35 | 6 | |||
| 2023vs Right | .247 | 134 | 28 | 132 | 8 | |||
| 2022vs Left | .232 | 34 | 14 | 23 | 1 | |||
| 2022vs Right | .248 | 92 | 36 | 88 | 7 | |||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | |||||||
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-14%
ERA at Home
2024
-19%
ERA on Road
| ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2022Home | 2.89 | 1.19 | 236.1 | 9.1 | 2.6 | ||||
| Since 2022Away | 3.38 | 1.21 | 184.0 | 9.5 | 2.5 | ||||
| 2024Home | 3.43 | 1.11 | 63.0 | 9.0 | 2.7 | ||||
| 2024Away | 2.77 | 1.06 | 65.0 | 9.4 | 2.1 | ||||
| 2023Home | 2.65 | 1.19 | 102.0 | 9.3 | 1.9 | ||||
| 2023Away | 3.66 | 1.15 | 71.1 | 9.0 | 1.9 | ||||
| 2022Home | 2.78 | 1.26 | 71.1 | 8.8 | 3.5 | ||||
| 2022Away | 3.78 | 1.49 | 47.2 | 10.6 | 4.2 | ||||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | ||||||||
Stat Review
How does Justin Steele compare to other starting pitchers?
This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
3.85K/9
9.2BB/9
2.4HR/9
0.8Fastball
91.7 mphERA
3.09WHIP
1.09BABIP
.290GB/FB
1.26Left On Base
70.4%Exit Velocity
80.9 mphBarrels/BBE
2.8%Spin Rate
2486 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
21.5%Swinging Strike
10.9%Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2022
2016
Steele took a big step forward in 2022 and could be emerging as a staple of Chicago's rotation in the coming years. The lefty made 24 starts and posted a 3.18 ERA and 126 strikeouts across 119 innings. That ERA was supported by a 3.20 FIP, so Steele's production seems sustainable. His last appearance came in late August, however, as a back issue flared up and the Cubs decided not to push him when they had little to play for. That will probably benefit Steele heading into 2023, as he should be healthy to begin the season. Marcus Stroman should continue to lead the rotation followed by Hendricks, though the latter is dealing with a shoulder injury over the offseason. That leaves Steele as the No. 3 starter with the potential to move up. As a southpaw who can miss bats, Steele could be in store for a nice fantasy season, particularly if he can build on his career-best workload from 2022.
More Fantasy News
Throws off mound
Steele (elbow) threw a bullpen session Wednesday, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
ANALYSIS
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Bullpen coming soon
The Cubs are hopeful Steele will be cleared to throw a bullpen session at some point during the current road trip, which runs until Sunday in Colorado, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
ANALYSIS
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Lands on injured list
The Cubs placed Steele on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with left elbow tendinitis, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
ANALYSIS
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MRI shows elbow inflammation
Steele has been diagnosed with left elbow inflammation following an MRI, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports.
ANALYSIS
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Scratched from Tuesday's start
Steele will not start Tuesday's game against the Pirates after experiencing elbow soreness, Kyle Williams of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
ANALYSIS
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Earning 2022 rotation spot?
Steele pitched seven scoreless innings in a win Thursday and could be solidifying his spot in next season's rotation.
ANALYSIS
The Cubs have plenty of question marks behind ace Kyle Hendricks, and Steele has flashed some potential, though he's also had his share of rough outings. The lefty at least should have a chance at earning a rotation spot heading into next season depending on what the team does in free agency.
The Cubs have plenty of question marks behind ace Kyle Hendricks, and Steele has flashed some potential, though he's also had his share of rough outings. The lefty at least should have a chance at earning a rotation spot heading into next season depending on what the team does in free agency.