Holiday Weekend Catch-Up: Injury Issues, Verlander Drama, Waiver Moves, More

The Cubs had a mixed long weekend, starting with a couple wins, ending with a couple losses, and getting good and bad news on the injury front.

Skim the headlines if you missed anything …

Friday, September 1

  • The Cubs had a fantastic August, and a more potent one than they’ve seen in 80+ years.
  • Unfortunately, we learned that Addison Russell’s plantar fasciitis flareup is going to cost him another three weeks.
  • Among Friday’s Bullets, Justin Verlander was hoping to come to the Cubs.
  • The Brewers got mad at the Cubs again for a scheduling issue.
  • A flurry of September 1 roster moves for the Cubs, including the arrival of Dillon Maples.
  • Albert Almora doesn’t get a ton of attention these days, but he crushes lefties and makes great catches.
  • The Cubs were in on Justin Verlander at the waiver trade deadline, but they weren’t going to spend significant prospects to get him.
  • The Cubs beat the Braves 2-0, and one of those two runs came when Javy Baez scored from second base on a swinging bunt. It was glorious.
  • Kyle Schwarber also made a great catch in the game … followed by a hilarious roll.
  • Saturday, September 2

  • Considering John Lackey as a playoff starter, among other things in Saturday’s Bullets.
  • Jed Hoyer got into a range of topics, including Jake Arrieta’s free agency and injury issues.
  • The Cubs held on for a wild 14-12 win over the Braves.
  • Sunday, September 3

  • Arizona and Eugene made their league’s playoffs.
  • Anthony Rizzo is making Cubs history, so that’s fun.
  • The Cubs couldn’t pull off the sweep against the Braves, and Javy Baez left early after sliding into a knee.
  • The Cubs headed out for the road trip donning football jerseys, and it was pretty great.
  • Monday, September 4

  • The Brewers deserve some credit, I’m sorry to say.
  • Ian Happ has gone homer crazy this year.
  • Apparently Javy Baez is dealing with some minor left thumb soreness, even though his eye/head issue was not enough to keep him out of the lineup.
  • Speaking of that, being without Baez leaves nothing but scary scenarios for the Cubs.
  • Jake Arrieta won NL Pitcher of the Month honors for August, which of course portended doom.
  • Taylor Davis and his trademark stare is coming up to the Cubs.
  • As part of that call-up, though, the Cubs lost outfielder Jacob Hannemann on waivers to the Mariners.
  • The Cubs also lost lefty Jack Leathersich on waivers to the Pirates.
  • Jake Arrieta left Monday’s game very early after dealing with a scary-looking leg issue.
  • The Cubs wound up getting blown out by the Pirates in the game, but at least the news after the game was tentatively positive on Arrieta – it *might* not be awful.
  • written by

    Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

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