I am not going to get my *own* hopes up on this front, but I won’t begrudge a baller for letting his own hopes get up, especially when it’s a guy who has previously shown a propensity to heal well.
Pedro Strop, on the of the Cubs’ most important relievers, is on the shelf with a “moderate” hamstring strain. Even a mild strain would take a pitcher out for upwards of two to three weeks, so the math on a moderate strain took Strop out for the rest of the regular season.
Or so the nay-sayers say:
#Cubs Strop says he hopes to be able to pitch in the last two regular season games. He's in AZ with the team
— Carrie Muskat (@CarrieMuskat) September 18, 2018
That would be an incredibly fast return – just two weeks – for Strop, but it would also be really, really, really excellent to know how he looks before the playoffs start. You’ll take him along for the playoff roster in any case if he’s healthy, but dang, it would be great to have seen him flash his usually velocity and stuff before that.
Like I said at the top: I am not going to PRESUME Strop returns in the regular season. I am not even going to HOPE for it. But I will let myself smile just a little at his own hope. That’s a start.