When he was optioned down to the alternate site last week, we knew that Adbert Alzolay wasn’t getting bumped because of poor performance. He was optioned out right after throwing five dominant innings (and a sixth that went a little sideways) as a vehicle to manage his innings this year, to get a fresh arm up, and to avoid Shelby Miller walking.
That is to say, we also knew Alzolay would be coming back soon enough, and after presumably starting this past weekend at the alt site, Alzolay kinda stays close to a regular schedule in returning to the Cubs: David Ross just said Alzolay will be back up and starting Saturday for the Cubs.
Based on the schedule, it seems likely Alzolay will be up for a few starts, and then might get shuffled back down for rest/management when there’s a flurry of off-days, and then right back up after another stretch (then at Triple-A). Having that fourth option year available could wind up the perfect way to keep Alzolay “in the rotation all year” without actually pushing his big league innings too aggressively.
Zach Davies goes tonight against the Mets, followed by Trevor Williams to finish the series on Thursday. Kyle Hendricks will presumably open the Brewers series on Friday, with Alzolay – whose great outing came against those same Brewers – going on Saturday.