Anthony Rizzo missed last night and, given certain game situations where he wasn’t used, was pretty clearly unavailable for even pinch-hitting duty.
He got treatment for his back before the game, but unfortunately, this was the word after the game:
When asked how Rizzo came out of treatment in pregame Ross just said, "He's pretty sore." He repeated that and added nothing else. Feels pretty telling. Been surprised before, but hard to see him playing this series.
— Sahadev Sharma (@sahadevsharma) June 29, 2021
You know how that exchange looks. A manager is pressed for more info on an injury, is steadfast in not giving it. When a guy is a possibility for a quick return, that just doesn’t happen. You can safely presume Rizzo is out for at least tonight’s game, and maybe more.
You know the drill now: there is no position player on the 40-man roster who could come up to take Rizzo’s place if the Cubs put him on the Injured List (Double-A prospect Christopher Morel is literally the only healthy position guy on the 40-man who isn’t with the big league team). There have just been too many simultaneous injuries this year, coupled with a lack of positional prospects who are near big-league-ready. So the Cubs could either create space for a new player via a 40-man move, or they could bring up another pitcher for Rizzo. Or, as they did last time with his back, they could just play a man down.
The hope is that Rizzo’s back isn’t bad enough to warrant an IL stint in any case, but if you were hoping David Ross would provide a positive update after the game, it did not come.