In the top of the fourth inning against the Giants on Friday afternoon, Cubs second baseman Nick Madrigal was replaced by Zach McKinstry.
The Cubs haven’t released a statement as to why just yet, but Madrigal has spent time on the IL this season with a strained groin and lower back tightness. He also tore his hamstring and required surgery on it last season. Your hope is that this is just an EXTREME bit of caution for a guy who’s dealt with so many injuries in the past.
I’ll update this post when we learn more.
But in the meantime, this is tough timing and luck for Madrigal, who has not had a very successful first season in Chicago. Even as things did look up for a few weeks upon his return from the IL, I had questions about his underlying peripherals. And since I wrote that article, he’s slashed just .233/.283/.279 (60 wRC+).
Anyway, more soon.
UPDATE: Unfortunately, it seems this is more groin tightness for Madrigal, who was on the IL with groin tightness from June 12 to August 2.