Just a week after making a late-season return to the Chicago Cubs' pitching staff amid a playoff push as bullpen help, manager David Ross revealed to reporters Friday afternoon that the team's opening day starter will be heading back to the rotation, according to The Athletic's Sahadev Sharma.
Slated to face Chris Flexen and the Colorado Rockies in Saturday's 1:20 p.m. affair, the start will be Stroman's first since a rough outing at Wrigley Field against the Cincinnati Reds on July 31, when he surrendered six hits and six earned runs.
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The All-Star starter appeared twice out of the bullpen in last weekend's series against the Arizona Diamondbacks, allowing two hits and an unearned run across three innings of work.
Left-handed rookie Jordan Wicks was initially slated to start Saturday's game, so it's reasonable to think that both arms could see significant action tomorrow if Stroman's workload has a limit.
In 25 games and 23 starts in 2023, Stroman has posted a 10-8 record with a 3.76 ERA, walking 51 batters while striking out 115 in 131.2 innings of work.
Stroman will look to give the Cubs their first series victory since a sweep over the San Francisco Giants at the start of the month, with the North Siders in need of help from opponents of the Reds, Diamondbacks and Miami Marlins down the stretch to improve their playoff chances.
