This past weekend, the Chicago Cubs were dealt a devastating blow when it was discovered that rookie pitcher Luke Little, 23, may miss the entirety of the 2024 season due to a lat strain. Little was placed on the injured list before the All-Star break, and additional testing will likely require surgery.
Little was selected by the Cubs in the 2020 MLB Draft. He spent most of his minor league career as a starting pitcher before being moved to the bullpen in 2023. Little was promoted to the major leagues in September following the success of that experiment.
At the end of the 2023 season, Little had only played in seven games, but he was excellent, pitching 6.2 shutout innings. After a difficult outing against the Boston Red Sox at the end of April, Little bounced back to become even more dominant. The frightening lefty was added to the 2024 Opening Day roster.
Little pitched nine straight shutout innings before getting hurt on July 12 against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Luke Little’s second help request on Friday night against the St. Louis Cardinals didn’t go well, and the Chicago Cubs will now be without a vital reliever due to injury. Prior to Saturday’s double header, hardly much was formally put on the 15-day IL.
With the Cubs leading the Cardinals 5-0 going into the eighth inning, Little called for the team trainer on the fourth pitch of his encounter with Lars Nootbaar, a left-handed pitcher. Following the 5-1 win, Cubs manager Craig Counsell told reporters that Little suffered a shoulder injury.
Before Friday’s start, Little had reduced his ERA to 3.46 in 26 innings pitched this year, and he was riding a nine-game scoreless streak. Pitching to lefties across 12.1 innings, he was very effective against them, restricting them to a.485 OPS while only giving up one earned run.
Ethan Roberts, a right-handed pitcher, has been called up to relieve Little in the bullpen. Right-handed starter Javier Assad will serve as the team’s 27th man for the double header in St. Louis and will start the second game
After undergoing Tommy John surgery earlier this season, 27-year-old Roberts pitched in the major leagues for the first time since his debut year in 2022. Before being optioned back to Triple-A a week ago, Roberts appeared in three games and pitched four scoreless innings.
It is important to acknowledge Little’s loss in the bullpen. When Little was performing well and the opposing team’s batting order included a few lefties, Counsell turned to him as his go-to reliever.
Yes, it happened once more. After his fourth pitch out of the bullpen on Friday night, the left-handed reliever for the Cubs, Little, called for the team trainer. Little entered the game in the eighth inning, and something went wrong on the 1-2 pitch to Lars Nootbaar. The Cubs pitcher felt discomfort right away, signaled for the trainer, and bent down in front of the mound in frustration. Little then left the field after a brief meeting with Craig Counsell and the trainer.
Little, 23, has been with the Cubs for 26 innings this season and has a 3.43 ERA. His only truly bad outing was on April 27 against the Boston Red Sox, when he gave up five runs and was only able to record two outs before being lifted. Other than that awful outing, Little has been extremely reliable when called upon, giving up five earned runs in his other 28 appearances, which span 25.1 innings.
Little had been dominant since June 14, when he had made nine consecutive appearances without giving up a run.
Throughout the 2024 season, the Cubs have suffered greatly from injuries, with the pitching staff suffering the most. Since the beginning of June, Little has been a part of a bullpen group for the Cubs that has finally been productive, but it now looks as though the left-hander with a strong throw may lose some time due to injury.
