It's official: Cubs place Pedro Stop on 10-day IL |
ST. LOUIS – The Chicago Cubs today placed right-handed pitcher
Pedro Strop on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to July 27) with left neck tightness and recalled right-handed pitcher
Duane Underwood Jr. from Triple-A Iowa. Underwood, who wears uniform No. 51, will be available for tonight’s series opener against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.
Underwood, 25, joins the major league roster for the second time in his career. He last season made a spot start in his major league debut, June 25 in Los Angeles, allowing one run in 4.0 innings against the Dodgers in a 2-1 setback before he returned to Triple-A the following day. Underwood began this season in Iowa’s starting rotation prior to transitioning to the bullpen in late May. In 18 relief appearances, he has posted a 3.04 ERA (9 ER/26.2 IP) and limited opponents to a .228 average, .304 on-base percentage and a .650 OPS, walking 10 and striking out 35, good for an average of 11.8 strikeouts per 9.0 innings. All told, Underwood is 2-5 with a 5.23 ERA (43 ER/74.0 IP) in 28 games (10 starts) for Iowa with 38 walks and 85 strikeouts in 74.0 innings. Selected in the second round of the 2012 Draft out of Pope High School in Marietta, Ga., Underwood is 34-40 with a complete game and 4.04 ERA (290 ER/646.1 IP) in 155 career games (125 starts). Strop, 34, is 2-4 with nine saves and a 5.20 ERA (16 ER/27.2 IP) in 32 relief appearances for Chicago this season. In seven seasons with Chicago, he is 21-23 with 28 saves, a franchise-record 119 holds and a 2.83 ERA (113 ER/359.0 IP) in 393 relief appearances.
