By Darragh McDonald | Cubs manager Craig Counsell informed reporters, including Vinnie Duber of the Chicago Sun-Times, that third baseman Alex Bregman will not be placed on the injured list. He has multiple facial fractures and lots of swelling but could be back on the field before the regular season ends on Sunday.
Bregman was in the on deck circle on Sunday when a foul ball off the bat of Michael Busch hit him in the face. He had a bloody nose and lots of swelling. He was sent for testing and it was reported yesterday that he had multiple facial fractures.
Today, Counsell confirmed that Bregman has those fractures, but they are apparently not enough to put him on the shelf. Bregman did a light workout today and tracked pitches on a Trajekt machine, per Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. The Cubs are seemingly taking it one day at a time but it’s potentially a huge development if Bregman can avoid the IL and continue playing at the high level he has been at lately. He has excellent defensive grades at third base, a .262/.352/.452 batting line and 124 wRC+ this year. That all adds up to 5.2 wins above replacement, in the eyes of FanGraphs. His offense has been even better lately. He only hit .241/.336/.359 in the first half but has been at .296/.378/.600 so far in the second half.
Keeping that kind of production in the mix would obviously benefit the club. For now, Bregman figures to at least miss a handful of games. The Cubs will have Pedro Ramírez and Matt Shaw to cover third in the meantime, with Ramírez getting the start tonight.
The Cubs have six regular season games to go. They haven’t clinched a playoff berth yet but their odds are quite high. They are tied with the Padres for the top two Wild Card spots. The Phillies are a game back and in the third spot. The Diamondbacks are the top non-playoff team but they are five games back of the Cubs and Padres and four back of the Phils. The Wild Card round of the postseason is scheduled to begin on Tuesday.
Photo courtesy of Katie Stratman, Imagn Images
at September 22, 2026 4:35pm CDT
