Soroka to the injured list: Shoulder issues for the new Cubs pitcher

Michael Soroka, Cubs Pitcher, to Injured List with Shoulder Discomfort

The new pitcher for the [Chicago Cubs](/mlb/team/_/name/chc/chicago-cubs), Michael Soroka, left his first game with his new team due to discomfort in his right shoulder. The team announced on Monday, after the 3-2 loss to the [Cincinnati Reds](/mlb/team/_/name/cin/cincinnati-reds), that Soroka will need time on the injured list. Soroka, who turned 28 on Monday, felt something in his shoulder after throwing a ball in the second inning. He did not return for the third inning. “I went to put a little more force on a straight and it grabbed me a little,” Soroka said after. “And it didn’t go away.” Soroka was acquired last week from the [Washington Nationals](/mlb/team/_/name/wsh/washington-nationals) in exchange for two prospects. Although he has experienced a decrease in velocity in the last month, he stated that he felt no pain when he went up to the mound for the first time as a Cubs player. “There was no reason to believe anything was wrong,” Soroka said. The veteran, with six years of experience, has been looking for answers to his drop in velocity, even undergoing an MRI before his last outing before being traded. According to Soroka, the results were clean, so he focused on his mechanics.

“Everyone knew the velocity hadn’t been there in the last month,” he said. “He still had life on everything. The breaking ball was still working like it did in the first inning.”

Michael Soroka

Soroka struck out two in the first inning on Monday, showing a “slurve” that fooled [TJ Friedl](https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/_/id/36020/tj-friedl) and [Austin Hays](https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/_/id/36928/austin-hays), but then his velocity decreased in the second inning when he allowed a home run to [Tyler Stephenson](https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/_/id/34975/tyler-stephenson) before leaving a few minutes later.

“You’re always concerned when you have to come out of the game,” Soroka said. “It’s never fun. I feel embarrassed. You come to this organization hoping to get off on the right foot and two innings later, we have to throw in the towel.”

Michael Soroka

The Cubs need fresh arms, as Soroka was their only addition to the starting rotation before last Thursday’s MLB trade deadline. Right-handers Jameson Taillon (calf) and [Javier Assad](https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/_/id/5002950/javier-assad) (oblique) are in the recovery process and should return soon, but the team still has a shortage in the starting pitching staff. [Ben Brown](https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/_/id/41516/ben-brown) replaced Soroka on Monday, but he has been unstable as a starter every five days. They may have to turn to him again.

“We had no sign of it,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said of Soroka. “His velocity has gone backward. He’s trying to figure out how to fix that. He was optimistic in the early days here that we could help him there and things could improve.

Craig Counsell

“This is unfortunate.” Soroka was 3-8 with a 4.87 ERA for the Nationals before being traded for Class A prospect Ronny Cruz and Triple-A outfielder Christian Franklin.