Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Justin Steele missed most of the 2025 season after undergoing left-elbow surgery, but the 30-year-old just shared a game-changing update heading into March. Steele said on Saturday that he has been cleared by his surgeon and is back to 100%. Essentially, Steele can now resume a normal ramp up in spring training, meaning his return to the Cubs’ rotation could come sooner than some experts first theorized.
Steele underwent UCL revision last April and while some fans might have seen that UCL injury and assumed Tommy John surgery, but the time frame to return is shorter for the procedure Steele went through. The Cubs’ lefty shared the update on Twitter and passed along a video of his latest throwing session in Arizona.
There was already and early indication from the Cubs in spring training that Steele was in line to return in either April or early May, when the team decided to designate infielder Ben Cowles for assignment a couple weeks ago to make room for free agent reliever Shelby Miller on the 40-man roster. The Cubs could have simply placed Steele on the 60-day injured list to open up a spot, but seeing as they didn’t it was a sign that Steele will be back in action before May 26.
Now that we know Steele has been medically cleared to return to full activity we can begin to speculate a potential timetable for his return to the majors. He’s about three weeks or so behind the official start of spring training when pitchers and catchers report. So, if we take into account that starting pitchers methodically get stretched out with live batting practice sessions, side bullpens and game action for about 6-7 weeks, then Steele could be targeting mid-April for his comeback.
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He will still need time to stretch out, so Steele will begin the year on the injured list and head out to the minor leagues to continue to build up his pitch count. That could be a couple starts and then Steele may be ready a little more than a year after his last start for the Cubs.
We kind of forget how good Steele was in the rotation because of his absence, but from 2022-24, the left-hander was a steady force in the rotation.
Justin Steele 2022-24
2022: 24 starts, 3.18 ERA, 119 IP, 24.6 K%
2023: 30 starts, 3.06 ERA, 173.1 IP, 24.6 K%
2024: 24 starts, 3.07 ERA, 134.2 IP, 24.3 K%
There is no question that the Cubs have a better rotation with Steele in it and his return also gives the team a much more formidable rotation when it comes to the postseason. Fingers crossed that Steele doesn’t experience any setbacks as he continues his comeback, but today’s update was a giant step forward for him and the Cubs.
