Chicago Cubs Upcoming Pitching Rotation Has Strange Omission

As the Chicago Cubs get set to take on the Pittsburgh Pirates, they already know who two of their starters will be, but with one spot open there have been some rumors swirling about why that is.

Sep 27, 2023; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jameson Taillon (50) / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs begin a huge three-game road slate on Friday against their division rival Pittsburgh Pirates.

This is an important time for both clubs as they look to stay in the NL Central race.

The Cubs once held the lead but have faded a bit during their 5-5 stretch and are now a half game out of first. Similarly, the Pirates are also going through a rough patch, having won just three out of 10 and are sitting 5.5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers.

Starting pitching announcements were made by both teams, and there is now some real national buzz surrounding this series as the No. 1 pitching prospect in all of baseball, Paul Skenes, has been called up and will take the mound for Pittsburgh on Saturday.

Chicago countered by having their ace Justin Steele pitch that same day as Javier Assad was given the assignment for Friday.

But strangely, no starting pitcher was announced for Sunday by the Cubs.

It was expected that Jameson Taillon would be on the mound, sparking some rumors that he might have picked up another injury after making it back for four games following his early stint on the injured list that begun during Spring Training.

If that's the case, it would certainly be a blow to Chicago.

Taillon has been sensational, owning a 3-0 record with a sizzling 1.13 ERA over his 24 innings pitched.

They needed him to step up and deliver in the second year of his $68 million deal and that's what he's done so far since getting activated off the IL after recovering from his back strain.

It should be noted that the Cubs have made no formal announcement about there being another injury to Taillon. They very well could be leaving things open for the finale as they get set to face the Atlanta Braves in three-game series immediately after their matchup with the Pirates ends.

Ultimately, it will be interesting to see what comes of this.