As Justin Steele’s pregame meeting was just about to begin, Cubs manager Craig Counsell figured he had plenty of time to go pick up grab a cup of Joe and still be back in time to catch the bulk of the plan of attack against Detroit.

“I went and got a cup of coffee, came back, and the meeting was over,” Counsell said with a chuckle.

That’s because Steele’s plan of attack is so artless that it’s masterful.

He doesn’t rely on a massive armory of pitches that he might turn to in various situations, instead he relies on what works best — his fastball-slider mix — to bewilder hitters.

“That’s why Justin so good,” Counsell said. “And, I think, a lot of the good pitchers are like that. There’s no secrets. They just beat you. And that’s what Justin did today.”

Steele racked up a season-high 10 strikeouts and allowed just 2 runs on a 7th-inning home run to Spencer Torkelson in the Cubs’ 10-2 win over the Tigers.

[WATCH: Justin Steele’s fastball causing mayhem for Tigers’ hitters]

That simpleminded approach stems from who Steele is as a person. He’s not a complex or high-maintenance person — he enjoys fishing and playing video games and spending time with his family. He knows what works for him and he sticks to it.

“Probably not having success thinking a lot,” Steele said with a laugh when he was asked where his simple methodology stemmed from. “It’s probably trying to be too smart out there, trying to overthink things and think through every little thing and it not working out, and just realizing, we are playing a game out here.

“You’re supposed to enjoy it, have fun and whatnot. And I feel like when I’m doing my best, I’m not really thinking about the ins and outs of baseball, I’m just out there pitching and having fun.”

That’s allowed him to develop into the ace of the Cubs staff and continue to build off a breakthrough 2023 campaign. He’s put up similar numbers to what he did last year — 3.07 ERA, 1.07 WHIP in 2024 and a 3.06 ERA, 1.17 WHIP in 2023.

“That’s obviously a goal of mine, want to show that I’m consistent, want to do it on a year-to-year basis,” Steele said. “So, yeah, job and mission accomplished for me, just want to continue to build off of it.”