SURPRISE, Ariz. — Craig Counsell left Sloan Park on Saturday hoping to have good news on Jameson Taillon the next day.

Sunday morning, he felt the reality he could start the season without a key member of his rotation.

“Jameson came in today, pretty much the same as he left yesterday, so probably not the improvement we were hoping for,” Counsell said. “I think, yeah, there’s a level [of concern] for Opening Day, certainly.”

Taillon has yet to pitch in a game this spring. He was on the same plan as the rest of the starters but dealt with some calf tightness that restricted him to live batting practices and simulated games on the backfield to work up his pitch count. Saturday, he was set to appear in his first Cactus League game against the Rockies and went out to Sloan Park to warm up for his outing.

It was about 10 pitches in when he felt some tightness in his lower back that would cause him to be scratched. Those same symptoms lingered into Sunday morning.

“Likely to do some more diagnostics and testing just to see if there’s anything we can learn from that,” Counsell said, adding that imagining, like an MRI isn’t on the table but isn’t ruled out, either. “Look, [you] never want to lose players. I don’t think this is a long-term absence for Jamo. It’s not really one of those concerns.”

In the short-term, it will test the Cubs starting pitching depth.

Beyond Opening Day starter Justin Steele, the Cubs have Shota Imanaga and Kyle Hendricks as locks in the rotation. Rookie Jordan Wicks likely slots into the fourth spot in the rotation, with pitchers like Drew Smyly, Javier Assad and Hayden Wesneski as other options already on the 40-man roster for the final rotation spot.

“I think we’re in good shape,” Counsell said. “We’ve got a bunch of guys still stretched out and ready to keep going. And we have not ruled anybody out at this point.

“So, we’ll just keep a bunch of guys stretched out and see how that plays out.”

Smyly, Wicks shine in Cubs win

Smyly and Wicks continued their preparation for the 2024 season as the lefties pitched in the Cubs’ 5-1 win over the Rangers at Surprise Stadium. Both pitchers will be looked at closely in the final two-plus weeks of Spring Training as they look to compete for the final two rotation spots.

Smyly looked solid in his start against the defending World Series Champion. He pitched 3.1 scoreless innings, allowing a walk and 4 hits with 4 strikeouts. He worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the 3^rd inning by striking out ALCS MVP Adolis García.

“I don’t think I’ve ever faced Garcia but when he came up with the bases loaded that’s obviously a big part of the game, and [I] tried to make it as game-like as possible,” Smyly said.

Smyly provides an interesting option for the Cubs. He can start, but after struggles in the rotation last year, was a viable option out of the bullpen.

The Cubs only have one lefty reliever on their 40-man — rookie Luke Little — so Smyly could have some value in that role. For now, though, the Cubs will continue to stretch him out and he has a chance to be in their rotation when the season kicks off.

“[I] want to come out and try to get results and battle and just be really aggressive towards their lineup,” Smyly said. “But I mean, I feel confident. I feel really good where I’m at regardless of what role I’m pitching.”

Wicks looked just as solid in his relief outing out of the bullpen. The rookie struck out 7 over 4.1 innings while allowing 2 hits and an unearned run. Wicks will continue to be stretched out as a starter and compete for a rotation spot. Sunday was the first time Wicks had five up-downs this spring.

“I think the biggest goal for us today was landing breaking balls, which we did a really good job of,” Wicks said. “I was really happy with the curveball command. I thought I had really good shape.”

Next Up

The Cubs will enjoy their first off day of the spring on Monday. They’ll return to Cactus League action on Tuesday, hosting the Brewers at 3 p.m. on Marquee Sports Network. Justin Steele will start for the Cubs.