ESPN’s Jesse Rogers announced an update involving Chicago Cubs’ star Kyle Tucker this morning on social media.
Owen Caissie, the Cubs’ No. 1 overall prospect according to MLB Pipeline, is in Chicago in case the team needs to put Tucker (calf) on the injured list. Caissie was with the Major League club in late August but optioned to Triple-A Iowa at the start of the month.
Per Rogers, if Tucker hits the IL, he could still return next weekend because the Cubs could backdate his injury a few days. Chicago manager Craig Counsell called it a “big day” in terms of testing Tucker’s calf.
Cubs news this morning: Prospect Owen Caissie is in Chicago in case the team needs to put Kyle Tucker (calf) on the injured list, per a source. If so, team can backdate it a few days and he could return next weekend. Counsell called today a "big day" in terms of testing the calf
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) September 6, 2025
Tucker’s calf injury
Tucker originally left Tuesday’s game against the Atlanta Braves due to calf tightness, which he said he'd been dealing with for a few days. Counsell gave him Wednesday’s game off, and Tucker didn’t play on Friday night either.
The 28-year-old outfielder will be one of the biggest names in free agency this offseason. But Tucker struggled at times this summer, prompting Counsell to give him a mental reset from Aug. 19-20.
It worked. Since then, Tucker has rediscovered his All-Star self with a .364/.462/.727 slash line over his last 12 games. He has four home runs and 11 RBI during that span, too.
Caissie made his Major League debut on Aug. 14 but was sent back down to the minors on Sept. 1 after receiving limited playing time. Counsell stressed to the 23-year-old outfielder that his time in MLB this season wasn’t necessarily over.
Now, Caissie might get another crack at the Majors. Over his previous 11-game stint, he slashed .208/.240/.375 with one home run and four RBI.
The Cubs play the Washington Nationals at Wrigley Field today at 2:20 p.m. ET.