How Marcus Stroman’s injury could surprisingly benefit the Cubs

Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman was recently revealed to have a right rib cartilage fracture, but surprisingly, this injury could benefit Chicago long term.

The Marcus Stroman injury news has only gotten worse recently. After working his way back to be activated off the injured list, Stroman experienced pain and discomfort in his ribs, causing him to be scratched from that scheduled start.

It was revealed Wednesday afternoon that Stroman has a right rib cartilage fracture, per Patrick Mooney of The Athletic.

This news is crushing for the Chicago Cubs as they chase the NL Central title, but that can be seen on the surface. If you look a little deeper, this injury could have one benefit for the Cubs organization in the long run.

Marcus Stroman’s recent rib injury could cause him to opt into the $21 million player option on his contract

While no injury should be wished upon, hoped for, or cheered upon, sometimes there can be small benefits in the long-term outlook after an injury. Maybe a player has a nagging hamstring injury that is only able to heal when they’re taken off the field with an upper-body injury.

In the Cubs’ case with Stroman, this injury could cause him to opt into his player option this coming offseason. This would be a huge development for Chicago and their pitching staff next season.

Up until now, it’s been common knowledge that Stroman would opt out of his option and test the open market, with a preference to stay in Chicago at a steeper price. If Stroman does lock into this option next year, he’ll have the opportunity to show that he’s worth more than $21 million on a long-term deal and the Cubs would get a top-of-the-rotation starter for a doable price. It’s a true win-win situation. Well, besides the fact that Stroman is hurt now and there’s no timetable for a return.

The best-case scenario for the Cubs is that Stroman makes his way back to the field this year and can help lead them to a playoff run. Opting into the player option would be an added bonus, however, that may happen.