The Chicago Cubs placed right-hander Jorge Lopez (right groin strain) and left-hander Justin Steele (left elbow tendinitis) on the 15-day injured list Wednesday.

In corresponding moves, the Cubs recalled right-handers Trey Wingenter and Jack Neely from Triple-A Iowa.

Steele, 29, was scratched from his last scheduled start on Tuesday because of soreness in his left elbow and underwent an MRI exam. The move is retroactive to Sunday.

He is 5-5 this season with a 3.09 ERA, 34 walks and 131 strikeouts in 128 innings over 22 starts, including a 3-0 mark with a 2.03 ERA in five starts in August.

“I want to be able to go out there and pitch and not feel anything,” Steele said before being placed on the IL. “Obviously, we’re in a tight situation with (contending for) the playoffs, so I want to get back on the mound as soon as possible.”

The Cubs selected Steele in the fifth round of the 2014 MLB Draft. He is 29-21 with a 3.24 ERA in 96 games (85 starts) and was a National League All-Star and Cy Young Award contender in 2023, when he was 16-5 with a 3.06 ERA in 30 starts.

Lopez, 31, is 2-3 with a 3.00 ERA with four saves in 50 relief appearances this season with the New York Mets and Cubs, who signed him as a free agent in June after his release from the Mets. Lopez has appeared in 22 games for the Cubs.

Lopez last pitched Monday in a 5-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. He gave up four runs on four hits in an inning of work, blowing his first save of the season. Pittsburgh’s Bryan Reynolds hit a three-run shot against him and Andrew McCutchen hit a go-ahead blast.

Wingenter, 30, pitched in two games with the Boston Red Sox earlier this season, giving up seven runs in 2 1/3 innings. The Cubs selected him off waivers on Aug. 2. His first appearance would mark his Cubs debut.

Neely, 24, made his major league debut on Aug. 21 and is 0-0 with a 13.50 ERA, two walks and five strikeouts in four innings over four games.

–Field Level Media