CINCINNATI — The Cubs got a positive report on the status of catcher Willson Contreras on Saturday. He was removed during the fifth inning of their 8-6 loss Friday to the Reds with mild soreness in his right thigh.
Contreras was out of the lineup in the Cubs’ 3-2 victory Saturday, with backup Tony Wolters getting the nod behind the plate. But the Cubs think they’ve avoided serious trouble with Contreras.
‘‘Willson feels better,’’ manager David Ross said. ‘‘Today, he’s a little bit sore. I talked to him, and he feels like he could play if he needed to. I don’t think that’s in his best interest right now, but we’ll give him a day to get treatment, go through a little bit of a routine, let the trainer test him out as he gets loosened up and see where we’re at. But I felt like there was a little bit of good news.””
Ross didn’t commit to Contreras being back in the lineup for the series finale Sunday, but he thinks Contreras will return sooner than later.
‘‘We’ll see,’’ Ross said. ‘‘I think it’s a quick turnaround with a day game [Sunday]. If he feels really good, maybe we would push that. But I think we’ll try to be smart. He’s going to have a heavy workload. He’s a guy we’re going to lean on all year, so we’ll be as smart as possible with that. But if he’s telling me he’s ready to go, then I’m playing him.’’
Contreras has a .238/.333/.512 slash line with seven home runs and 16 RBI this season.
Baez’s hitting streak reaches seven
Shortstop Javy Baez might be starting to heat up. He extended his hitting streak to seven games with a single to lead off the sixth inning Saturday and is hitting .310 with a triple, two homers and eight RBI during that span.
‘‘I’m just trying to keep my approach,’’ Baez said before the game. ‘‘He’s got to throw the ball over the plate.’’
One down, one up
The Cubs optioned left-hander Kyle Ryan to Triple-A Iowa and recalled right-hander Keegan Thompson from their alternate site in South Bend, Indiana.
Ryan has pitched two scoreless innings this season with two strikeouts. Thompson’s first appearance with the Cubs will be his major-league debut.
