Which 2 players will not travel to Toronto

MILWAUKEE — Adrian Sampson handed the baseball to Chicago Cubs manager David Ross, clearly unhappy with his departure.

Sampson had retired the Milwaukee Brewers’ leadoff hitter in the fourth inning and mostly kept them in check. He allowed a run in the third when three straight batters in the heart of the Brewers’ lineup reached with two hits.

Otherwise, Sampson was trending toward what has become a typical start for the Cubs: keeping his team in the game and giving it a chance to win.

But Ross opted to bring in lefty Sean Newcomb, who allowed six runs in one more inning Sunday in the Cubs’ 9-7 loss.

Ross cited the Brewers’ hard-hit balls from Sampson and the traffic on the bases as his motivation to bring in Newcomb. Sampson admitted he was surprised by the early knock, then added: “I always try to repeat the same message. I want to stay there as long as I can, so you have to believe what’s going on and then just prepare five days later.”

Sampson’s short outing ends up benefiting the Cubs in their next series. He and left-hander Justin Steele will not travel with the team to Toronto because they do not meet Canada’s COVID-19 vaccination requirements to enter the country. The same requirements apply to return to the United States.

The Cubs will place Steele and Sampson on the restricted list before the three-game series against the Blue Jays begins Monday at the Rogers Centre.

After talking with his family and friends, Steele said he decided he didn’t need to get the vaccine. He said he didn’t believe he would have started Wednesday anyway because of back tightness, which continues to improve.

Steele predicts the soonest he will start is Friday in St. Louis. Ross previously indicated the Cubs would change the rotation after a day off Thursday, and he was noncommittal about when Steele would pitch next.

The Cubs will be allowed to bring in a fully vaccinated replacement player for Steele. That player does not need to be on the 40-man roster; anyone withdrawn as a replacement player due to roster issues related to COVID-19 may return without being selected or designated for assignment.

Left-hander Brendon Little and right-hander Jeremiah Estrada were in the bullpen after Sunday’s loss as the Cubs prepared to head to Toronto. The three-game series gives the Cubs an opportunity to see Little and Estrada in the big leagues as 40-man roster decisions loom. Both players will need to be added to the 40-man roster if the organization wants to protect them from the Rule 5 draft in December.

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Estrada has struck out 40.4% of batters while posting a 1.30 ERA between High-A South Bend and Triple-A Iowa this year. Little, the Cubs’ first-round pick in 2017, has a 4.15 ERA in 29 appearances for Iowa.

Before Sunday’s game, the Cubs were not expected to replace Sampson on the active roster because he was not scheduled to start in Toronto. Under MLB’s COVID-19 rules, pitchers who are not fully vaccinated and are not lined up to start their team’s series in Toronto cannot be replaced on the 26-man roster.

However, the Cubs are able to replace Sampson because he didn’t throw four straight in Sunday’s start.

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“I have no idea what the roster rules were,” Sampson said. “I’m not making the trip, which is unfortunate, but if I was pitching the day before, I wouldn’t have done it anyway. But I want to get the ball. I want to stay there as long as you can. So that’s my whole mindset going into today.”

Steele and Sampson will return to Chicago and join the team in St. Louis. Louis for the weekend series against the Cardinals. Sampson said his decision not to vaccinate was for personal reasons.

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“I kind of waited to see as more information came out, and then the season comes and it’s like the last thing you want to think about,” Sampson said. “His timing worked out because I’m playing (on Sunday). If I lined up to play in Toronto, it would have made it worse for the guys. Someone has to carry some of the load.

“I think people should choose what they want to do and I hope they get an appreciation from each other and don’t look down on someone because of the decisions they’ve made. But everyone has been very accepting of people’s decisions here. It’s good. You don’t feel like they’re trying to single you out or anything.”

Last year the Cubs were one of several teams that didn’t meet the 85% vaccination threshold for players and other on-field personnel in order to ease some restrictions for COVID-19.

“Time gives everyone a chance to make decisions,” Ross said of the team’s improved vaccination rate. “Information continues to come out to help guys make the right decision.

“So, yeah, just two guys. You wish it was nobody, but at the end of the day, we believed everybody makes the best decision for them and it gives the other guys a chance.”