Joining the Cubs at key juncture exceeds Joe Nathan’s expectations

4:13 PM ET

MILWAUKEE — Let’s say you’re a 40-year-old relief pitcher who has earned over $80 million playing baseball and rank eighth on the all-time wins list. Your elbow pops, and for the second time, you’re facing the dreaded Tommy John surgery, not to mention the months of rehabilitation that ensues. It’s time to call it a career, right?

Don’t tell that to Joe Nathan, the Chicago Cubs’ newest bullpen option.

“For me, right from day one, it wasn’t really a question of whether I was going to try to come back from this,” Nathan said. “Why wouldn’t I?

“I tried to put my best foot forward into rehab. I needed to get healthy just for the rest of my life, just to play catch with my son and my daughter. If I’m going to rehab, I might as well go 100 percent at it to see where it goes.

“I still had that itch.”

The Cubs activated Nathan from the 60-day DL on Sunday and optioned righty swingman Adam Warren to Triple-A Iowa to open a spot on the 25-man roster. Nathan hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since April 6, 2015, his only appearance last season, and he underwent the second elbow procedure not long after.

Warren will be used as a starter at Iowa to stay stretched out. Cubs manager Joe Maddon says it’s still possible that Chicago will go to a sixth starter at some point, …

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