Daniel Palencia Injury: Plays catch Friday

Palencia (shoulder) played catch Friday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

It's the first time he's thrown since he suffered a right shoulder strain Sunday and landed on the 15-day injured list Monday. It's a good sign that he's already playing catch, and the Cubs will map out a rehab plan for Palencia based on how he comes out of Friday's throwing session. Palencia will be eligible to return Sept. 23, but it's too soon to know whether he has a chance to be back by that date. Andrew Kittredge has the lone save for the Cubs since Palencia went down, and Brad Keller is also expected to be in the mix to close games.