The Cubs will be without their All-Star shortstop for an extended period.

The team placed Dansby Swanson on the 10-day IL, retroactive to July 6, with a left heel contusion. Infielder Miles Mastrobuoni was recalled from Triple-A Iowa to take his spot on the roster.

Swanson suffered the injury Wednesday night in Milwaukee, trying to beat out an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the top of the 5^th.

“Kind of like the in-between step of lunging or taking another step,” Swanson said Thursday in Milwaukee. “Just, obviously landed a little bit awkwardly.”

The All-Star break allows Swanson and the Cubs to maximize his recovery, while not losing him too much game time. He’ll miss just six games and is eligible to return next Sunday against the Red Sox at Wrigley Field.

“I think the biggest thing from just kind of a timing standpoint and getting the four days with the break, I feel like it was almost in a way like a good insurance policy to not lose some of the retroactive days and things like that,” Swanson told reporters. “It stinks, but we kinda just had to make the best decision possible for the group and hopefully will be back out there soon.  

It’s the first IL stint for Swanson since 2019, who missed a month with a right foot contusion then. From 2020 through 2022, Swanson had missed just 2 games and his durability had been lauded this offseason when he signed a 7-year deal.

“Similar, not the same,” Swanson said. “But the one in 2019, I believe this one’s better than that one was, which is a good thing. Seeing some minor improvements each day. Just hopeful that some rest and some downtime will get me back to playing.”

On Friday, Swanson said he would not be participating in the All-Star Game after he had been named to his second-straight Midsummer Classic. In his stead, Nico Hoerner will shift to shortstop and the Cubs won’t see too much of a drop-off. Hoerner was an elite defensive shortstop in 2022 for the Cubs. Christopher Morel and Mastrobuoni could provide cover at second base or third base and Patrick Wisdom can cover at the hot corner, too.

“Obviously, [Hoerner’s] always been good, right? No matter what position he plays, no matter what’s asked of him, he seems to come through,” Swanson said. “There’s definitely some comfort there. A lot of great players here, obviously, that are willing to step in and just do what’s asked of them, which is something that makes this place special, for sure.”

Swanson was hitting .258 with 10 home runs, a .753 OPS and has posted a 2.9 wins above replacement, per Baseball-Reference, this season.  

Mastrobuoni was sent down to Triple-A on June 27 when the team brought up Jared Young. The Cubs were hoping he could have regular playing time and at-bats to have him find his rhythm. In the 8 games at Iowa, Mastrobuoni was hitting .333/.438/.444 with 3 extra-base hits and 3 stolen bases, while playing 6 games in the outfield, one at second and one at third base.