Levine: Addison Russell's Status Uncertain For Game 4, But He's Optimistic

By Bruce Levine--

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The hamstring strain that forced Cubs shortstop Addison Russell to leave in the fourth inning of Game 3 on Monday may keep him out of Game 4 of the NLDS on Tuesday afternoon.

Still, the 21-year-old rookie Russell was hopeful that he would be ready to return to the field soon. He missed a large part of the 2014 minor league season due to a grade 3 strain of the right hamstring, and he described the episode Monday as mild compared to last year's injury.

Russell suffered the strain while sprinting for a triple.

"I was rounding second and felt a grab," Russell said. "After feeling that, I wanted to be cautious."

The medical staff assisted Russell off the field and into the trainer's room for treatment.

"I can tell you now I feel a lot better after getting treatment," Russell said. "We are just going to analyze it and go from there."

Russell said an MRI was a possibility Tuesday morning.

"It feels great right now," he said. "I went through all the movements fine. It is actually looking good."

With Russell having previous hamstring injuries, the Cubs could be cautious with bringing Russell back less than 24 hours after the initial strain. Javier Baez replaced Russell at shortstop and had two hits and an error in the game.

Russell moved to shortstop in early August after manning second base for much of the season. He made only two errors in the last 55 games.

Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.