NEWSLETTER
Rosters expand today from 25 to 40, and the Chicago Cubs are expected to call up a number of the young players – most of whom we’ve seen already this year – in the next couple of weeks. In general, though, the Cubs will wait until Iowa’s season, including the playoffs, which run through September 19. Iowa currently holds a half-game lead in their division.
Among the players the Cubs are expected to call up are pitchers Mitch Atkins, Justin Berg, and Jeff Stevens, each of whom recently spent time in the Cubs’ pen. The team is also expected to call up Jeff Samardzija, who has been refining himself as a pitcher at Iowa since being sent down in April. Outfielders Sam Fuld and Brad Snyder will probably also join the Cubs at some point.
The one player the Cubs could really use, catcher Welington Castillo, is not eligible to return to the Cubs until 10 days after he was most recently sent back down to Iowa. That pegs his return on Thursday, unless Geovany Soto goes on the disabled list in the next day and a half.
