The first of the September call-ups is coming today, and it’s up-and-down reliever Blake Parker.
Parker, 29, hasn’t done much in the bigs this year in very limited opportunities, but he was perhaps the best reliever at AAA all year in the PCL. He was solid for the Cubs in 2013 in the bigs, but the depth in the bullpen has been much stronger this year than last. Hence, the shuffling.
Parker is the first of many projected call-ups, including Eric Jokisch, about whom I wrote this morning. There are also rumors going around that Rafael Lopez, the AAA catcher I mentioned earlier, could be added to the 40-man roster and called up, too. That would make sense, as he’s Rule 5 eligible (like Jokisch), and has shown that he could be a plausible back-up in the big leagues. The 40-man roster stands at 39, so, if the Cubs add both Jokisch and Lopez, someone will have to be dropped.
AAA Iowa’s last game is today, so you can expect other call-ups this week.