It’s just a roster moves post, but that might be one of the craziest headlines I’ve ever written. My word. What has happened today?
So, in addition to making all of today’s trades officially official, the Cubs had to replace a ton of players on the 26-man roster, so that’s what necessitated the MASSIVE volume of call-ups, and also activating Jake Arrieta (hamstring) off the IL to take Trevor Williams’ vacated start.
The call-ups:
RHP Manny Rodriguez – Probably the most recognizable name, as a power reliever who has been dominating and was already on the 40-man roster. Rodriguez was always going to get a look in the second half, so I’m excited to see him get some runway.
RHP Michael Rucker – Similarly, Rucker had long earned a shot with his performance at Triple-A, but the Cubs had just been so full up. He’s another guy who can run it up into the upper-90s and then spin a great slider. I want to say he also has a quality cutter? I guess we’ll find out!
OF Johneshwy Fargas – Is the speedy guy the Cubs recently claimed from the Mets, and there’s a non-zero chance he shows himself to be a capable big league depth option.
1B Frank Schwindel – Is the power bat the Cubs grabbed from the A’s, and while I don’t think he’s going to be auditioning for a first base job going forward, he has really hit at Triple-A and his age suggests it’s time to give him a look to see if he can stick on a big league bench (especially with the DH coming).
UTLÂ Andrew Romine – Is a long-time veteran who can play all over, was hitting well at Iowa, and so he’s just kind of a pro’s pro who comes up with the younger guys to be there in this transitional period. He’s also the brother of erstwhile back-up catcher Austin Romine.