Cubs' Adrian Sampson: Reaches deal to avoid arbitration
Rotowire
Sampson agreed to a one-year, $1.9 million contract with the Cubs on Friday, avoiding arbitration, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.
Sampson was a bright spot in the Cubs' rotation last season, pitching to a 3.11 ERA and 1.23 WHIP in 104.1 innings. The strikeouts lag behind and the estimators suggest Sampson was pitching well above his head last season, but he's earned the chance to compete for a rotation spot in spring training.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Avoids arbitration
Rotowire
Wick agreed to a one-year, $1.55 million contract with the Cubs on Friday, avoiding arbitration, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.
Wick finished second on the team in saves last season with nine behind David Robertson (14), but he didn't exactly secure the job heading into 2023. The right-hander struggled to a 5.06 ERA and squandered three of his final five save chances after Aug. 11. The job will be up for grabs again in spring training.
The Cubs claimed Bannon off waivers from Atlanta on Friday.
Bannon spent the vast majority of last season in Triple-A, slashing .249/.367/.421 and collecting 77 RBI through 411 plate appearances. Infield depth was an issue for the Cubs last season, so it's possible that Bannon makes a few appearances for Chicago in 2023, but he will more than likely serve primarily as a minor-league piece.
The Cubs selected Davis' contract from Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday.
After flying through the Cubs' farm system in 2021, Davis' progress slowed down in 2022, as he slashed just .191/.322/.319 over 174 plate appearances with Triple-A Iowa. Back issues plagued him all season, and he underwent surgery in June to address the issue only for them to return during the Fall League. Davis will need to bounce back in a major way in order to earn the first major-league promotion of his career.
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Cubs' Ryan Jensen: Joins 40-man roster
Rotowire
Jensen was added to the Cubs' 40-man roster Tuesday.
Jensen spent 2022 with Double-A Tennessee, recording a 4.25 ERA and 1.39 WHIP over 59.1 innings spanning 17 starts. Jensen's biggest issue last season was walking too many batters, recording a 5.9 BB/9. If he can bring that number down and maintain his solid strikeout rate (9.1 K/9 in 2022), the 24-year-old righty could see big-league action within a few years.
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Cubs' Ben Brown: Added to 40-man roster
Rotowire
Brown was added to the Cubs' 40-man roster Tuesday.
After being traded from Philadelphia to Chicago in August, Brown put up a 4.06 ERA and 1.48 WHIP through 31 innings in seven starts for Double-A Tennessee. The 23-year-old righty still has a few kinks in his game to work out, but with a K/9 approaching 13, it's not difficult to see why the Cubs made it a priority to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.
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Cubs' Kevin Alcantara: Joins 40-man roster
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Alcantara was added to the Cubs' 40-man roster Tuesday.
The 20-year-old Alcantara still has yet to play beyond the Single-A level, but his .269/.357/.439 slash line with Single-A Myrtle Beach shows promise for Alcantara to crack the majors in a few seasons.
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Cubs' Miles Mastrobuoni: Dealt to Cubs
Rotowire
Mastrobuoni was traded from the Rays to the Cubs on Tuesday in exchange for a low-level pitching prospect, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
As Topkin notes, this will open up a 40-man roster spot for the Rays that they can use to protect a prospect from the Rule 5 draft. Mastrobuoni can play second base and the outfield and hit .300/.377/.469 with 16 home runs and 23 steals in 129 games as a 26-year-old at Triple-A this past season. He will compete with Zach McKinstry for lefty-hitting utility work in 2023.
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Cubs' Esteban Quiroz: Sent outright to Triple-A
Rotowire
Quiroz cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Iowa on Friday, Tim Stebbins of NBC Sports Chicago reports.
Quiroz made his MLB debut in September and appeared in 14 games for the Cubs at the end of the season. However, most of playing time came in Triple-A last season, where he posted just a .680 OPS over 148 plate appearances. Quiroz struggled to record many extra-base hits last season, which is something he will likely need to improve on if he wants a shot at returning to the majors anytime soon.
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Cubs' Jared Young: Outrighted to Triple-A
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Young cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Iowa on Friday, Tim Stebbins of NBC Sports Chicago reports.
Young appeared in just six games for the Cubs at the tail end of last season, recording five hits and three walks over 22 plate appearances. Most of his time was spent in Triple-A, where he slashed .228/.309/.415 over 455 plate appearances. Whether or not he returns to the Cubs' 40-man roster will likely depend on if he can improve those numbers in 2023.
Wieck (elbow) was activated from the 60-day injured list, cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Iowa on Thursday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.
Wieck missed the full 2022 campaign and underwent Tommy John surgery in July. The left-hander is set to sit out most, if not all, of 2023, so the Cubs won't carry him on the 40-man roster into the offseason.
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Cubs' Alec Mills: Outrighted to Triple-A
Rotowire
Mills (back) was activated from the 60-day injured list, cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Iowa on Thursday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.
Mills covered only 17.2 innings last season as he dealt with back and quadriceps issues. The right-hander won't begin the offseason on Chicago's 40-man roster, so he'll have some work to do in spring training in order to have a chance of making the Opening Day roster.
