Cubs Add Competition to Corner Infield Spots Signing Power-Hitting Lefty

The Chicago Cubs have made a move that immediately got fans thinking about a potential trade happening elsewhere on the roster, as the team announced the signing of free agent infielder Edwin Rios on Friday night.

The power-hitting lefty adds more intrigue to spring training for the Cubs, who already have several infielders competing for playing time at third base. You can also argue that Rios may end up competing with first baseman Eric Hosmer as well for a spot on the Opening Day roster.

Rios, a 28-year-old infielder, has spent the last four seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 2022, he hit .244 with seven home runs and 17 RBIs in 27 games. While those numbers might not jump off the page, Rios is known for his power at the plate and his ability to play multiple positions in the field.

Overall, the left-handed hitter has smashed 20 home runs during his MLB career, averaging one home run every 13 at-bats. From 2019-22, Rios appeared in 112 games for the Dodgers, posting a .219/.299/.492 slash line. Obviously the batting average is poor, but what makes Rios so dangerous at the plate is his ability to hit for a lot of power. His numbers are very similar to Patrick Wisdom, just coming from the other side of the plate. Lots of home run potential, but it comes with a high strikeout rate that leads to below average contact rates.

Rios hasn’t had the chance to get a lot of playing time in the majors so far in his career, setting a career high in games played at the MLB level in 2020, when Rios played in 32 games. While Rios has played a handful of games in the corner outfield spots, he has primarily started at third base and first base as a member of the Dodgers. Rios has played 36 games at third and 32 games at first.

Although the signing of Rios isn’t a major move for the Cubs, we do have to wonder what might happen to a few of the players already on the roster. This isn’t to say that Rios is guaranteed a spot on the team because he does have a minor league option. That’s also the case for Christopher Morel and Nick Madrigal, who are in the third base mix, too. I mentioned Wisdom above and how he and Rios have similar hitting profiles, so I doubt the Cubs want that much swing and miss on the team at the same time. Or I guess that would be one powerful platoon over at third base.

The Cubs also have left-handed hitting infielders Zach McKinstry and Miles Mastrobuoni, who are both competing for a bench spot in spring training.

As for Rios on defense, it looks like he may be serviceable at third base. Not great, but probably won’t be a disaster either.

What’s crazy about Rios during his time on the Dodgers is that the overall numbers don’t look special across the board, but that’s only because his 2021 season was down right atrocious. In 2021, Rios slashed .078/.217/.137, with one home run in 60 plate appearances. However, here are his numbers in the other three seasons in the majors.

2019: .277/.393/.617, 4 home runs in 56 plate appearances
2020: .250/.301/.645, 8 home runs in 83 plate appearances
2022: .244/.293/.500, 7 home runs in 92 plate appearances

So yeah, those 60 terrible plate appearances in 2021, seem like an outlier for Rios because so far in his other 80% of plate appearances he’s been a beast at the plate. Not saying those 231 plate appearances is who Rios will be going forward, but I think there’s no doubt the power in his bat is for real.

We’ll see how Rios fares against the others during spring training and how the roster shakes out before Opening Day. No question, though, competition just got a little tougher for everyone else trying to win a spot now that Rios is in the mix.