It’s been a busy day for the Chicago Cubs, as they have been clearing room down in spring training in order to finalize their Opening Day roster. There have been trades, players reassigned to minor league camp, players optioned to the minors and spots getting cleared on the 40-man roster.
We learned earlier on Monday that Christopher Morel will not be on the team’s Opening Day roster and instead will begin the 2023 season with the Iowa Cubs at Triple-A. Morel’s move to Triple-A is now official and the team has also cleared right-handed relief pitcher Rowan Wick from the 40-man roster.
Wick, who was tendered a contract in the offseason and signed for $1.55 million, entered spring training as one of several pitchers competing for a bullpen role. Although he showed some glimpses of his good fastball, Wick didn’t do enough to earn one of the eight spots in the bullpen and now he’s off the 40-man as well. Wick will join Morel in Triple-A to start the season.
It’s a tough break for Morel, but it’s hard to argue that he won’t benefit from getting consistent playing time instead of occasional starts off the bench in the majors. He has a lot of talent, but Morel does need more time to develop at the plate and although he has great athleticism, Morel has to improve on defense. This should help out Morel in the long term.
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As for Wick, I used to be a big fan when he first came up with the Cubs after they got him from the San Diego Padres. Unfortunately, Wick just hasn’t been able to put up consistent results and unless he’s throwing in the upper 90s, the fastball has been hit hard during the past few seasons.
Earlier in the day, the Cubs also traded left-handed hitting utility man Zach McKinstry to the Detroit Tigers in exchange for 24-year-old pitcher Carlos Guzman.
Now that Wick has been out righted to Tripe-A Iowa and McKinstry has been dealt to the Tigers, the Cubs 40-man roster stands at 38.
The Cubs needed to make some room on the 40-man heading into Opening Day because a few players who aren’t on there already have won jobs on the active roster. That includes Luis Torrens, who will be a third catcher on the bench, as well as right-handed reliever Julian Merryweather.
Taking a closer look at the bullpen picture, Brandon Hughes’ knee issues may force the Cubs to bring Mark Leiter Jr. up to Wrigley Field to be a part of the Opening Day bullpen. Hughes was penciled in as the only left-handed reliever, but knee inflammation has slowed him down in spring training, leaving his spot up for grabs. Leiter, despite being a right-handed pitcher, is at the top of the list to fill in for Hughes because he had dominant numbers against left-handed hitters in 2022.
But whether it’s Leiter or lefty Ryan Borucki that takes Hughes’ spot in the bullpen at the beginning of the season, one of them will have to be added to the 40-man roster.
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