Cubs Den

Cubs set Opening Day 30-man roster

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40-Man Roster Moves

Added to 40-Man: LHRP Rex Brothers, C Josh Phegley

DFA: UT Robel Garcia

To 45-Day IL: UT Daniel Descalso

Opted Out of Playing in 2020: OF Mark Zagunis

The Robel Garcia story was a lot of fun while it lasted. I’m unclear at this writing if Garcia has actually cleared waivers or not, so he could still remain with the Cubs in South Bend this season.

The twisted ankle suffered by Daniel Descalso in the Cubs final exhibition game saved the Cubs from having to waive him. They needed the roster spot and the addition of Jason Kipnis rendered Descalso’s skillset redundant on the MLB roster. I honestly don’t expect to see him play in a MLB game this year.

In the grand scheme of things, the $5M the Cubs guaranteed Descalso when they inked him prior to last season hardly ranks among the franchise’s long history of free agent busts. But the fact he was sold as an upgrade to a popular and less expensive player (Tommy La Stella), and then subsequently fell flat on his face while the guy he replaced immediately earned an All-Star berth will go down as one of the highest profile in a recent string of missteps by the front office. Not only was Descalso a complete bust, but the Cubs doubled down on the misevaluation when the pitcher they acquired in exchange for La Stella never threw a pitch for the Cubs at any level.

Talent drains, both large and small, in trades and free agency became all too frequent beginning in the offseason following the 2016 World Series Championship. It was a stunning turnaround after the majority of the moves the front office made in the rebuild and the push toward building the championship roster netted the organization positive growth. Those failures led to the front office and coaching staff shakeups we’ve seen the past two offseasons as Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer search for answers.

Despite lacking financial means to make dramatic roster moves I have been impressed by the bargaining shopping the front office did this offseason. It gives me hope Theo and Jed have rediscovered their touch. They’ve completely rebuilt the bullpen since the start of last season while also building a more balanced offense. The biggest question marks for this team figure to reside in the starting rotation. An injury to Jose Quintana has only deepened the concerns. With that in mind, lets begin there as we walk through the Cubs Opening Day roster…