Cubs Set Opening Day 30-Man Roster – Some Pretty Big Surprises
A day before the opening of the 2020 season, the Chicago Cubs have officially announced their 30-man roster. With this announcement, there are a couple surprises which I will get into.
Ok, the first thing I see is Daniel Descalso has been added to the 45-day IL. If you watched the last tune-up against the Minnesota Twins, Descalso fouled a ball off his leg and came up gimpy. He stayed in to finish the at-bat, but was removed between innings. While there hasn’t been an official statement from the Cubs on his injury, I think this was the polite way to tell him to go away.
With a 60-game season and Descalso on a 45-day IL AND the rosters shrinking by the time he is ready to come back – Descalso might not play another game in a Cubs uniform. I know how Cubs fans will react to this.
The next injury is Jose Quintana, which we already knew about. He is on the IL for 15 days, and I believe he will be re-evaluated after this weekend. He has been throwing, and while he hasn’t expressed concern, there was significant damage, and throwing him back in the mix too soon isn’t the best course of action.
Now on the surprise additions!
The Cubs have added a third catcher in Josh Phegley. Phegley is a seven-year veteran with some defensive ability. Manager David Ross, who was a catcher himself, will give himself more options carrying a third catcher – and it might be very important this year.
Anthony Rizzo’s back can flare up at any time and an obvious replacement at first base is Victor Caratini. If Caratini is at the three position, they will need a backup catcher for Willson Contreras. If the back tightness Kris Bryant experienced carries over to the season, Caratini can also fill the void at third if needed (albeit, David Bote will likely find more time at the hot corner). But additionally, if Contreras is hitting the ball in the season as he has been during the tune-ups – he will be in all 60 lineups Ross puts out there.
This means Contreras will likely find time in left field and DH, which again makes a backup catcher even more important.
The addition of Dillon Maples might not be a surprise as it seems everyone is very high on him. Maples might have the hardest stuff to hit on the Cubs staff, but his problem continues to be control. He could strike out the side while not allowing a hit, but he may also walk four and allow a run to score in that same inning.
Perhaps the surprise with Maples is that Ryan Tepera was left off the roster while Maples was added. Tepera has experience at this level, and has been very successful.
You have to feel good for a guy like Casey Sadler. A young dude that has bounced around a bit and has made his first Opening Day roster. He also proved he belonged in 2019 posting a 2.14 ERA in 46 innings, while only allowing 13 walks and 14 runs.
One fear
My biggest fear with the Cubs is Craig Kimbrel. While I believe he will be fine and once the lights turn on and the season starts, he will dominate as he always has. But the fear is, he’s no longer an outlier. He used to have a fastball that was a top 5 FB in baseball. Now, a long reliever or spot starter that comes into games in the fifth inning has a fastball that clocks in faster than his 97.
The idea to add the changeup was a good one, and if he can throw it consistently enough, and command it enough, he can distance hitters off that fastball. But if that pitch is garbage, and just a show me pitch, hitters will ignore the changeup, they’ll ignore the knuckle-curve, and they will feast off his fastball.
If Kimbrel cannot get consistent outs as the closer, who steps in to take over? Brad Wieck or Kyle Ryan? If so, the team would need to find another lefty to round out the pen.
