In Needed Roster Shuffle, Cubs End Gage Workman Experiment, Sign Nicky Lopez as Bench Filler

[Matthew Trueblood]

After the latest in a series of bad games for the athletic but ultimately overmatched infield prospect, the Cubs cut bait Wednesday. They'll stop the gap with a more experienced, competent defender—but are more reliant on their starters for offense with each such move.

Image courtesy of © Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

Wednesday brought a flurry of roster moves for the Cubs, as they try to survive a gauntlet of an early schedule that has seen them play teams with superb offenses, almost without a break. This time, the urgent need was to freshen the bullpen after yet another demanding, wild contest, so they recalled just-acquired lefty reliever Drew Pomeranz, whom they scooped up in a cash deal with the Mariners earlier this week.

The bigger news, perhaps, was the team giving it a second go with infielder Nicky Lopez, who missed the cut for the big-league roster in spring training because of the scorching spring training showing by Rule 5 pick Gage Workman. After Workman committed two more errors at third base Tuesday night (the latest in a long string of misplays by a toolsy but unpolished defender, with no compensation coming from his overwhelmed bat), the team had little choice but to cut bait on Workman, who is likely to end up back in the custody of the Detroit Tigers.

Lopez answers the otherwise sticky question of who could replace Workman on the roster, because the team has already had to demote Matt Shaw due to poor performance. It was too early to recall Shaw, and there aren't enough available at-bats to justify bringing up top prospects like James Triantos or Kevin Alcántara. Still, the bulk of the freed-up time at the hot corner figures to go not to Lopez, but to Jon Berti, who has acquitted himself nicely in his relatively limited playing time this year.

The Cubs still have a bit of a looming bench problem. Berti was held back from a chance to start every day at third base, in part, because he is so valuable as a floating backup at multiple positions. Now, that job falls to the less impressive Vidal Bruján. Meanwhile, Justin Turner's swing speed is bottoming out in a way that inspires very little confidence about his ability to hit more than the odd single. Lopez makes it a trifecta of punchless infielders backing up the starting lineup.

Nonetheless, the team should be ok with this configuration in the short term. Berti is good enough to bring stability to the bottom of the batting order and to third base, though that's not his best defensive position, either. In the medium term, the team's hope will be to get Shaw right and bring him back to the team, as they did with Pete Crow-Armstrong a year ago. 

As for Pomeranz, he gets the roster spot of the unlucky Gavin Hollowell. After giving the team two sparkling innings in what seemed like low leverage at the time, Hollowell set them up for the comeback win Tuesday night—only to be shuttled back to Iowa, because they can't afford to be down an arm for the next two days or so. If his appearance was any indication, though, he could yet play a larger role for the team as the season progresses. 

Pomeranz, 36, hasn't appeared in the majors since 2021, so this is quite the comeback story. He's purely a fastball-curve guy, and the fastball only sits at 92.7 mph, but it's taken on an enticing cut-ride shape that pairs well with the curve. He also throws from a very high arm slot, and the combination of his slot and his shapes gives hitters a very different look than does, say, Matthew Boyd, who starts Wednesday night for Chicago.

That bullpen spot will remain a revolving door for a while, in all likelihood. Pomeranz is likely to make only a relatively brief stop with the team, unless he performs exceptionally well, is highly efficient, and can avoid being called in to soak up multiple innings amid one of the chaotic games to which this team seems uniquely prone. He's a superior second lefty to either Luke Little or Jordan Wicks, though, and since neither of them were eligible to come back to the majors absent a player being placed on the IL anyway, Pomeranz makes sense. He might be used to help neutralize the left-leaning danger cluster atop the Dodgers lineup, but if he sticks around for the weekend, he could also be of help against the likes of Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber when the Phillies come to Wrigley Field starting Friday.

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