Cubs infielder Nick Madrigal has only played second base in his big league career thus far, but he’s not likely to see a lot of time there this year. The club’s major investment this offseason was signing shortstop Dansby Swanson, thus pushing Nico Hoerner over to second base. That nudged Madrigal into a competition for time at third base this spring, one in which he seems to have held himself well.
“He’s got to hit,” manager David Ross tells Patrick Mooney of The Athletic. “He still has to perform. That goes for just about everybody. He has missed a lot of time, but he looks really good and his timing looks good. We’ll see how camp plays out, but I definitely think he’s answered questions at third base. There’s no hesitation to put him in there.”
For his part, Madrigal also feels good about how things are going. “I’m focused one day at a time,” Madrigal said. “I’m feeling really good at the plate. Defensively, I feel like it’s all coming together. My body’s in a completely different spot this year compared to last year. I’m just looking forward to what’s ahead.”
Madrigal was hitting .305/.349/.425 for the White Sox in 2021 when a significant hamstring injury ended his campaign. Nonetheless, the Cubs acquired him in the Craig Kimbrel trade at that year’s deadline. Unfortunately, injuries hampered him yet again in 2022, as he made multiple trips to the IL and hit just .249/.305/.282. As noted by Ross, Madrigal will have to hit to hold onto that third base job, but it sounds like the club is fine with him from a defensive standpoint. Should he struggle at the plate, he’ll likely be fending off challenges from players like Christopher Morel, Zach McKinstry and Miles Mastrobuoni. Patrick Wisdom could also be a factor, though he might be getting some more time in the outfield corners with Seiya Suzuki set to begin the season on the IL.
More news out of Cubs camp…
- The Cubs will also be deciding who their fifth starter is, with Marcus Stroman, Jameson Taillon, Drew Smyly and Justin Steele taking the first four spots. It’s viewed by many to be a race between Hayden Wesneski and Adrian Sampson, but Mooney reports that Wesneski is pulling away right now. Sampson, 31, had a nice season for the Cubs in 2022, posting a 3.11 ERA in 104 1/3 innings. However, he’s struggled badly so far this spring, giving up eight home runs in 8 1/3 innings, leading to a 14.04 ERA. Wesneski, 25, has been much better, throwing 8 2/3 scoreless frames with 11 strikeouts. Spring stats tend not to mean too much in the grand scheme of things, but it could be enough to push Wesneski ahead in this case. He also has the higher upside of the two, given he’s younger, has six remaining years of club control and is generally considered one of the club’s top prospects.
- Another decision the Cubs will have to make is whether or not to give right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. a roster spot. Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports that Leiter has an opt-out in his contract that would allow him to return to free agency if he’s not added by March 30, which also happens to be Opening Day. The righty has a solid season for the Cubs last year, tossing 67 2/3 innings over 35 appearances with a 3.99 ERA. However, he exhausted his final option year and had reduced roster flexibility, perhaps contributing to getting outrighted off the roster in January. He elected free agency but returned to the Cubs on a minor league deal.
Dansby strikes out more than he hits.
Braves fan saying this to feel better about his team not signing him. It’s true he K’s too much. But to say what you said smacks of a hurt fan.
He actually does strike out more than he hits.
drasco, do you know his stats? I was never a Swanson, TBH.
I looked him up just to see, he does strike out more than he get hits but that is a lot of major leaguers. It definitely doesn’t mean he is a bad hitter.
I like the Cubs signing of Swanson, not without concerns but he is a guy that could very well out produce any of the shortstops that were signed this past off-season. Good defender and his power keeps increasing. His spray chart is also a really good fit for wrigley.
Hey, @rememberthecoop, go look at his stats. I was never a Dansby fan.
If you say you weren’t a fan of his the past two years then you should add ‘sour grapes’ to your handle.
I’d prefer World Champs
Cubs fans are used to Javier Baez. They don’t care about swing and miss from the shortstop position.
I still think they need to use Luke Little as a closer in AA and move him up on the fast track. Scouting reports have him throwing in the high 90’s very weak contact and he is not that wild. He has the makeup as a closer. This is how closers are born.
Little is years away. Estrada and Palencia are closer to the bigs and just throw smoke also. Little’s biggest advantage is he’s huge and intimidating. There’s a closer in the minors somewhere. Who is it? Maybe even more than one.
Every player now is a few years away. He is I think 23. The game as changed so much. These pitchers takes years to develop pitch only 4 innings a start. Gone are the days when pitchers are in the majors at 23 with only a few exceptions.
Javier Assad is also in the mix as a potential 5th starter.
Assad and Wesneski are way ahead of Sampson at this point.
Ross said Assad isn’t competing to be a starter he’s looking to be in the bullpen
I want to get excited about Wesneski but every time I see his highlights he is strike guys out on pitchs that grossly miss their target. I hope he can be “wildly effective” in the rotation.
To make sense of Madrigal at 3B, he has to play average or better defense and hit .300 or better, because he doesn’t walk much, and his power is non-existent.
Even if Edwin Rios hits .240 but can put up 15-20 homers over the course of a full season, I think he’s potentially more valuable than Madrigal at what I described above. Wisdom has proven that he’s a platoon player at best and can’t control the strikeouts.
At second base, Madrigal’s high contact, low power bat is more acceptable, but the Cubs obviously have a better option in Hoerner now. It’s not easy to find productive second basemen. Corner infielders with pop are a dime a dozen.
Moral of the story: Madrigal better play to his potential and probably beyond if he wants to hold onto 3B. I wish they would have tried him as a CF option instead.
Madrigal said. “I’m feeling really good at the plate.
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Whistling by the graveyard. He has a 4/1 K/W with -0- HRs. I loved the trade when they made it, but if he doesn’t occasionally go deep, he won’t survive.
Sorry Ryan. Nicky No Arm is barely adequate at 3B. To say you want to put him in CF with no arm would be a disaster. What are you going to sit Bellinger or Morel to put him out there? Not a prayer.
I really don’t think the Cubs are looking at Madrigal as a full-time solution at third. I’m thinking more of a tommy lastella type with better defense. He can play third in a pinch and can play second give the Cubs a three card Monty type situation with third, short and second base.
Rios barely played 3rd after his 1st couple years because he’s brutal defensively. He hasn’t played 3rd this spring for the Cubs, so that is a pretty good indication of where he fits. He also strikes out more than Wisdom.
Wisdom is going to be the main guy at 3rd. He’s lead the Cubs in HRs the last 2 years. 2nd in RBIs. And he’s solid in the field. He dropped his K rate from 40% to 34% last year.
I’m I like Madrigal but I’m not sure where he fits in this roster. I’m assuming the Cubs are hoping he hits like he always has, build value and then trade him.
He hasnt played third or you haven’t been paying attention? I’m guessing the latter.
The idea of Nick Madrigal, who already has a weak arm at second base, getting significant playing time at third is a f___ing joke.
DH would be a bizarre spot to put him in bc of his zero power, but if he can be around .300 like they expected when they traded for him, it might make a little sense. He’s just not great in the field no matter where you put him.
Madrigal is barely adequate at 3B defensively so to be any use at all he would have to hit .300 and lead off AND not get hurt. Tall order. Sure you can play Madrigal at 3rd like you can play David Bote at SS. Doesn’t really mean it’s a good idea.
Leiter has earned a spot IMO. Will he get it without options? I have my doubts. It’s going to be very beneficial to have a bullpen where people have options to bounce up and down. Games are going to pile up eventually and having the ability to just bounce guys back and forth instead of exposing them to waivers is going to be key.
Sampson has basically stunk all spring and Wesneski has looked great so he should get the nod. Doesn’t really matter who gets that spot as nobody will keep it all year long and tht includes Hendricks even if his shoulder holds up which I still say it won’t.
If it was up to me, Mckinstry, Wisdom and Bote would be DFA’d. Rios and Madrigal can start at 3B and Madrigal has options if they need to dip down and get somebody if he gets hurt again. Things are going fine for me, Big improvement over last year. Whoever gets that 5th starter job probably won’t start til the 10th of April at the earliest with weather and off days figured in. Haven’t really looked at it.
Bote has already been removed from the 40 man and has options, so no need to DFA. Right now Wisdom, Rios and Bote all stand to be more valuable hitters than Madrigal because he doesn’t get on base at a high clip and doesn’t hit for power. So no, Madrigal is the one that should be sent down still having options. It’s also the only way he can rebuild any value…not playing every couple of days out of position.
I doubt Bote has any options left but even if he does he makes 4 million bucks whether he’s in the Majors or Minors so I’m sure the Cubs would expose him to waivers and hope someone claims him as he seems to finally be healthy for the first time in 3 years. He might be worth a claim to one of the bottom feeders.
Bote was already exposed to waivers when he was outrighted off the 40 man. He went unclaimed because of that price tag. He has one minor league option remaining. He could choose to opt out of his contract to become a free agent but then he walks away from the money the Cubs owe him this year ($4MM), next year ($5MM) and his 2025 buyout of $1MM.
Bote has already been removed from the 40 man and has options, so no need to DFA. Right now Wisdom, Rios and Bote all stand to be more valuable hitters than Madrigal because he doesn’t get on base at a high clip and doesn’t fhit for power. So no, Madrigal is the one that should be sent down still having options. It’s also the only way he can rebuild any value…not playing every couple of days out of position.
Mike, zero chance Wisdom is DFA’d, he’ll be get the majority of time at 3rd And zero chance Rios is competing at 3rd. He’s actually competing with Hosmer at 1st. Rios is no good at 3rd. I don’t know why people prefer him over Wisdom. He strikes out more than Wisdom.
Wood- Granted all I’ve seen of Rios is a small sample size this spring but he’s LH. And I would dispute the fact that Rios is competing with Hosmer as Hosmer is competing with Mervis for playing time, After his date is passed anyway. Cubs have guys who whiff a lot but what they don’t have much of is contact hitters which is something Madrigal gives them. If Hoyer and Hawkins can swing deals for Madrigal and Bote all the better. But Wisdom is out of options and I like him as much as anybody. I keep hoping they’ll get him glasses or something that makes him better, because he does everything else really well. It’s a shame but I think he can go, But you’re probably right, They don’t have his replacement just yet. Gonna be interesting to see what Ross wants.
I don’t think Mervis is playing in Chicago on opening day. I’m thinking that the lefty bat at 1st is Rios or Hosmer. I really don’t think Rios is competing at 3rd.
Hence why I said when his date has passed. Whatever day that is that the Cubs get another ARB year. If Hosmer is still a factor when that day comes he stays. If not, Mervis will step in. Hence why Hosmer is competing with Mervis not Rios. Unless Mervis is struggling, Which I don’t think will happen.
I’ll take the Javier Baez contract over the Swanson one. Should have signed one of the big 3 shortstops or just waited until next offseason to spend that money on someone who can actually hit. Swanson was batting 9th for the Braves like a year ago. He just wasn’t worth anywhere near what the Cubs gave him.
He hasn’t even played a game yet and it’s a bad deal? Wow that’s a pretty quick judgement Hban. He didn’t get the money for his bat anyway. he got it for his glove. The Cubs are building an Organization based on pitching and defense. I thought that was obvious anyway. The Cubs won’t be playing many 12-11 games for awhile.
I agree with you that it’s not really fair to call the contract a bust quite yet, but I very highly doubt Swanson ends up being even close to worth the amount he was paid. The Cubs could have just extended Javier Baez for less money. Báez is as good defensively as Swanson, if not better. When he’s cold, obviously he’s ice cold but when he’s hot he can still mash. Báez has better power, speed and defensive versatility. He’s wildly inconsistent but definitely the more talented overall player. I see his contract aging better than Swanson’s despite his awful 2022 showing.
Bote has already been removed from the 40 man and has options, so no need to DFA. Right now Wisdom, Rios and Bote all stand to be more valuable hitters than Madrigal because he doesn’t get on base at a high clip and doesn’t fhit for power. So no, Madrigal is the one that should be sent down still having options. It’s also the only way he can rebuild any value…not playing every couple of days out of position.
Say it a few more times.
I was at rain out last night. They got 4i in before it was called. Madrigal at 3B. Liner that wasn’t that high was out of his reach. Another challenge for him to play 3B. He’s in a tough spot right now.
Call Detroit. They might be willing to make that trade.
What I thought was a turnaround year is going to to be an exploratory year. In otherwords, the Cubs will not be a playoff contender but discover who will stay as the minor league kids develop. Madrigal is worth giving a chance to prove himself. As for Swanson, I was disappointed we spent so much money for a position we didn’t need. I believe Hoerner is a better shortstop. Hoyer was pigeonholed by the fans and media to get a shortstop. Let’s see where we land this year for the future is bright.
i hope so i want see good nail biting cards cubs games in september where both teams have something to play for. a rivalry is only fun to watch when both teams are good.
I surprised there are Cub fans that didn’t understand this was exactly what you said, a year they see which prospects emerge (Davis, Steele, Wesneski, Killian, Mervis and on and on). That’s why they signed so many short term deals, like Bellinger and Mancini. After this season they’ll see what they have and fill in the gaps.
It’s great they spent a lot of money, but they kept flexibility to spend next year…. I kinda thought it was obvious.
I wanna talk to Samson.
Madrigal does not strike out , makes contact , need a couple contact hitters sprinkled in this lineup