The Cubs have signed 29-year old switch-hitting FA middle-infielder Alex Cintron to a minor league contract with an NRI to Spring Training. He is expected to report to Fitch Park with the rest of the position players tomorrow.
A native of Puerto Rico, Cintron is a veteran of 598 MLB games over parts of seven seasons, the first five with the Arizona Diamondbacks, and the last two with the White Sox. He has a 277/315/401 career line, but hit only 243/281/324 last season as a back-up middle-infielder with the Sox. His best season was in 2003 with Arizona, when he hit 317/359/489 with 13 HR, but he hasn't come anywhere close to that since. He had elbow surgery after the 2006 season.
Signing Cintron is presumably insurance in case the Cubs end up trading Ronny Cedeno to Baltimore as part of the long-rumored package that would be required to get second-baseman Brian Roberts from the Orioles.
Or the Cubs could opt to keep both Cedeno and Cintron as extra men, although that might cause a problem since they might also feel the need to carry a right-handed hitting or switch-hitting "4th OF" who can back-up all three OF positions and also (if necessary) play CF against LHP.
Since Daryle Ward, Henry Blanco, and Matt Murton (if he doesn't get traded) would seem to be assured of three of the five bench gigs, carrying two back-up middle-infielders on the roster would probably rule out keeping a "4th OF" on the bench.
If he isn't traded, Cedeno (who is out of minor league options) could conceivably prove to be the right-handed hitting alternate CF the Cubs are seeking, but that is far from a sure thing (Cedeno played only about a dozen games in CF in the Venezuelan Winter League), and a lot would depend on how he adapts to the position during the course of ST.
Geiger-Soler put on a fireworks show in yesterday's Daytona Cubs doubleheader...
http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130518&...
Soler...
Interesting tweet in the tweet box: z'Remember when Rizzo was striking out a lot? No K's in last 31 AB's..tied for 2nd longest active streak in majors"
Don't know if that includes last night, but it sure goes a long way to explaining his improved hitting. It's a curious thing, though, the difference between the way his season started and now. How does that happen?
A short doc on a long ago MLB legend
Semi NSFW
http://www.roopstigo.com/reel/morganna-a-kissing-b...
This awesome
http://mlb.mlb.com/photos/gallery.jsp?content_id=4...
Baseball America Hot Sheet:
Christian Villaneuva, 3b, Cubs
Team: Double-A Tennessee (Southern)
Age: 21
Why He’s Here: .435/.500/.739 (10-for-23), 3 R, 4 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBIs, 1 BB, 6 SO, 1-for-2 SB
wow...Arizona Phil's universe intersects with Wrong-way Phil Rogers!
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/14/Pete...
per Roto...
Remember Albert Almora? The Cubs’ first-round pick last June is almost all the way back after breaking his hamate bone in mid-March. He’s been playing center field and hitting in extended spring games in Arizona and should soon be assigned to the low-A Kane County Cougars. There’s no sign yet of Junior Lake, who suffered a stress fracture to the top rib on his right side in mid-March. Outfielder Reggie Golden, a second-round pick in 2010 recovering from two torn ligaments in his left knee, appears close to completing his recovery.
USA Today Article on Mark Appel.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/2013/...
Scouting report
http://orioles-nation.com/2011/07/28/scouting-the-...
#2 Mark Appel
"Analysis: This is Appel or Gray, assuming one of them goes first, with Appel the preference. The Cubs are in the catbird seat in this draft -- they don't have to pay the premium that comes with picking first overall but are guaranteed to get one of the two huge arms in the class."
http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/9277478/...
Why would you want the threading on the balls to be different?
then maybe the greater story is that when he pitched here on the 6th the balls he was using, at least in the 1st inning that day, were PCL's...otherwise, as that Gilda Radner character used to say on SNL, 'never mind...'
America's wang.
MIKE: MLB rehab pitchers always get to use MLB baseballs when they pitch in a minor league game, even at Extended Spring Training. Healthy MLB pitchers use MLB baseballs when they pitch in a Minor League Spring Training game, too. You'll notice the home plate umpire changing out his baseballs every half-inning (unless two MLB pitchers are pitching against each other in the same minor league game).
However, MLB position players rehabbing in a minor league game or playing in a Minor League Spring Training game have to hit minor league baseballs.
The hemorrhoid of America.
florida