NEWSLETTER
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Keegan Thompson has thrown 5.1 scoreless innings in a row with just one hit and seven strikeouts (well, that … and 4 walks (but it was still a nice stretch)). So naturally, he’s going on the Injured List with a right rib fracture, retroactive to yesterday. Because of course he is.
But that move does not come in isolation. Everyone has the news, but Andy Martinez lays it all out succinctly:
Okay, so with Thompson to the injured list, the Cubs are recalling Ethan Roberts, who has worked his butt off to break back into the big leagues.
You may remember Roberts, now 26, as the last guy to make the Cubs roster out of Spring Training in 2022, which made for a wonderful and emotional in-game moment. Unfortunately, he suffered an arm injury early in the year and eventually needed Tommy John surgery, missing all of 2023. The Cubs then non-tendered Roberts over the offseason, before re-signing him to a minor league deal.
He’s since thrown 15 innings at Triple-A Iowa this season, striking out 18 batters and allowing ZERO earned runs. Here’s hoping it carries over and this becomes one of the feel-good stories of the year.
So that’s a pretty straight-forward 1-1. Thompson to the IL, Roberts to Chicago (or Milwaukee, rather).
On the flip side, the Cubs are calling up Jorge Lopez, whom they picked up after all that drama with the Mets. And to make room for him on the active and 40-man roster, they’re DFA-ing a guy they signed … yesterday, Vinny Nittoli, who did not even wind up pitching for the Cubs. Maybe they just really wanted insurance for yesterday’s game and Nittoli was physically capable of being in San Francisco? Really weird.
In any case, if Nittoli does clear waivers, I believe he will be able to become a free agent instead of heading to Iowa, but the Cubs may just be hoping that he’ll accept an assignment to Triple-A. There’s still a good chance to break into this bullpen at literally any given moment, but there are a lot of bullpens out there.
So that’s the news: Roberts and Lopez in, Thompson (IL) and Nittoli (DFA) out. What a clusterf— this season has been in terms of the IL.
