Cubs Claim Gabriel Arias

The Cubs announced that they have claimed infielder Gabriel Arias off waivers from the Mets. New York designated him for assignment earlier this week. Right-hander Phil Maton has been transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot. Arias is out of options and will also need an active roster spot once he reports to the team.

Arias, 26, was once a prospect of note but he hasn’t been able to click in the majors yet. He got a lot of run with the Guardians but never really capitalized on it. He finally wore out his welcome on the Cleveland roster earlier this month, getting designated for assignment. The Mets claimed him but he got the DFA treatment yet again after just ten days on the New York roster.

To this point, Arias has stepped to the plate 1,173 times in the big leagues. His 6.5% walk rate is a couple of ticks below league average while his 34.3% strikeout rate is more than ten points worse than par. He has a combined line of .218/.274/.358 over five seasons, leading to a 76 wRC+ which indicates he has been 24% worse than average at the plate overall.

There is some appeal in the other parts of his game, mainly in his defensive versatility. He has played every position on the diamond apart from the battery. His outfield experience is fairly limited but he has almost 1500 shortstop innings, over 500 at third base, and roughly 200 at both second and first base. He has generally received good grades for his glovework, having been credited with seven Outs Above Average at short.

The Cubs just put Dansby Swanson on the injured list with an oblique strain. Nico Hoerner will move over from second base and cover short while Swanson is out. Pedro Ramírez will likely get the bulk of second base playing time for now. Ramírez has no major league experience at shortstop and it’s been years since he saw regular action there in the minors.

The Cubs selected Owen Miller earlier this week when Swanson hit the IL in order to give Hoerner a proper shortstop backup, but even Miller isn’t ideal for that role. He has extensive minor league experience at short but only eight big league innings. Arias gives the Cubs a sturdier fallback at shortstop, so he could perhaps replace Miller on the bench, or the Cubs could option outfielder Kevin Alcántara while keeping both Miller and Arias on the bench. Miller is out of options and would need to be bumped off the 40-man if he’s not holding his active roster spot.