Cubs Designate Owen Miller For Assignment

The Cubs announced they’ve designated infielder Owen Miller for assignment and optioned right-hander Javier Assad to Triple-A Iowa. Those are the corresponding moves to reinstate Daniel Palencia from the 60-day injured list and activate infielder Gabriel Arias, who was recently claimed off waivers from the Mets.

Miller was just called up on Monday as an extra infielder after Dansby Swanson went on the injured list. He played one inning at second base in Tuesday’s walk-off win over the White Sox. Miller didn’t draw a plate appearance and was pushed off the roster when Chicago had a chance to grab a superior defender in Arias.

This did mark six straight seasons with at least one MLB appearance for Miller, a former third-round pick. He has now suited up for four teams and carries a lifetime .238/.287/.342 slash line in a little more than 1000 plate appearances. Miller has had a nice season with Triple-A Iowa, batting .296/.350/.457 with seven homers.

The Cubs should place Miller on waivers this weekend. There’s a good chance he clears, as he’s out of options and would need to jump directly onto a claiming team’s big league roster. Miller would have an opportunity to elect free agency at that point, though the Cubs could try to bring him back on a minor league contract.