The Chicago Cubs haven’t shown much patience with their rookie infielders to begin the season. The Cubs turned to Matt Shaw and Rule 5 pick Gage Workman in March and April after missing out on Alex Bregman in the offseason.
The Cubs sent Shaw to Iowa after his struggles at the plate. He was batting .172/.294/.241 before they demoted him to Triple-A. Chicago ended their experiment with Workman after he made two errors in the team’s win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday.
The Cubs DFA’d Workman after the game and traded him to the Chicago White Sox on Saturday for cash considerations.
Per Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune, Workman said he was glad to be with the White Sox. While he’s thankful for his opportunity with the Cubs, he wants to get revenge on his former team.
“Super excited, grateful to be with this team,” Workman said of the White Sox. “Excited to play and try to make a difference over here and play my game. Grateful for my time with the Cubs and good people over there. But now I’m with the White Sox and I’m excited to be here and now I want to beat the Cubs.”
Workman appeared in nine games for the Cubs. He was batting .214/.267/.286 before the trade.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell thinks the lesson Workman learned by being DFA’d could help the young infielder’s career.
“I told him just because it wasn’t a good experience doesn’t mean it’s not going to help you in your next experience,” Counsell said. “Overall I think this was a good experience for him, but when you’re delivering that message for him it’s bad news.
“If he uses this experience in the right way it’s going to make him a better baseball player and he’s going to be a major-leaguer. I’m very confident he’s going to be a major-leaguer after that conversation and I wish him the best. He’s a good kid and he’s got talent.”
The trade was a win-win for the White Sox. They added a 25-year-old player with plenty of upside.
More importantly, Workman isn’t going to the Detroit Tigers, the team that initially drafted him in 2020.
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The New York Yankees had been on the search for a right-handed hitting infielder. They found their man late Saturday night. Jack Curry from YES Network reported that the Yankees acquired infielder Amed Rosario from the Nationals. In exchange, the Yankees are sending pitcher Clayton Beeter and minor league outfielder Browm Martinez to Washington. The Yankees had been looking for a right-handed hitting infielder in the wake of acquiring third baseman Ryan McMahon on Friday. Rosario is exactly the type of player the Yankees had sought - a solid option capable of playing second and third. He had posted a .270/.310/.426 batting line in 158 plate appearances entering Saturday, hitting five homers and eight doubles. Rosario's greatest attribute for the Yankees is his ability to hit left-handed pitching. He has a .299/.333/.483 batting line in 99 plate appearances against lefties this season, with three homers and seven doubles. He and McMahon should form a solid platoon at the hot corner in New York. However, the Yankees paid a steep price to bring Rosario on board for the next several months. Beeter had been ranked as the Yankees' 20th-best prospect per MLB.com, with his upper-90s fastball and wipeout slider both considered plus offerings. He has operated strictly as a reliever this season, where both his ability to miss bats and questionable command have been apparent. Martinez had been considered a player to watch heading into the season by FanGraphs, citing his solid contact rates and projectability. The 18-year-old is years away from making an impact, but has posted an impressive .404/.507/.632 batting line in 69 plate appearances in the Dominican Summer League, hitting three homers and four doubles while stealing 13 bases. His ability to make contact has been impressive, as Martinez has drawn six walks with just eight strikeouts this season. A promotion stateside could be in the cards before the end of the year.
As the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to search for different ways to improve the roster, one area where the team needs help is depth. This could see Toronto's front office explore multiple options to bring more talent to the team. And it seems that the Maple Leafs are being linked with a former All-Star to help bolster the team. That would be veteran Max Pacioretty, who spent this past season with the Maple Leafs. Toronto and reportedly have mutual interest in a reunion, but nothing has come about yet. Pacioretty was rumored to be retiring earlier in the offseason, but it seems that he could return for another season. The veteran only played 37 games for the Maple Leafs this past season, mainly due to injury. With the Maple Leafs, Pacioretty scored just five goals and put up eight assists. Since his time on the ice was limited, the veteran may want to come back to prove he can still produce. This would give Pacioretty a chance to go out on his own terms, rather than leaving following an injury-riddled season. Pacioretty would give the Maple Leafs some needed depth, and he could play an important role in the backend of the lines. While the veteran isn't the same player that he once was, he could still give this team a jolt if he can stay healthy. But whether he decides to return or call it a career remains up in the air. However, it seems that if he does return for next season, the Maple Leafs may be the only team that he considers.
The Pittsburgh Steelers' signing of quarterback Aaron Rodgers was an immediately polarizing move that did not sit well with large portions of the fan base. It also did not sit well with one of the team's all-time greatest players, four-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Terry Bradshaw. Bradshaw initially referred to the signing of Rodgers as a "joke" and that he should "stay in California and go chew bark" in reference to Rodgers isolating himself in a darkness retreat last year. On Saturday, Rodgers finally had a chance to respond to Bradshaw and did so with a combination of taking the high road, and also trying to make light of it. “I whisper to the gods every single day. I’ve known Terry for a long time, being a part of Fox. Terry’s a legend. He’s an absolute legend. He won four Super Bowls. He’s had a legendary career in the media. But Terry, like a lot of people, doesn’t know me. And so, he’s got an idea of what he thinks about me based on what I’ve done, the documentary, what I’ve said, darkness retreat, whatever the hell you want to talk about. I’d love to get to know Terry on a deeper level. I feel like if he gave me a chance to get to know him, then we’d have a good friendship." He ended the answer by saying, "So, I’d love to get to know Terry on a deeper level if he’s open to it. And maybe we can go chew some bark or whatever the hell he’s talking about together.” The Steelers were in a pretty desperate quarterback situation this offseason after completely overhauling the position for a second year in a row. They missed out on the chance to re-sign Justin Fields, let Russell Wilson walk, missed out on every other veteran who changed teams and passed on the opportunity to select a quarterback near the top of a weak quarterback draft class. (They ultimately selected Ohio State's Will Howard in the sixth round.) The whole Rodgers saga has been quite a soap opera for the Steelers as they waited around for months while he decided on whether or not he wanted to play this season, and if he wanted to play for the Steelers. Add in the fact he has had a tendency to cause some off-field distractions with his comments and weekly "Pat McAfee Show" appearances, as well as the fact he will turn 42 years old this season and hasn't been a top-tier quarterback in three years, and a lot of Steelers fans — and former players — were put off by the idea. The only thing that will matter in the end, however, is how Rodgers plays on the field. He has said all of the right things since joining the team, and his new teammates have all spoken highly of him so far, but it will still come down to results on the field. The Steelers have not won a playoff game in eight years and are facing added pressure each year to end that drought. They are hoping Rodgers has one more good year in him to help them advance in the postseason.
For the first time this year, Vikings fans filled the bleachers at TCO Performance Center on Saturday afternoon. Those who braved the heat and came out to watch their favorite team practice were treated to a show by the 22-year-old quarterback who holds so much of the franchise's future on his shoulders. On the fourth day of training camp (and the third full-speed practice), J.J. McCarthy had easily his best day of work thus far. The highlight was a deep ball to Jordan Addison late in the practice, which drew cheers from the crowd and a celebration from McCarthy. He got the look he wanted and let it rip, hitting Addison in stride over the top of the second-team defense for a 60-yard touchdown. McCarthy had previously cut it loose on a deep ball, with the first one coming when he got the defense to jump offside and had a free play to work with. That one was also placed well roughly 55 yards downfield, but Byron Murphy Jr. was running stride for stride with Jalen Nailor and made a great play to knock the ball down. After the first one wasn't completed, it had to feel good for McCarthy to connect with Addison on that second deep attempt. Earlier, in a 7-on-7 red zone period, McCarthy went 3 for 5 with a trio of touchdowns. To start, he hit Aaron Jones for a score in the flat. After getting into the end zone, Jones clapped his hands over his head to lead the fans in a SKOL chant. McCarthy led Jalen Nailor a bit too far on his second attempt, but the third was a touchdown to Nailor towards the same left sideline. The fourth was a somewhat catchable ball that a leaping Nailor couldn't come down with over the middle. And to cap off the period, McCarthy rifled one to T.J. Hockenson for a score. Another thing we saw from McCarthy, which is important, was the ability to layer the ball over the first level of the defense with touch. There's no question about his ability to throw a fastball, but the offspeed pitch, so to speak, is something he's been focusing on this offseason. He connected with Nailor on a layered throw to the sideline early in the session. McCarthy also hit Hockenson on a nice layered, anticipatory throw over the middle at one point. To be clear, it wasn't a perfect day for the Vikings' young quarterback. He missed a few throws here and there and had a couple plays where he would've been sacked before getting to the read he wanted. Still, I think anyone who was in attendance would tell you it was an encouraging performance on a very hot late-July day. He commanded the huddle, showed off his arm talent, and didn't throw a single interception. Now he'll look to build off that momentum when pads come on for the first time on Monday. Here are some other things I saw at practice on Saturday. Jonathan Greenard is a monster. After making the Pro Bowl last year with 12 sacks, 80 pressures, 18 TFLs, and 4 forced fumbles, Greenard looks to be in line for another big season. I counted at least two would-be sacks and two TFLs against the run over the course of this practice. There was one sequence where he set the edge for a run stop and then burst into the backfield for a sack on consecutive plays. He did it both against the second-team offense and the starters (who are admittedly without Christian Darrisaw). The additions of Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave in the middle should only help Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel continue to dominate. With no Justin Jefferson, the Vikings are using a variety of different receivers as the WR3 alongside Addison and Nailor with the first-team offense. Today, the guy who got the majority of those looks was Lucky Jackson, a practice squad guy now in his third year in Minnesota. Jackson caught a couple balls from McCarthy in a move-the-ball period late in the practice, including a 20-yard chunk gain. He could be a sleeper to make the roster as a depth option. Three members of the Vikings' starting secondary didn't appear to be participating in team periods. Josh Metellus, whose contract extension was announced earlier on Saturday, is dealing with a minor ankle injury and is expected to be back out there on Monday. I didn't see Harrison Smith or Isaiah Rodgers in action, either. That meant the starting safeties were Theo Jackson and Jay Ward, while Mekhi Blackmon joined Jeff Okudah and Murphy at corner on the first-team defense. Backup quarterback Sam Howell has had a fairly shaky start to camp, but he did look a little better today. After his first attempt of the day was swatted by Van Ginkel on a rollout, Howell put together a handful of solid throws. He connected with Jeshaun Jones and Tim Jones for touchdowns in the red zone 7-on-7 period. Jeshaun Jones was Howell's favorite target on the day. He also had a quality completion to rookie Tai Felton later on against the starting defense, then got sacked by Allen and Van Ginkel on the ensuing play. The Vikings will want to see progress from Howell, but he doesn't appear to be in jeopardy of losing his QB2 role to Brett Rypien or Max Brosmer. Speaking of Brosmer, the rookie QB got some good opportunities in this practice, which was the longest of camp so far. He connected with Ben Yurosek in red zone 7s and had a few completions in 11s to end the day, including a nice throw to Dontae Fleming on the final play from scrimmage of the practice. Saturday's session wrapped up with the first kicking work we've seen in camp. Will Reichard, the lone kicker on the roster, went 5 for 6 on a day where there was a bit of wind. He hit from 33, 40, 45, 50, and 54 yards out. His lone miss went narrowly wide left from 48. Reichard's leg power remains something to behold. After an off day Sunday, we'll be back in Eagan on Monday for the first padded practice of camp. Vikings news, rumors, analysis