MLB Player News

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Thursday that Wicks will be part of the Opening Day rotation, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Wicks won a spot on the strength of a 2.60 ERA and 12:2 K:BB over 17.1 innings this spring. The left-hander lacks strikeout upside, but a plus changeup and a good number of groundballs gives him a chance at deep-league fantasy relevance.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell confirmed Thursday that Smyly will begin the season in the bullpen, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Though Jameson Taillon (back) is slated to begin the season on the injured list, the Cubs are electing to fill the final two spots in the five-man rotation with Jordan Wicks and Javier Assad rather than opening the campaign with Smyly in a starting role. Counsell noted that he still expects Smyly to make starts at some point this season, so the 35-year-old lefty presumably checks in at seventh on the organization's rotation depth chart, including the injured Taillon.

King (1-0) gave up three runs on four hits and three walks while striking out five batters over 3.1 innings in a win over the Dodgers on Thursday in Game 2 of the Seoul Series.

King picked up the victory and racked up a healthy strikeout total in his first regular-season outing as a Padre, but the appearance wasn't smooth for the ex-Yankee. He made it through his first frame without giving up a run despite yielding a pair of hits, but Mookie Betts tagged the right-hander for a two-run homer in the fifth inning and drew a walk that led to another run on King's ledger in the seventh. Despite entering in the fourth frame, King ended up with an early-season starter's workload (75 pitches), and he's fully expected to hold down a rotation role moving forward. His work in relief Thursday was likely a one-off consequence of the Padres' next regular-season contest being one week away.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Thursday that Assad will begin the season in the rotation, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Jameson Taillon's back injury opened up another spot in the rotation and Assad has won it over Drew Smyly. The right-hander didn't pitch well this spring but has earned the shot with some fine work in a swingman role for the Cubs over the last two seasons with a 3.06 ERA.

The Cubs reassigned Pannone to minor-league camp Thursday.

Over a small sample of eight innings in spring training, Pannone struck out six while allowing just one earned run on four hits and one walk. Despite the strong showing in Cactus League play, Pannone was unable to win a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day bullpen after attending camp as a non-roster invitee. The 29-year-old has previously made 50 appearances at the big-league level over parts of three seasons, though just one of those came in 2023.

The Cubs reassigned Lovelady to minor-league camp Thursday.

Lovelady attended camp as a non-roster invitee after joining the Cubs on a minor-league deal over the winter. The right-hander logged a 4.63 ERA and 1.07 WHIP across 23.1 innings in 27 appearances out of Oakland's bullpen in 2023, but he fell short in his bid for a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day relief corps.

Betts went 4-for-5 with a home run, a double, a walk, two total runs and six total RBI in Thursday's loss to San Diego in the second game of the Seoul Series.

The Padres built an early 9-2 lead before Betts almost single-handedly brought the Dodgers back into contention with a two-run double in the third inning, a two-run homer in the fifth and a two-run single in the eighth. Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com, the six RBI were his most in a game since 2017 and tied for the third-most in any game in his career. Betts is off to a fast start in his 11th big-league campaign -- during the season-opening two-game set in South Korea, Betts went 6-for-9 with seven total RBI.

The Cubs reassigned Bote to minor-league camp Thursday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Bote slugged five home runs during Cactus League play, but he came into camp with little chance at a roster spot. The 30-year-old spent all of the 2023 season at Triple-A Iowa and will head back there to start 2024. Bote is in the final season of a five-year, $15 million extension he signed with the Cubs in April 2019, but he hasn't seen any big-league action since 2022 after being moved off the 40-man roster.

Robles went 2-for-3 with two doubles and two runs scored in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals.

The 26-year-old center fielder may be on his last chance with the Nationals, but he's at least risen to the occasion this spring, batting .345 (10-for-29) with a homer, a steal and a 4:9 BB:K. Robles also battled a hamstring issue earlier in camp though, and his health is a major concern after he managed to play only 36 games in 2023. If he struggles at the plate again or can't stay in the lineup to begin the current campaign, it may not be long before he cedes his starting job to a top prospect like Dylan Crews or James Wood.

The Cubs reassigned Brewer to minor-league camp Thursday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Brewer made a nice impression this spring in yielding just one run over five innings, but there's no room for him in the big-league bullpen. The 31-year-old finished last season in Japan before inking a minor-league deal with the Cubs in January.