Infielder Alberto Gonzalez and reliever Zach Putnman were told Tuesday that they will not make the Cubs’ Opening Day roster, and the team is still monitoring the waiver wire to fill the final spots on the bench and in the bullpen.
With Putnam out of the mix, the in-house candidates for the final bullpen spot comes down to Cory Wade and Hisanori Takahashi, who was scheduled to pitch Tuesday.
“He’s been pitching really well, he’s been getting right-handers out a little easier than left-handers,” Dale Sveum said of the left-hander. “He’s very durable. We know he can pitch two, three, even four innings and get to 90 pitches. He’s valuable in a number of ways. If the game goes really smooth, you can have the possibility of two left-handers in the last three, four innings. I want him to keep throwing strikes like he has and keep doing what he’s doing.”
With Gonzalez out of contention for the bench, that leaves left-handed hitting Steve Clevenger as the only option in camp. He made the Opening Day roster last year as the backup catcher, and can fill in at first or third if needed. The Cubs want another left-handed bat.
“I look at the transactions, and from what I’ve seen there hasn’t been anything that fits our needs as of now,” Sveum said.
Gonzalez may be headed to the Minor Leagues but he will travel with the Cubs to Houston for exhibition games Friday and Saturday.
– Carrie Muskat
