Cubs Select Contract of Jason Kipnis, Assign Trevor Megill to South Bend
The Cubs announced Friday that they have selected the contract Jason Kipnis from Triple-A. In order to make room on the 40-man roster, which is still in effect even with the 60-man player pool, they sent cash considerations to the Padres for Trevor Megill and outrighted the Rule 5 pick off the roster. Megill has been assigned to the auxiliary site in South Bend.
https://twitter.com/mlbastian/status/1284224182767714308?s=21
“I always tell people Chicago is the best city in the U.S. during the summer,” Kipnis said after the move was made. “And I realized I’ve never actually been here for the summer. But I stand by that statement. (Now) I finally get to explore and see it at its best.”
Jason Kipnis after the Cubs selected his contract: “I always tell people Chicago is the best city in the U.S. during the summer. And I realized I’ve never actually been here for the summer. But I stand by that statement. (Now) I finally get to explore and see it at its best.”
— Patrick Mooney (@PJ_Mooney) July 17, 2020
“Right now people are looking at second base as kind of a weakness on this team, and it doesn’t have to be that way,” Kipnis told members of the media. “I know both of us are more than capable of stepping in and making it a strong suit.”
Jason Kipnis: "Right now people are looking at second base as kind of a weakness on this team, and it doesn’t have to be that way. I know both of us (Kipnis and Nico Hoerner) are more than capable of stepping in and making it a strong suit."
— Maddie Lee (@maddie_m_lee) July 17, 2020
The other half of that “both” thing is Nico Hoerner, which means Kipnis is giving Daniel Descalso about as much credit as the rest of us. It probably wasn’t meant as a slight, but it’s pretty obvious Kipnis and Hoerner are the top two at second. That only makes sense when it comes to a righty/lefty platoon that can give the Cubs veteran experience and serious upside.
Kipnis staying on the roster also allows the Cubs to give Hoerner a little more protection. Had the season progressed normally, the rookie was likely headed to the minors to work on his plate approach. Without the luxury of letting him develop in the system, the team can now guide his playing time a little more with Kipnis serving as a set of training wheels.
