Cubs designate OF Matt Szczur for assignment … Recall LHP Rob Zastryzny from Triple-A Iowa
The Cubs made two roster moves prior to Saturday’s embarrassing loss to the New York Yankees. The Cubs recalled LHP Rob Zastryzny from Triple-A Iowa. To make room on the active roster for Zastryzny, OF Matt Szczur was designated for assignment.
The Cubs 40-man roster was reduced to 38 players, and for Saturday’s game the active 25-man roster had 14 pitchers (five starters, nine relievers) and 11 position players.
Rob Zastryzny, 25, was off to a rough start to his season with the I-Cubs. Zastryzny was 0-1 with a 6.88 ERA and 1.70 WHIP. In seven games, all in relief, Rob Z allowed 14 runs, 13 earned, on 20 hits with nine walks and 13 strikeouts in 17 innings.
Matt Szczur, 27, played in 15 games for the Cubs this season. Szczur batted .211/.273/.263 with one double for a .536 OPS in 19 at-bats. Szczur had only 23 plate appearances.
Szczur was selected by the Cubs in the fifth round of the 2010 draft out of Villanova. In part of four seasons in the majors, Szczur hit .243/.295/.370 with 17 doubles, one triple and eight home runs for a .665 OPS. Szczur had a major impact on the 2016 World Series Champions. Szczur played in 107 games and hit .259/.312/.400 with nine doubles, a triple and five home runs for a .712 OPS.
Brett Anderson’s horrible week not only cost the Cubs three ballgames, his performance also cost Matt Szczur his place in the organization. Szczur will be claimed by another team and will continue his big league career.
Brett Anderson is headed to the DL on Sunday with what will be labeled a back injury. Anderson left in the first inning of Saturday’s game with a lower back injury. LHP Mike Montgomery and RHP Eddie Butler are the two main candidates to take Anderson’s spot in the rotation. The Cubs will likely have to make another roster move to bring in a fresh arm from Triple-A Iowa before Sunday night’s game with the Yankees due to the heavy workload of Hector Rondon, Felix Pena and Rob Zastryzny in the first two games of the series.
The front office has work to do with the pitching staff, mainly the starting rotation.
Matt Szczur will be missed in the clubhouse and on the field. Szczur will always be a Chicago Cub regardless of where he ends up playing the rest of his career.