26-year infielder Robel Garcia has taken the minor leagues by storm this off season. He was signed to the Cubs organization out of Italy and has done nothing but hit.
In 22 games for Iowa he has hit .295/.391/.590 with six home runs, and overall he has hit an impressive 17 home runs in 59 games. It's getting to a point where the Cubs have to seriously getting a look at what he could provide at the big league level.
It would be hard for Garcia to find an everyday role for the Cubs, they already have Kris Bryant at third and Javier Baez at short. The majority of his minor league playing time has come at second base, but he has played just four games there this year, and there's no assurances he will be a good defender.
His best bet would be to settle into a similar role like David Bote, not necessarily playing every day, but getting enough playing time at various positions you essentially are an everyday player. There are no assurances that his hitting will translate to the big leagues, but if it does than the Cubs have a legitimate bench threat in Garcia.
Garcia is a switch hitter so there isn't much of a platoon consideration, the most realistic options for him is to take the place of Daniel Descalso or Addison Russell.
Descalso got off to a somewhat quick start with a .757 OPS through May 1st, but since then he has been absolutely horrific slashing .098/.211/.131 in 33 games and 72 plate appearances. The signing was a questionable one at the beginning, but has proven to be a disaster. The Cubs have to seriously consider cutting bait, especially if they want to be a World Series contender. Of course there are contract considerations to be made here, as he is guaranteed $2.5 million for 2020 and $1 million in a $3.5 million team option for 2021
Russell has been better than Descalso, but still hasn't been as productive as the Cubs would like. He's hitting just .230/.296/.379 since returning from his domestic violence suspension. Although his power is up from 2018, it's still down from where it was in 2016-17. His defense has still been strong range-wise with a 1.2 UZR in 58 innings.
If Garcia continues to force his way into the big league club the best option would probably be to get rid of Descalso, he has been a complete negative to the Cubs and it's something that can't continue to last for much longer.
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