To avoid making a corresponding move on their 25 man roster, Theo Epstein and Company could have gambled by placing Borbon right back on waivers to see if the rest of the National League would have passed on the lefty outfielder. Instead the Cubs front office made the surprise move of designating for assignment Alberto Gonzalez.

Apr 19, 2013; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Jean Segura (9) waits for the call after tagging out Chicago Cubs pinch runner Julio Borbon trying to steal 2nd base to end the game at Miller Park. The Brewetrs beat the Cubs 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

The decision is a bit of a head scratcher because the Cubs are thin in the infield compared to the outfield depth. While Gonzalez is far from being an All Star, he was certainly more productive than the recently waived Brent Lillibridge and the newly acquired Cody Ransom so far in 2013. It was assumed once Gonzalez survived the return of Darwin Barney, his task would have been to survive the return of Ian Stewart in approximately a week.

Instead the move has been made now and the Cubs are left with the 0 for 11 Ransom, to be known as Lillibridge 2.0 until further offensive production notice. Ransom would be the lone back up infielder until the return of Stewart and the Cubs technically do not have a back up at first base with Steve Clevenger on the 60 day DL.

Borbon actually made an appearance in Friday night’s game against the Brewers, coming in as a pinch runner for Dioner Navarro in the top of the ninth. He proceeded to attempt to steal second, but was caught. Currently Borbon would project as a Tony Campana type; a left handed hitter with some speed without much of a power stroke. Borbon may not beat Campana in a foot race, but he figures to hit for a higher average than the former Cub speedster if Borbon can reach his potential.

In terms of the minor league outfield depth, Borbon joins Brian Bogusevic, Ryan Sweeney, and Brett Jackson as the lefty sticks. He of course brings a different type of skill set compared to those three, but it would allow the Cubs the luxury of not having to rush Jackson back.

It remains to be seen how the front office will handle the new found gluttony in the outfield. With Stewart due to return in a week or so, the odd man out may be Dave Sappelt. The right handed platoon member in center field has struggled as the lead off man against left handed starting pitchers, which is suppose to be his forte. The Cubs might as well take their chances with David DeJesus leading off against lefties as well at this rate. Sappelt also has two options remaining, which would mean the Cubs could send him down to the minors without exposing him to waivers.

Otherwise, barring a trade, the Cubs would have to drop Ransom when Stewart returns. A trade for Alfonso Soriano, DeJesus, or Nate Schierholtz figures unlikely this early in the season, as trade value would be best leveraged as contending teams try to reload on the run in July.

Even if the Cubs performance on the field has not been piquing your interest, how the roster moves play out for the good of the team’s future goals is certainly something to keep track of.

March 17, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Chicago Cubs right fielder Dave Sappelt (17) hits a two run single in the fourth inning during a spring training game against the Oakland Athletics at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

With the Opening Day roster beginning to fall into place, many players are learning where they will open the 2013 campaign. On Friday, Chicago Cubs manager Dale Sveum announced that Dave Sappelt would be the team’s fourth outfielder, ending weeks of speculation concerning the 24 year-old.

The 2008 9th-round pick of the Cincinnati Reds will likely play behind David DeJesus, the Cubs’ Opening Day center fielder, who hit .263 with eight home runs and 50 RBIs in 148 games last season. DeJesus is a career .281 hitters in 10 seasons, spent with Kansas City, Oakland and Chicago, and was the first signing of Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer last winter.

Sappelt came to Chicago as part of the Sean Marshall trade, as a “player-to-be-named later”, and saw limited action for the Cubs in 2012. In just 26 games, he hit .275 with two home runs and eight RBIs. While in the minor league system of Cincinnati, Sappelt was highly regarded for his defensive prowess, and he entered this season knowing he had to improve offensively.

“It was my job to lose coming into Spring Training and I had to get back on track hitting-wise, and show them I could play center because it’s a big role that somebody is going to have to be able to fill,” Sappelt said.

Despite knowing this, Sappelt has hit just .182 in 19 Spring Training games, collecting just eight hits in 44 at-bats for Chicago. However, three of those eight hits have left the ballpark, and he has also collected eight RBIs.

In 2011 with Cincinnati, Sappelt turned heads when he hit .564 with 3 homers and 12 RBIs in 20 games, but has struggled offensively since then.

Sappelt manned the corner outfield spots for Chicago last season, and was stuck behind Brett Jackson in Triple-A Iowa. Jackson struggled after a midseason call-up last year in which he hit a disappointing .172 in 13 games. In 106 games at Iowa, Jackson struck out a staggering 158 times in 467 plate appearances, and has been told to focus on shortening his swing this spring.

Sappelt wil likely also see time in the corner slots for Dale Sveum, where he will play behind Alfonso Soriano, who had a career year last season, including 32 home runs and 108 RBIs, his highest totals in eight years, and Nate Schierholtz, who was signed this offseason.

Schierholtz, 29, is a left-handed bat who has spent his entire career with the Giants, and briefly the Phillies in 2012, accumulating a .270 average over six seasons. He gives Dale Sveum a platoon option with Scott Hairston, should Soriano’s lagging knee catches up to him in 2013.

Sappelt is just looking to contribute in any way possible with Chicago in 2013, and he isn’t picky where he’s penciled into the lineup card.

“I bounced around when I got here,” he said. “I don’t have a problem with it. The corners are easy. You can make a lot of good, cool plays. Center is kind of wide open, you can catch them standing up, and the corners you can dive, run into the wall.”

Brent Lillibridge got it started with a double from the two spot in the order. He would score two batters later on Welington Castillo’s triple. The Cubs starting catcher, slotted as the clean up hitter, collected two RBI on that hit. He would later score on a ground out as well.

Mar 14, 2013; Glendale, AZ, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Chris Rusin (18) pitches during the fourth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Lillibridge, trying to get the nod as an option at third base come April, got the scoring going again in the third inning with a lead off single. He would later score on a piece of two out hitting by his hot corner competition, Luis Valbuena.

Mean while, starter Chris Rusin tossed a gem of an outing. The lefty only allowed one hit and one walk over five innings and would have kept going had this not been a Spring game. With the help of his bullpen and the Cubs offense, that effort was plenty good to bump his Cactus League record to 2-0. The scoreless outing also dropped his Spring ERA to 0.69. Somebody wants to be on the team come Opening Day! Unfortunately it will not be as a starter, as manager Dale Sveum seems already set on his starting rotation. More on that in a separate post. Rusin, however, should be in consideration for a spot in the pen as the second lefty, something I have been mentioning all Spring. It will just come down to whether or not the transition from getting starters innings in Arizona will effect his productivity in relief come the regular season.

Speaking of the pen, Cubs relievers would carry on Rusin’s shut out effort until Zach Putnam allowed a score in the bottom of the ninth.  Drew Carpenter was the only other pitcher to toss more than one inning and he finished by allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out two.

Brett Jackson pretty much created a run by himself in he seventh to further extend the lead. He led off the frame with a single and then promptly stole second, his first of the Spring. He would advance to third on a ground out and then score on an errant pick off attempt. Illinois native and back up outfield candidate Brian Bogusevic would tack two more runs in the ninth with a double, adding to his case to be included in the group that will partake in Opening Day festivities in April.

The Cubs improved to 8-11 in Cactus League play.