Chicago Cubs: Victor Caratini working his way back

The Chicago Cubs back up catcher has started his rehab assignment with Class-A South Bend and is working his way back to the big leagues after suffering a broken bone in his hand.

Victor Caratini had one of the hottest bats in the first two weeks of the season for the Chicago Cubs. He was batting a solid .545 with one homer, two doubles, and four RBI in five games that he appeared in. In a year that lacked bright spots to start, Caratini was one of them.

Then on April 11 in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, a game that Caratini had two doubles in during his second double of the night he broke his hamate bone in his left hand. His left hand would need surgery, and he was scheduled to be out four to six weeks. This was a huge blow at the time to the Cubs because they had seemed like they were starting to turn the corner after the dreadful start. With the injury, the Cubs had to call up Taylor Davis to be the Cubs backup catcher.

Like all of us, Cubs fans know the backup catcher position is a significant one on a big league team. David Ross played one of the most prominent roles in the 2016 season. Now I’m not saying Caratini is David Ross, but it just shows the value of the role. Caratini was talked about most of the offseason as many Cubs fans wanted the Cubs to go out and get a veteran backup catcher. With the way Caratini was playing before the injury it seemed he calmed that talk way down.

Caratini was sent to Class-A South Bend to begin his rehab assignment on Tuesday. He caught the first four innings in his first game back. His presence was felt behind the plate as Derek Casey and Peyton Remy combined to pitch a no-hitter for South Bend. Caratini also went 1-for-2 in the game. Caratini again played last night in South bend going 1-for-3 with a walk.

According to Oliva Ray on Twitter, who had a conversation with Caratini before last nights game he said that he wanted to get about 15 more live at-bats before he rejoins the big league team. So if that’s the case, he will need a few more games in the minors before he is ready to join the Chicago Cubs again. Hopefully by the middle to end of next week, he will retake his backup catcher role and continue on the hot streak he was on.