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Chicago Cubs: Retooling the infield
After what was long overdue, the Cubs said goodbye to shortstop Addison Russell a couple of weeks ago. Now, after losing Machin to Philadelphia, the club made a new addition in infielder David Masters, formerly of the Washington Nationals.
Masters has been in professional baseball for a while. He is a former 13th round selection by Washington in the 2013 amateur player draft, yet is still only 26 years old. Machin is 26 years old himself, so it doesn’t feel like too much change in direction.
Beginning the year at Low-A, Masters worked his way to Double-A by the end of last season. Across the three levels, Masters slashed a respectable .256/.345/.466 with a .812 OPS. Masters finished his 2019 as an above-average player for all three leagues posting a wRC+ of 131, 150, and 110, respectively.
While Machin should have been protected, Masters is a relatively decent consolation prize and should help to provide at-bats for the infield this upcoming season.