Cubs News: Former Brewers infielder signs, Colin Rea's struggles, Ben Brown

The Chicago Cubs have made practice out of bringing in just about any available pitcher they can gets their hands on over the last couple of months, but he latest minor-league move saw the Cubs turn to a former Milwaukee Brewers utility outfielder.

The Cubs have signed Greg Jones to a minor-league deal, and have assigned him to Triple-A Iowa. Jones is likely an immediate replacement for Scott Kingery, who was released earlier this week. Kingery was a surprise addition to the Cubs' Opening Day roster, but was quickly optioned when Seiya Suzuki returned from his PCL sprain.

Cubs take a low-risk flier on Greg Jones, offering another potential speed option in the bench

Jones had a cup of coffee with the Brewers earlier this season, collecting two hits in 24 plate appearances. He had 21 steals while playing with Milwaukee's Triple-A affiliate this season.

It's also possible the Cubs taking a gamble on the high-upside Jones previously had. He was a former first-round pick with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2019, but was never able to put it together offensively. He does offer the speed and positional versatility to be a potential option on the bench in September.

Extended stay in the Cubs' rotation might be exposing Colin Rea

There's no question that Colin Rea has been the unsung hero for the Cubs' starting rotation over the past year, but we might be reaching the time where a move back to the bullpen is in order. In the Cubs' 5-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday, Rea gave up four runs on six hits, including two home runs.

While the trend for Rea has previously been a clunker sprinkled in across a string of a competitive starts, clunkers are starting to become the theme.

At the moment, the only other option the Cubs have for the rotation is Javier Assad. If anything, the recent regression from Rea is a reminder of how important the deadline is for the Cubs. The Cubs have to add an established starting pitcher, and allow Rea to find his success again out of the bullpen.

Ben Brown inching closer to next step of recovery, return still uncertain

Craig Counsell confirmed that Ben Brown has resumed baseball activity, playing catch with plyo balls and baseballs. Counsell has previously confirmed that Brown has been asymptomatic, but the Cubs are making sure the symptoms don't return before moving to the next step.

Counsell did suggest that Brown was close to advancing to the next step of his recovery, but didn't provide an exact timeline on when that would be. As for Brown's role upon his return, the indication is that he might be pitching out of the bullpen instead of going back to the starting rotation.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow