PHOENIX — The televisions in Case Field’s visiting clubhouse were set to different games playing around Major League baseball Thursday afternoon. The Cubs were already two games into their regular season play, after a pair of losses to the Dodgers in Tokyo. But they were part of the celebration for the Diamondbacks’ opener.
“Seeing baseball and TV makes it like an opening day,” left fielder Ian Happ said, standing in front of his locker before the game. “The fact that it’s a night game and we’re watching real baseball from other teams definitely makes it feel like an opening day.”
The Cubs also made a series of moves to set their roster for domestic opening day, which they announced Thursday morning.
They officially selected reliever Brad Keller’s contract, after bringing him in as a non-roster invitee. To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, they designated for assignment right-hander Cody Poteet, who they acquired from the Yankees this winter in the cost-cutting Cody Bellinger trade.
They put relievers Tyson Miller (left hip impingement, retroactive to March 21) and Ryan Brasier (strained left groin, retroactive to March 25) on the 15-day IL, freeing up room on the active roster for Keller and Eli Morgan, who the Cubs recalled from Triple-A Iowa.
They also put infielder Vidal Bruján on the 10-day IL with a sprained right elbow (retroactive to March 23), resolving the bench battle and bringing the Cubs’ active roster to 26.
The Cubs had already revealed Miller and Bruján’s injuries by the end of spring training camp. Brasier, Counsell said, re-aggravated a groin issue in Japan while covering first base. He’d originally felt it early in camp. Once the team returned to Arizona and resumed spring training, Brasier threw ⅓ of an inning against the Braves and gave up three home runs.
“Did not go well when he pitched,” Counsell said, referring to both the results and Brasier’s health.
For the Tokyo Series, the Cubs were allowed 29 active roster spots, with only 26 eligible to play in the two games against the Dodgers. So, they didn’t need to make a move for second baseman Nico Hoerner, who occupied one of those last three spots, to make his season debut Thursday.
“[Domestic] opening day also was not a guarantee at all in this process coming off of flexor surgery,” said Hoerner, who underwent the procedure in October. “So, really grateful for that. Making it to opening day not so much the goal as being healthy for a whole year and being myself – so obviously, still got to do that, but checking the boxes and feeling really good about it.”
Here is the Cubs’ active roster for stateside Opening Day:
Starting pitchers (5)
LHP Justin Steele
LHP Shota Imanaga
RHP Jameson Taillon
LHP Matt Boyd
RHP Ben Brown
Relievers (8)
LHP Caleb Thielbar
RHP Eli Morgan
RHP Porter Hodge
RHP Brad Keller
RHP Colin Rea
RHP Ryan Pressly
RHP Nate Pearson
RHP Julian Merryweather
Catchers (2)
Miguel Amaya
Carson Kelly
Infielders (7)
1B Michael Busch
2B Nico Hoerner
SS Dansby Swanson
3B Matt Shaw
1B/DH Justin Turner
UTL Jon Berti
UTL Gage Workman
Outfielders (4)
LF Ian Happ
CF Pete Crow-Armstrong
RF Kyle Tucker
DH/OF Seiya Suzuki
