Scott Hairston's contract was finalized, so a move had to be made on the Cubs 40 man roster. Tony Campana was designated for assignment.
Hairston becomes the third/fourth platoon outfielder for the team. Dave Sappelt, who current management traded for in the Sean Marshall deal, stays over Campana for the fifth outfield slot.
Campana, 26, batted .262 with nine
doubles, one home run, 54 stolen bases, a .306 on-base percentage and a
.300 slugging percentage in 184 games with the Cubs over the last two
seasons. He totaled 30 stolen bases last season, tops on the Cubs and
ninth most in the National League. However, he had trouble getting on base, even with his speed.
The Cubs now have 10 days to trade Campana or place him on waivers. He could return to the team if not claimed. It is possible that no team is running to pick up a mere pinch runner, base stealer prior to spring training. Campana will probably land back at AAA Iowa for this season.
The choice shows that the Cubs offensive philosophy is still a station-to-station grind. None of the projected starters are base stealing threats. That means the club needs to generate more walks to move base runners into scoring position. This is something that the club did not do well last season, even with Campana on the roster.
It would be fine if the Cubs have an old Earl Weaver, Oriole lineup where the three-run home run was the offensive weapon of choice. But the Cubs only have two recognized home run hitters: Soriano and Rizzo. The push for Starlin Castro to hit with more power will hurt his batting average and on-base percentage. Wellington Castillo has just HR potential at this point since he has not caught a full season at the major league level. Ian Stewart is still living off five year power numbers and he is not expected to contribute much this season.
UPDATE:
Bruce Levine, ESPN reports that last August, the White Sox made a waiver claim on Campana. However, the Cubs pulled Campana back off waivers
when the two sides failed to agree on a trade.
Levine thinks it appears unlikely that a deal will be made at this time. The
Cubs and Sox have not had conversations about Campana as of Wednesday,
according to his report.
In August, the Sox were looking for a speed player in hopes of
winning close games with a stolen base or a forced defensive mistake.
Campana stole 30 bases with the Cubs in 2012 despite a reserve role.
The White Sox did bring back DeWayne Wise to bolster their outfield last season. But the Sox are looking for a real lead off hitter, and Campana does not meet that criteria because he does not get on base enough.
If Campana is not traded, he will go on waivers. If he goes unclaimed, the Cubs can offer him a minor-league contract.
As Levine noted, trades between the Cubs and Sox are uncommon due to the possible negative result from a lopsided deal.
