TORONTO — The Chicago Cubs faced a decision about how they wanted to value their bench options.

For weeks, backup catcher Reese McGuire made a strong case filling in for the injured Miguel Amaya with his offensive production and work behind the plate. McGuire, though, is out of minor-league options and the Cubs expected he would be picked up by another MLB team if they removed him from the roster.

The Cubs ultimately opted to preserve their catcher depth and will keep three catchers on the big-league squad after they activated Amaya from the 60-day injured list before Tuesday’s series opener in the Rogers Center. Instead, veteran infielder Jon Berti was designated for assignment. Berti had played sparingly lately, particularly following the acquisition of utility player Willi Castro.

Since the beginning of July, Berti appeared in more games as a pitcher (four) than games started in the field (three).

The Cubs also activated right-hander Javier Assad from the 60-day IL, giving him the Tuesday start versus the Blue Jays, and optioned reliever Nate Pearson to Triple-A Iowa.

“Catching is a position that we didn’t want to have to start anew with if something happened, and that’s important, and at this time of the year, we thought that the experience of that is important,” manager Craig Counsell said. “And so we wanted to preserve that but absolutely, Reese certainly plays a part in that, and he’s done a nice job with it.”

Amaya hasn’t appeared in a game for the Cubs since May 24 when he strained his oblique on a throw to second base. Counsell said playing time for Amaya and McGuire is going to be a challenge. Carson Kelly, who started Tuesday, is expected to get the bulk of starts.

“I don’t think we’re going to try to affect Carson’s playing time here,” Counsell said. “In that sense, it may be a little harder for (Amaya) to get into at-bat rhythm. But it’s obviously good to have a good player back.”

Right-hander Jameson Taillon is also nearing a return. He will make another rehab start with Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday, then rejoin the rotation ahead of the Cubs playing six games in five days, thanks to Monday’s doubleheader versus Milwaukee. Counsell doesn’t expect the Cubs to use a six-man rotation beyond that stretch, at least not until they reach September, at which point the organization might consider that option.

Michael Soroka (right shoulder strain) is tentatively scheduled to play catch during the Cubs’ upcoming homestand. The Cubs haven’t plotted out Soroka’s schedule beyond that, but Counsell envisions Soroka needing more than one catch session before progressing to a bullpen. Given the dwindling regular-season schedule, the Cubs won’t build Soroka back up to a starter workload.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/08/12/chicago-cubs-javier-assad-miguel-amaya-jon-berti/