Wednesday, Anthony Recker was designated for assignment, removing him from the 40-man roster to make room for Carlos Gutierrez, who was claimed on waivers from the Twins. Some here felt Recker would clear waivers and the Cubs could then invite him to spring training.
That won't happen:
#Cubs backup catcher Anthony Recker was claimed by the Mets. He was taken off 40-man roster Wednesday.
— Bruce Miles (@BruceMiles2112) October 25, 2012
It's not the biggest deal in the world -- I'm sure the Cubs can find another backup catcher somewhere -- but obviously, another team thought he was useful. The Cubs also created four open spots on the 40-man roster Thursday:
#Cubs outright Cardenas, Berken, Socolovich and Mateo to Iowa, taking them off 40-man roster
— Bruce Miles (@BruceMiles2112) October 25, 2012
Adrian Cardenas, Jason Berken, Miguel Socolovich and Marcos Mateo won't be missed by many, particularly me. Some or all of them could get NRIs to spring training.
A quick count -- and I could be wrong -- shows the 40-man roster at 37. (Mateo wasn't on the roster -- he was on the 60-day DL all year.)