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Mike Montgomery, acquired in trade from the Mariners Wednesday, was added to the Cubs 25-man roster and will be available for Friday's contest.
Spencer Patton, who did not pitch in any of the six games after the All-Star break, was optioned to Triple-A Iowa to make room for Montgomery, according to the Cubs' transactions page (and they really must have liked that trade, as it's listed four times!).
The trade to the Mariners included Dan Vogelbach, who was on the Cubs' 40-man roster, so Montgomery takes that 40-man roster spot. By my count there is one open spot on the 40-man.
There's no word yet on Dexter Fowler, but here's some information:
#Cubs athletic trainers want to check Fowler. No official move there. And no lineup. Waiting on Fowler
— Carrie Muskat (@CarrieMuskat) July 22, 2016
Hopefully, Fowler is ready to start tonight's game. It's presumed that Albert Almora Jr. would be sent to Iowa with Fowler's activation, but then there's this tweet seen earlier Friday afternoon:
Almora Jr. going through a series of running drills under supervision of Mainville and Buss.
— Mark Gonzales (@MDGonzales) July 22, 2016
The plot thickens. Almora's likely still with the team just in case Fowler isn't quite ready to be activated. I'm posting this now because the info's out there. Other useful bits of information:
Also, #Cubs Coghlan to start at @smokiesbaseball tonight. Soler headed to Tenn to continue his rehab
— Carrie Muskat (@CarrieMuskat) July 22, 2016
Montgomery will wear No. 38.
— Mark Gonzales (@MDGonzales) July 22, 2016