Cubs sign righthanded reliever Anthony Bass

You’re probably waiting for another Yu Darvish update this morning, but I’ve got something else, because there really isn’t any new Yu news at this time.

Anthony Bass was once a pretty good prospect in the San Diego Padres farm system after being their fifth-round pick in 2008 (interestingly, Justin Wilson and Alex Avila were also selected in that round). As is the case for many pitchers, injuries ruined what might have been a decent career. Shoulder troubles put him on the DL frequently, and after the 2015 season he was traded by the Rangers to the Mariners for Leonys Martin. A month later he was released by Seattle so he could play in Japan.

He wound up a teammate of Shohei Ohtani on the 2016 Nippon Ham Fighters, where he posted a 3.65 ERA and 1.437 WHIP in 37 appearances (14 starts). That was, apparently, good enough for him to be signed by the Rangers again. He pitched mostly in the minor leagues in 2017, primarily at Triple-A Round Rock (4.18 ERA, 1.420 WHIP in 18 appearances, which included 12 starts).

He became a minor-league free agent at the end of the 2017 season. The Cubs are apparently going to take a flyer on him:

There’s been no confirmation of this from the Cubs, but Bass got EXCITED enough to change the profile photo on his Twitter account to one of him wearing a Cubs cap.

I’m strictly guessing here, but I’d assume this is a minor-league signing with a non-roster invitation to spring training. It certainly can’t hurt to give a guy like this a chance. He turned 30 in November; if nothing else he’d be bullpen depth at Iowa.

Welcome to the Cubs, Anthony. Hope you do get a chance to help the team #FlyTheW.