Cubs acquire RHP Matt Carasiti from Rockies

The Cubs and Rockies made a deal tonight as the Cubs sent left-hander Zac Rosscup, who had been designated for assignment, to Colorado in exchange for right-handed pitcher Matt Carasiti.

The Cubs acquired Rosscup before the 2011 from the Rays alongside Matt Garza for Chris Archer, Brandon Guyer, Robinson Chirinos and others. He pitched in 61 games from 2013 to 2015 for the Cubs, mostly as a LOOGY (left-handed, one-out guy) before missing all of 2016 with a shoulder injury. He pitched well for Iowa this summer in his return from surgery and made one appearance in the majors on May 22, retiring both batters he faced. Rosscup was DFA’d as part of a numbers game to open up a spot on the 40-man roster for outfielder Mark Zagunis.

Carasiti, 25, has looked good for the Rockies Triple-A Albuquerque affiliate, posting a record of 1-1 with a 2.37 ERA in 30.1 innings. He struck out 43 and walked just 13 while saving 16 games in 19 attempts. That’s even more impressive considering he pitches half his games at 5300 feet. He did struggle in the majors with the Rockies last season, giving up 16 earned runs in 15.2 innings over 19 relief appearances. However, he did not allow a run in his final 8 appearances.

I don’t know much about Carasiti, but Bobby DeMuro, who knows a lot about minor leaguers on the West Coast, tweeted this to me:

The Albuquerque play-by-play broadcaster also said that Carasiti was one of the most popular players in the dugout, so that’s good news for the fans in Des Moines.

Obviously this is a minor move that may end up being nothing. But to get something for Rosscup is clearly better than getting nothing at this point, so this was a good move for the Cubs.