Gage Workman went 2-for-3 and belted a two-run home run on Thursday, powering the Cubs to a 12-4 victory over the Dodgers in their Cactus League opener.
Workman smacked a two-out single off of Dodgers’ right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the second inning. After going down on strikes in the third inning, the 25-year-old slugger then pulverized a two-run shot off of Justin Wrobleski in the fifth inning that extended the Cubs’ advantage to 8-3. Workman — a Rule 5 pick from the Tigers — has to stay on the Cubs’ big league roster for the entire season or be offered back to his former club. The hope is that he’ll hit enough to function in a utility role, but if Thursday’s performance was any indication, perhaps he has even more than that in store.