Cody

Poteet

Poteet has already missed more than five weeks with shoulder inflammation. This means he’ll miss at least three more.

Poteet allowed five runs on six hits in 2 2/3 innings for the Orioles on Sunday. He’ll now head to the injured list with Brandon Young coming back up to take his place on the active roster.

Poteet gives Baltimore some additional long relief depth over the next couple days. The 30-year-old righty was acquired from the Cubs back in late March after failing to make Chicago’s season-opening roster following his inclusion in the offseason Cody Bellinger trade with the Yankees.

Poteet was designated for assignment Thursday, and finds a new home a few days later. The right-hander will be a depth piece for Baltimore as long as he stays in the organization.

Poteet was traded to the Cubs from the Yankees in the Cody Bellinger deal this off-season, so we guess that move truly was a salary dump. If Poteet is not claimed by another team, he could return to the Cubs’ minor league system.

The quartet will open the regular season back in the minors as extra organizational depth. Poteet was acquired from the Yankees back in mid-December as part of the Cody Bellinger trade and figures to be on the shortlist to return to Chicago should injuries arise to the starting rotation mix. Kilian made two appearances (one start) last year for the Cubs, while both Hollowell and Neely made a handful of relief appearances last season at the big-league level.

The 30-year-old right-hander also etched his name in the history books, becoming the first player to issue a challenge using the new ABS system in the first inning — getting a ball correctly overturned to a strike against Max Muncy. All of the damage done against him came in the second inning as Eddie Rosario blasted a two-run homer and another run dashed home after Poteet uncorked a wild pitch. Poteet is fighting for a spot in the Cubs’ rotation to start the season, but he’ll need to be much sharper his next couple of times out in order to turn that into a reality.

Poteet is among a handful of options vying for a spot in Chicago’s season-opening pitching stable after coming over from the Yankees in the Cody Bellinger trade. The 30-year-old projects as a versatile swingman for the Cubs after posting a strong 2.22 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 16/8 K/BB ratio across 24 1/3 innings (five appearances, four starts) last year in New York.

Poteet provides the Cubs with a versatile swingman to fortify their starting pitching corps heading into next season. The 30-year-old righty spent most of last year at the Triple-A level, but posted a solid 2.22 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 16/8 K/BB ratio across 24 1/3 innings (five appearances, four starts) for the Yankees. He doesn’t miss a ton of bats and is more of an innings-eating long reliever than someone we’d project as a mainstay in a big-league rotation.

ESPN’s Jesse Rogers adds that New York is absorbing all but $5 million of the $52.5 million left on the final two years of Bellinger’s existing deal, which also includes an opt-out following the 2025 season. The versatile 29-year-old slugger gives the Yankees a quality defensive option in center field in addition to a fallback plan at the cold corner. His left-handed pop should fit perfectly in the hitter’s paradise that is Yankee Stadium. The move makes him a logical bounce-back candidate for fantasy purposes after batting just .266/.325/.426 with 18 round-trippers and nine steals in 569 plate appearances last year following a sublime 26-homer, 20-steal Cubs debut. We’re not expecting him to reach the 30-homer threshold, but a return to 20-plus round-trippers with double-digit steals seems within reach.