Dismissed NY Mets player gives Cubs a chance to make the most ironic roster move

The Chicago Cubs made maybe the most ironic roster move they could have. In their chase for a playoff berth, which seems pretty secure these days, they took Gabriel Arias off of waivers from the New York Mets. Arias played only two games, started one, and didn’t pick up a hit while committing an error.

Only with New York for a handful of days and even less time actually on the field, the ironic part is how the Mets replaced him on the roster with Christopher Morel.

Morel was once a rising Cubs slugger whose awesome stint in Triple-A earned him a call-up by the Mets. Piqued interest in what he could potentially add in these final weeks, the switcheroo of the Mets trying to milk Morel out of anything he can offer while the Cubs taking scraps thrown aside before even getting to the bone feels way too synchronized to not pay some attention to.

Do the Mets or Cubs win this battle?

It’s not completely a battle of who does better, Morel or Arias. There’s more to it. The Mets have open tryouts. A right-handed hitting first baseman is already on their wish list. Just don’t ask them to sign him for 5 years. Morel’s start against Robbie Ray this week showed how the Mets could deploy him for the final weeks. It might simply be starting against left-handed pitchers although they’d do themselves a favor to see what Young can do against southpaws in a larger sample, too.

Arias provides the Cubs with some shortstop depth in place of the currently injured Dansby Swanson. Probably not someone who’ll start often, he’s likely to replace Kevin Alcantara on the active roster. The Cubs have enough outfield depth currently with ex-Mets Michael Conforto and Tyrone Taylor there as well.

Yet another Mets connection, it’s Phil Maton whose placement on the 60-day IL opened up the 40-man roster spot for Arias. Chicago will need to officially activate Arias before their next game. His lack of minor league options makes it necessary to field him on the major league roster.

What the Mets actually had planned for Arias is a bit of a mystery as they may have always hoped he’d pass through waivers. They were able to get Vidal Brujan, Zack Short, and others through waivers untouched this year. The timing of Arias’ DFA lined up too well with Chicago’s need for an infielder with a positive defensive reputation.

It doesn’t seem as if Arias is a long-term option for the Cubs nor should we actually expect Morel to hang around for the Mets. This war of “I know better than you” is more beneficial to the player than the teams. New York is in “hey, maybe?” mode while the Cubs are relying on Arias to fortify their defense until something better comes along.

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