Cubs Sign 2023 World Series Champion
After signing Greg Allen to a minor league deal the Chicago Cubs added more outfield depth by agreeing to a minor league deal with 33-year-old Travis Jankowski. The 2023 World Series champion has played for the Texas Rangers the past two years and now Jankowski enters Cubs camp as an emergency backup in case the team experiences any more injuries.
His 2024 numbers were rough as Jankowski only slashed .200/.266/.242, which resulted in a 48 wRC+. That being said, the left-handed hitter can be useful as a bench player and from 2021-23, the veteran outfielder posted a solid .349 OBP in 508 plate appearances. Still, not much pop overall as he was still a below average hitter, an 89 wRC+ across those three seasons, but Jankowski provides value with his base running and good defense.
Non roster invite here for Jankowski https://t.co/nseeHpDxOL
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) February 22, 2025
In 2023, Jankowski recorded a 1.2 fWAR with the Rangers, slashing .263/.357/.332, with 19 stolen bases. He can play all three outfield spots and has been above average where ever he’s slotted.
The Cubs have taken a bit of a hit to their outfield depth in the past week with the news of Owen Caissie’s groin injury and the team deciding to designate Alexander Canario for assignment. Canario was out of minor league options, so there was never a guarantee that he was making the team out of spring training anyway, but the Cubs opted to make a move on him sooner than later.
With Jankowski and Allen, the Cubs can stash them at Triple-A and only kick someone off the 40-man roster when another injury pops up in the season. Of course, veteran players on minor league deals can have opt-out dates in their contracts, so we’ll keep an eye out for that detail for both Jankowski and Allen.
Decent depth for the Cubs by adding Jankowski, who profiles similar to Mike Tauchman with a lessor hit tool. Dependable guy in the outfield and a good eye at the plate. Jankowski has a career 10.1 BB%, which rose to 13% from 2021-23. Again, Jankowski really struggled in 2024, so all his numbers were down across the board.
Jankowski is a 10-year MLB veteran, with a slash line of .236/.319/.305, 11 home runs and 102 stolen bases.
So, for now the Cubs added a few more bodies in the outfield as a safety net. Fingers crossed that the team won’t actually have to depend on some of these guys and while we spotlight the signings at the time, often these types of deals are quickly forgotten about once the regular season gets underway.