Cubs reliever Rob Zastryzny cleared waivers and was outrighted off the 40-man roster, according to the MLB.com transaction log. The southpaw has the right to elect free agency, as he has been outrighted multiple times in his career.
Chicago squeezed Zastryzny off their roster when they acquired Ryan Brasier last week. They had claimed the southpaw off waivers from the Brewers in the first week of the offseason. The Missouri product returned to his original organization. Chicago drafted Zastryzny in the second round in 2013. He tossed 16 innings for their 2016 World Series team as a rookie. Zastryzny remained with the Cubs through 2018, when they outrighted him.
He bounced around between a few organizations and spent time in the independent ranks. He returned to the big leagues with a brief stint for the Mets in 2022. The southpaw suited up for the Angels later that season and threw a career-high 20 2/3 frames with the Pirates in ’23. He spent last year with the Brewers, making nine MLB appearances and working 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball.
Between five teams, Zastryzny has thrown 67 innings with a 4.30 earned run average in his MLB career. He had a nice year with Milwaukee’s top affiliate in Nashville last year. Zastrynzny managed a 3.03 ERA with an excellent 32.5% strikeout rate across 29 2/3 frames. That intrigued the Cubs enough that they brought him back on waivers, though he had an uphill battle sticking on the roster.
That’s largely because he has exhausted his minor league options. Chicago couldn’t send him to Triple-A without putting him on waivers. The Cubs don’t have a ton of flexibility in a bullpen without many pitchers who can be optioned. If Zastryzny elects free agency, he’ll likely be limited to minor league offers elsewhere.
