The Chicago Cubs finally broke their silence on the minor league signing front yesterday by bringing in former top Phillies prospect Scott Kingery. Even among minor league deals, though, it's not a particularly exciting one. The shortstop/outfielder has fallen far since his respectable 2019 campaign, slashing just .145/.205/.239 with a 19 wRC+ in the majors from 2020 on, remaining out of the big leagues for much of 2022 until 2025. As emergency depth, there's nothing wrong with the move, but he doesn't answer the questions the team has about their bench.
Under Jed Hoyer, building a bench worthy of a contender has been a tough problem to solve.