According to Matt Eddy of Baseball America, the Chicago Cubs have brought in outfielder Mike Baxter on a minor league deal. The contract is expected to include an invite to Spring Training.
Baxter, a former fourth round pick by the San Diego Padres, is best known for his time with the New York Mets from 2011-2013, most notably the incredible catch he made in Johan Santana’s no hitter (shown below). Santana’s 2012 no hitter was the first, and remains to be the only, in the 52 year history of the Mets’ franchise.
In 423 career MLB plate appearances, all but 17 of which came with the Mets, the 30-year-old Baxter has a career triple slash line of .225/.331/.342. His lengthy minor league career includes 3,689 plate appearances and a line of .280/.353/.428.
With most, if not all, of the outfield spots pretty much spoken for, Baxter is very unlikely to join the Cubs on opening day. That being said, he is a decent left-handed hitter who can play all three outfield spots relatively well. Baxter will likely begin the season in Triple-A, but he will be a nice insurance outfielder for the Cubs to have around in case of injury.