Disappointing Wells likely headed back to Iowa

The Cubs saw enough of Randy Wells’ wildness, and they made quick work of the right-handed pitcher Wednesday, designating him for assignment.

It’s unlikely another team will claim Wells, so he’ll probably end up back in Class AAA Iowa but off the Cubs’ 40-man roster. (They plan to use the 40-man spot for Cuban outfielder Jorge Soler, once his signing becomes official.)

Wells was a mainstay of the starting rotation in 2009 and 2010. He opened as the No. 4 starter last year before he suffered a forearm strain and missed two months.

But he failed to make the 25-man roster out of spring training this year. He came up twice as a fill-in starter for Ryan Dempster while Dempster was hurt but had no success as a starting pitcher.

Overall, Wells was 1-2 with a 5.34 ERA, but he was 0-2 with a 7.04 ERA in 4 starts.

Although he’s no longer a “prospect,” the Cubs are sending a message that if a player or pitcher wants to come up and stay, he has to perform.

“I think that’s what we want to create here,” said manager Dale Sveum. “Our goal when we started was to be able to earn getting to the big leagues, whether it’s throwing strikes as a pitcher, not striking out, taking your walks as a hitter.”

Rizzo watch:First baseman Anthony Rizzo went 1-for-4, a double off the right-center-field wall, in the third inning of the Cubs#146; 17-1 loss to the Mets. In his first two games of the season, Rizzo is 3-for-8 with a pair of doubles and an RBI. Rizzo still had a crowd of reporters at his locker Wednesday but nothing like the media crush for Tuesday#146;s Cubs debut. #147;It#146;s a lot easier this time around,#148; he said, referring to a tough couple stints with the Padres last year. #147;I#146;ve been in the same routine. The media#146;s part of the game. It#146;s all for the fans and everything.#148;Century mark for Marmol:Closer Carlos Marmol notched the 100th save of his career in Tuesday#146;s 5-3 victory, a game in which reliever Scott Maine got his first major-league win. #147;Not everybody, as we know, can get those final three outs of a game,#148; said Dale Sveum. #147;It#146;s the most difficult three outs there are. Only certain people do it, and some people have severe longevity doing it. They usually go to the Hall of Fame and the rest are just kind of hit or miss year to year and see what happens. It#146;s a nice accomplishment to have 100 saves.#148;This and that: Darwin Barney#146;s errorless streak has reached 62 games and 507 innings. He hasn#146;t made an error since April 17. The last Cubs middle infielder with a longer streak was Mike Fontenot, with a 90-gamer over 2008-09. ... The Cubs are 4-17 against left-handed starters, as they fell to the Mets#146; Jonathon Niese on Wednesday. ... The loss was the Cubs#146; worst since the Brewers beat them 18-1 on Aug. 2, 2010. Since 1900, the Cubs have lost 26 games by at least 15 runs.BBO24731909Randy Wells delivers during the first inning of an interleague baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Wednesday, June 20, 2012, in Chicago. Associated PressBBOBBN15131900Carlos Marmol notched the 100th save of his career when the Cubs beat the Mets 5-3 on Tuesday at Wrigley Field.Associated PressBBN