Madrigal on his future with Cubs: I'm not sure
Considering he's currently a player without a starting position and his name is becoming amplified in trade rumors, Nick Madrigal was in great spirits last weekend at the Cubs Convention.
"It's very exciting," he said. "We got some great players, some older veteran guys, and I'm looking forward to the season. It's a very exciting time for Cubs fans, everyone in the front office, just everyone that's a part of the Cubs team.
"It's going to be a great year."
Adding players like Dansby Swanson, Jameson Taillon, Cody Bellinger and Trey Mancini figures to make the Cubs a much better team this season, but Madrigal finds himself on the outside looking in.
Swanson, a free agent who joined the Cubs on a seven-year, $177 million contract, is the new shortstop.
Nico Hoerner, who manned the position last year, is moving from short to second base.
That is Madrigal's position, so he is looking a lot like a bench player a month out from spring training.
"I'm not sure," Madrigal said. "I'm just preparing for whatever they throw at me. I'm preparing to do my job, whatever that looks like. There have been brief discussions, nothing too much with the holidays and everything.
"I'm sure as we get closer, we'll be talking more about more about what it's going to look like."
A trade is definitely possible, and Madrigal could be on the move to the Red Sox or even back to the White Sox - the team that drafted him No. 4 overall out of Oregon State in 2018.
Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said Madrigal could get a look at third base, but he's never played the position and is undersized at 5-8, 175 pounds.
Getting regular playing time at Class AAA Iowa is another option for Madrigal, who could use the work after missing much of his first three major league seasons with a string of injuries.
Coming back from a torn hamstring last year, his first with the Cubs, Madrigal played in only 59 games and hit .249/.305/.282 with no home runs and 7 RBI.
Madrigal is unsure about what lies ahead, but he has been working with a personal trainer for the first time. The 25-year-old infielder knows he has to stay healthy to have any chance of turning around a disappointing start to his career.
"It's been a couple of years with the injury bug, but I feel really good at the moment," said Madrigal, who has been training Monday through Friday in Arizona. "I feel really good at the moment and I'm just excited to get back out there. That's all I want to do, get out there and play. It's always been a dream of mine to be at the major league level.
"There's been a lot of hard work this off-season. I mean you can't control some things but I'm still extremely blessed to be in this position and be a part of this organization. I just want to enjoy it. I feel like these last couple of years, there's been a lot going on. I'm just looking forward to enjoying this upcoming year."