Martinez ready for friendly foes
Jose Martinez was stunned by his trade to the Cubs, but after the initial shock wore off, his excitement grew.
Martinez, who was acquired from the Rays, has seen the Cubs a lot as an opponent with the Cardinals, and he’s looking forward to the opportunity to play on the North Side.
“You’re always surprised to get traded,” Martinez said Tuesday before the game against the Pirates. “You don’t expect to get traded at all. With all the circumstances over there, they got a pretty good team [in Tampa Bay]. They had a lot of guys, good players over there . . . . I was happy when I got that call, for sure, and I’m excited to be here, 100%.
“You always want to play the Cubs, the atmosphere around the stadium. The fans are into it — a lot of Cubs fans were there at Busch Stadium, too. You always want to play them and compete because there’s a lot of excitement. Playing on this side, it’s going to be better, for sure, because I’m here now.”
The Cubs’ new first baseman and designated hitter is going to see some old faces real soon as the team takes on the Cardinals for five games starting Friday at Wrigley Field.
“As soon as I got traded, everybody started sending me the schedule, like, ‘Hey, look! This is what you got.’ I’m excited for that too,” Martinez said. “They have a lot of great guys over there. A lot of good friends over there. But now it’s about competing, and now I’m with a different organization.
“It’s going to be fun because I’ve played over there, too, and I’m here now. So I can feel how it is on both sides.”
Martinez went 0-for-3 in his Cubs debut.
Chatwood to IL with forearm strain
The Cubs put right-hander Tyler Chatwood on the 10-day injured list with a strained right forearm. Chatwood injured the forearm in the third inning of the Cubs’ 10-1 win Sunday against the Reds before being removed from the game.
“He’s gonna be a little while,” general manager Jed Hoyer said Monday. “We’re certainly hopeful that he’s back this year . . . . It was largely good news with his MRI.”
Quintana to start against Cardinals
Left-hander Jose Quintana said he wanted to get back into the Cubs’ rotation as soon as possible after returning from the injured list, and he’s going to get his opportunity.
With the injury to Chatwood and that fivegame series against the Cardinals, manager David Ross indicated that Quintana will get the nod this weekend.
“Yeah, that’s safe to say,” Ross said. “He’ll start one of those games.”
Osich activated; Sadler DFA’d
Right-hander Casey Sadler was designated for assignment to make room on the active roster for left-hander Josh Osich, who was acquired from the Red Sox on Monday. Sadler had a 5.79 ERA in 10 appearances.