The Chicago Cubs have released 34-year old lefty reliever/starter Nate Robertson. Robertson pitched in 14 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball for the Cubs this year and he was 0-2 with a 8.10 ERA and a 1.70 WHIP. Robertson has pitched in 223 games (187 starts) in his first 9 years in the majors and he is 57-77 with 1 save, a 5.01 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. This is not much of a loss for the Cubs.

The Cubs have signed 27-year old righty reliever Shane Lindsay to a minor league deal. Lindsay pitched in 8 games (0 starts) earlier this year in AAA-ball and he was 0-1 with a 5.00 ERA and a 2.22 WHIP. He only gave up 8 hits and he whiffed 8 batters in his first 9 innings in AAA-ball this year, but he walked 12 batters and that got him into a lot of trouble. Lindsay got his first taste of the majors last year with the White Sox, working in 4 games (0 starts) in which he was 0-0 with a 12.00 ERA and a 2.67 WHIP. Lindsay is young enough to turn things around and he has a big time right arm, so his signing was worth a small gamble by the Cubs.

35-year old righty starting pitcher Ryan Dempster has been outstanding so far this year for the Cubs. He has started 8 games for the Cubs so far this year and he is 0-3 with a 2.14 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He has only given up 43 hits and walked 15 batters in his first 54 2/3 innings this year while whiffing 50 batters, and that is pretty darn impressive. Dempster has now pitched in 366 games (146 starts) in his first 9 years with the Cubs and he is 62-64 with 87 saves, a 3.80 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. Dempster is going to be prime trade bait for the Cubs later in the year if he keeps pitching well and stays healthy.

24-year old rookie righty reliever Rafael Dolis is out as the Cubs’ closer. He has pitched in 22 games (0 starts) for the Cubs so far this year and he is 2-4 with 4 saves, a 4.97 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. Dolis has walked 15 batters in only 25 1/3 innings as he has been wild, just like the pitcher he replaced as the closer…..Carlos Marmol. The Cubs are going to go with a committee for now with 36 year old righty Shawn Camp and 26-year old lefty James Russell likely splitting the job. Camp has pitched in 22 games (0 starts) for the Cubs so far this year and he is 2-2 with a 2.84 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. Camp has 10 saves so far in his major league career, but he lacks closer type stuff. James Russell has pitched in 22 games (0 starts) for the Cubs so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 1.74 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. Russell has yet to save a game in his major league career.

The Cubs have signed 28-year old righty swinging SS Diory Hernandez to a minor league deal. Hernandez played in 32 games earlier this year in AAA-ball for the Astros and he was 7 for 44 (.159 avg, .399 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 0 homers, 2 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Hernandez last played in the majors last season with the Braves. Hernandez has now played in 75 games in his first three years in the majors and he is 20 for 127 (.195 avg, .455 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 3 homers and 11 RBIs. This was a signing just to give the Cubs some depth in the infield for 2012.

32-year old lefty swinging outfielder David DeJesus is off to a rock solid start for the Cubs so far this year. He has played in 42 games for the Cubs so far this year and he is 44 for 156 (.282 avg, .758 OPS) with 25 runs scored, 1 homer and 10 RBIs. DeJesus is leading the Cubs in run scored so far this year, as he has given the offense a nice boost. The Cubs hope that DeJesus keeps up the good work and I have no reason to think he won’t as long as he can stay healthy.

The Cubs have placed 25-year old righty swinging catcher Welington Castillo on the 15-day disabled list due to a sprained right knee. Castillo has played in 7 games for the Cubs so far this year and he is 5 for 27 (.185 avg, .612 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 1 homer and 4 RBIs. He has now played in 18 games in his first three years and he is 13 for 60 (.217 avg, .671 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 2 homers and 9 RBIs. This is a bad break for Castillo as he was going to start until Geovany Soto came off the D.L.

The Chicago Cubs have signed 33-year old righty swinging catcher Brian Esposito to a minor league deal. He played in 54 games in AA+AAA-ball last year for the Astros and he was 31 for 157 (.197 avg, .482 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 1 homer, 11 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Esposito last played in the majors back in 2010 with the Astros. He has played in 3 games in his first 2 years in the majors and he is 0 for 3 (.000 avg) with 1 whiff. Esposito will start out in AAA-ball for the Cubs. The Cubs were desperate for catching depth due to injuries to Geovany Soto, Steve Clevenger and Welington Castillo and that is the reason Esposito was signed.

The Chicago Cubs have acquired 33-year old righty swinging catcher Koyie Hill from the Reds for cash considerations. Hill played in 14 games in AA-ball for the Reds this year and he was 8 for 41 (.195 avg, .591 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 homer and 5 RBIs. Hill went 1 for 4 in his season debut for the Cubs against the White Sox yesterday. Hill has played in 252 games now in his first six years with the Cubs and he is 150 for 720 (.208 avg, .565 OPS) with 66 runs scored, 7 homers, 63 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Hill knows the Cubs’ pitchers, so this was a good pickup for them.

25-year old lefty swinging CF Tony Campana has really excelled after the Cubs dealt Marlon Byrd to the Red Sox. He has played in 24 games for the Cubs so far this year and he is 23 for 73 (.315 avg, .729 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 0 homers, 3 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Campana has now played in 119 games in his first two years with the Cubbies and he is 60 for 216 (.278 avg, .646 OPS) with 37 runs scored, 1 homer, 9 RBIs and 33 stolen bases. As long as he keeps hitting well, Campana will be starting in CF for the Cubs.