Wick signed a minor-league contract with the Blue Jays on Wednesday, Mitch Bannon of SI.com reports.
Wick signed a minor-league deal with Atlanta on Thursday but was cut after just four days, and he'll now head north to join the Jays organization. Wick has struggled in Triple-A this season, accumulating an 8.60 ERA and 1.76 WHIP through 30.1 frames. If he's able to get things under control with Triple-A Buffalo, Wick could join the MLB roster as bullpen depth later this season.
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Braves' Rowan Wick: Finds new team
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Wick signed a minor-league deal with Atlanta on Thursday.
Wick failed to make the Opening Day roster for the Cubs, which came as a surprise. He was dumped altogether by the team July 15 but has now landed with a new team. If he pitches well for Triple-A Gwinnett, he could have the chance to work in a low-leverage role for the big-league club.
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Rowan Wick: Dropped by Cubs
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The Cubs released Wick on Saturday, Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register reports.
Wick failed to make the Cubs' roster out of spring training and has put up an 8.60 ERA and 1.76 WHIP across 30.1 innings with Triple-A Iowa. His recent MLB history could earn him a minor-league deal from another franchise, but he will have to show significant improvement in order to have any chance at appearing in the majors this season.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Outighted to Triple-A
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Wick cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Iowa on Monday, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Wick appeared on track to make the Opening Day roster, but the Cubs had other plans. Even so, he'll be a candidate to emerge with the big-league squad later on in the season after posting a 4.22 ERA and 1.69 WHIP with a 69:29 K:BB over 64 innings a season ago.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Likely to work in setup role
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With Michael Fulmer and Brad Boxberger viewed as the Cubs' top closing options, per Patrick Mooney of The Athletic, Wick may have to settle for setup work.
Wick was second on the team with nine saves last season, but with veterans Fulmer and Boxberger coming over in the offseason, the former may have to settle for setup work. Wick has the ability to miss bats, but he's been inconsistent during his MLB career. If he's not seeing regular save opportunities, his fantasy value will be limited.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Gets added competition
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With the Cubs adding several relievers in the offseason, Wick has increased competition for the closer role, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Righties Brad Boxberger and Michael Fulmer are the newcomers, and both have some MLB closing experience. Lefty Brandon Hughes, who had eight saves last year, also returns. The Cubs may ultimately use a committee to close out games, which would cap Wick's ceiling, but he could see his value go up if he emerges as the preferred option from this group at some point.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Avoids arbitration
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Wick agreed to a one-year, $1.55 million contract with the Cubs on Friday, avoiding arbitration, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.
Wick finished second on the team in saves last season with nine behind David Robertson (14), but he didn't exactly secure the job heading into 2023. The right-hander struggled to a 5.06 ERA and squandered three of his final five save chances after Aug. 11. The job will be up for grabs again in spring training.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Earns save Wednesday
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Wick worked around a walk to toss a scoreless ninth inning and earn the save in Wednesday's win over the Blue Jays. He struck out one.
Wick has struggled recently, as he entered Wednesday's contest with a 5.73 ERA and 1.82 WHIP this month, but he was able to right the ship at least for a night. He also worked behind Brandon Hughes, who tossed 1.1 innings Wednesday to earn a hold. Both pitchers should continue to see save opportunities moving forward, likely based on matchups.
Wick (4-7) allowed four runs (three earned) on four hits while retiring only one batter to take the loss Saturday against the Brewers. He walked one and struck out one.
Chicago starter Drew Smyly tossed six scoreless innings, but Wick quickly unraveled in the seventh. The frame started with two singles and then an error on a sacrifice bunt attempt. The big blow was a Christian Yelich home run with two runners on to put Milwaukee up 4-0. Wick has struggled this month with a 6.30 ERA, and it looks like the Cubs trust Brandon Hughes a bit more with closing duties at this point. Wick's fantasy value takes a significant hit if he's not seeing save chances.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Earns win Wednesday
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Wick (4-6) tossed 1.2 scoreless innings of relief and earned the win Wednesday against the Cardinals. He allowed two hits and also struck out two.
Wick had a rough weekend, blowing a save Saturday and then taking the loss Sunday against the Brewers. This was his first appearance since then, and the righty was able to bounce back and pitch well. Wick could still see some save opportunities moving forward, though lefty Brandon Hughes has moved into the closer mix, and the two pitchers could be deployed in the ninth inning based on matchups.
Wick (3-6) allowed one run on a hit and a walk in an inning of work to take the loss Sunday against the Brewers.
Wick was charged with a blown save Saturday for allowing a go-ahead, two-run home run, and he continued to struggle Sunday. The righty has allowed earned runs in three of his last four appearances, and he now has a 4.38 ERA for the season. Wick still figures to see some save opportunities for the Cubs moving forward, though lefty Brandon Hughes is also in the mix after earning a pair of saves the past few days, and Wick could fall out of favor altogether if he keeps struggling.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Earns save Wednesday
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Wick pitched a scoreless ninth inning to record the save in Wednesday's 3-2 win over the Nationals.
Wick didn't have any strikeouts for the second straight outing, but he didn't allow any runs or blow a save like he did Tuesday. The righty now has three saves in four chances since Chicago traded David Robertson at the deadline earlier this month. That's boosted Wick's fantasy stock a great deal, and he'll likely remain the closer the rest of the season, though the 49-67 Cubs might not offer a ton of opportunities.
Wick earned a save against the Reds on Thursday, striking out two batters in a perfect ninth inning.
Wick worked the count full to two of the three batters he faced but came out on top with a 1-2-3 inning. The right-hander picked up his third save in the past four days and extended his scoreless streak to 11 contests. During that stretch, he's posted a 15:3 K:BB over 12.1 innings while notching three saves, one hold and two wins.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Notches sixth save
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Wick gave up a hit and struck out two over 1.1 scoreless innings Wednesday to record his sixth save of the season in a 4-2 win over the Nationals.
The 29-year-old extended his scoreless streak to 10 appearances and 11.1 innings, and Wick has picked up two saves and a win during his three trips to the mound in August. The Cubs don't seem to have any better options to close, so he'll likely continue to see ninth-inning work despite a lackluster 4.02 ERA, 1.68 WHIP and 48:21 K:BB through 47 innings on the season.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Earns fifth save
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Wick worked around a hit to fire a scoreless inning and earn the save in Monday's 6-3 win over the Nationals. He struck out two.
With David Robertson, Scott Effross and Mychal Givens all getting moved before the trade deadline last week, Wick looks like the last man standing for saves in Chicago. The righty now has five of them for the season, which matches his career-best total from last year. Wick had closer steam heading into 2022 but ultimately saw Robertson take the lead in the team's bullpen, though the former could now be primed for increased fantasy value down the stretch due to decreased competition.
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Cubs' Rowan Wick: Gets win, could be closer
Rotowire
Wick (3-5) gave up one hit and one walk with zero strikeouts over 1.1 innings Friday against the Marlins en route to the win.
He got the final out of the top of the eighth inning before the Cubs took the lead in the bottom of the frame, giving Wick his third win of the campaign. With David Robertson in Philadelphia, Wick is the leading candidate to get save chances for the Cubs over the final eight weeks of the season.
