Nov. 17--With decisions by free agents Russell Martin and Jon Lester looming, the Cubs hope they addressed several offensive weaknesses Sunday by acquiring second baseman Tommy La Stella from the Braves.
La Stella, 25, and the Braves' No. 4 international signing bonus slot came in exchange for right-handed reliever Arodys Vizcaino and three international signing bonus slots.
La Stella, who has played second base his entire career but could work out at other positions, is a left-handed hitter with a.322 lifetime minor league batting average, .407 on-base percentage, 136 walks and 102 strikeouts.
"He does a lot of things we don't do well," Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said.
With Javier Baez still projected as the starting second baseman, the Cubs hope to find enough at-bats for La Stella, who batted .251 with a .328 on-base percentage in 93 games for the Braves but lacks Baez's power.
Starlin Castro remains the incumbent at shortstop with Baez at second and prospect Addison Russell starting the 2015 season at Triple-A Iowa. La Stella, who has minor league options, could work out at third base.
La Stella, who batted .311 with a .391 on-base percentage against left-handers with the Braves, was described as a "line-drive machine" by one Braves source but lacked exceptional range.
Vizcaino, 24, posted a 5.40 ERA in five appearances for the Cubs in September. He missed the 2012 and 2013 seasons because of elbow injuries and was hard-pressed to break into a young and successful bullpen.
Meanwhile the Cubs face two deadlines in the next 15 days that will affect the shape of their roster.
Thursday is the deadline for teams to set their 40-man rosters, and the Cubs have two spots open.
Top prospects Kris Bryant and Russell aren't required to be protected, but top pitching prospect C.J. Edwards must be placed on the 40-man roster or he will be exposed to the Rule 5 draft on Dec. 11.
Another deadline looms Dec. 2, when teams must tender contracts to all remaining unsigned players or allow them to become free agents.
Catcher Welington Castillo, who is eligible for arbitration, could be affected by free agent catcher Martin's decision. Castillo, 27, batted .237 in 110 games, but he could at least double his $530,000 salary as a first-time arbitration-eligible player if the Cubs tender him a contract.
The Cubs also will bring free agent left-hander Lester to Chicago this week for a recruiting visit. It's uncertain how that will affect left-hander Travis Wood, who was 8-13 with a 5.03 ERA and earned $3.9 million as a first-year arbitration-eligible player.
The Cubs already signed left-hander Tsuyoshi Wada to a one-year, $4 million contract with an additional $2 million in incentives, and picked up the $1 million option on Jacob Turner.
According to multiple reports, Lester was scheduled to meet with the Red Sox, his former team, before visiting the Cubs.
mgonzales@tribpub.com
Twitter @MDGonzales
