The Cubs on Tuesday signed 31-year-old utilityman Daniel Descalso to a two-year, $5 million deal.
A career .240 hitter, Descalso is coming off his most productive season in his nine-year career, hitting 13 home runs and driving in 57 runs with the Diamondbacks in 2018.
Descalso will receive $1.5 million in 2019, $2.5 million in '20 and a $3.5 million option for '21 with a $1 million buyout.
The left-handed hitting Descalso can play all four infield positions and left field, which makes him a perfect fit for Joe Maddon's ever-shifting lineups and in-game shuffling.
After dealing Tommy La Stella to the Angels, the Cubs needed another left-handed bat to come off the bench or spot start. Descalso is a significant upgrade because of his superior defense and additional power.
Second and third are his primary positions, and while he's capable of playing short, the Diamondbacks used him only once there the last two seasons.
With Addison Russell out the first five weeks because of his 40-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's domestic-abuse policy, leaving Javier Baez back at short, Descalso figures to get more time at second in the early going, along with veteran Ben Zobrist.
Descalso, a third-round draft pick by the Cardinals in 2007, spent five years in St. Louis before signing with the Rockies as a free agent in 2015. The Diamondbacks signed him as a free agent in 2017.
The signing was first reported by Jon Heyman of Fancred.
