Even the best ML teams are surprising their fans with some last minute roster decisions. It’s not just the middle of the pack teams with flexibility that leave key veterans off their 26-man roster in March.

Cubs starting right fielder, Seiya Suzuki begins the season on the IL, but it’s unclear which of three surprises is actually taking his place. Each of the three brings something different to the table and none of them is a right fielder. It’s pretty exciting news though.

27-year-old Miles Mastrobuoni, is billed as a utilityman, but he’s really more of a guy that can play anywhere, bat left-handed and hit for average. That he came from the Rays might be his biggest asset though. Everyone seems to think that’s a positive and that he’s posted a .286 batting average in 2211 minor league at-bats shows consistency. He’s looked very good in Mesa this spring and appears to be ready. We’ll see if all of that translates to ML pitching.

Corner infielder, Edwin Rios’ biggest asset appears to be his pedigree. In 1859 at-bats in the Dodgers system, he’s slashed .291/.347/.534 with 104 homers and 365 RBI. That profile appears to align with the new-look, contact hitting Cubs. Unfortunately, he struck out 31%of the time and that trend extended to his brief, ML career: 36% in 260 at-bats. He has shown some pop during spring training, but he also hasn’t proven he can hit ML pitching without striking out like Wisdom (36%).

Last and maybe most surprising, the Cubs added 26-year-old catcher, Luis Torrens, to the 26-man opening day roster. Adding a third catcher after acquiring Tucker Barnhart earlier this offseason sounds like a luxury to me. However, the right-handed backstop offers insurance and an extra bat with pop. He has a couple double-digit home run seasons, one in the big leagues and the other in the minors. However, his career ML slash of .226/.288/.354 isn’t that impressive. If things go accordingly, he’ll probably taxi between Chicago and AAA Iowa.

Despite the tepid, but objective descriptions, I won’t be surprised when each of these guys contribute to Cub wins this weekend against the Brewers.