Cubs Sign 36-Year-Old OF David Peralta to Minors Deal

The Cubs have added a lefty-batting former Dodgers outfielder to the organization, just not the one everyone’s been talking about. After years of speculation — the trade rumors stretch back to at least 2019 — they’ve finally landed David Peralta. As first reported by Robert Murray of FanSided and confirmed by Maddie Lee of the Sun-Times, Peralta is joining Cubs camp on a minor league deal with a non-roster invite.

The longtime Diamondback’s power has dropped off appreciably since those rumors, to the point that he’s hit a total of 27 homers over 1,450 plate appearances in the last three years. Not exactly the kind of lefty pop the Cubs need, and his overall offense projects to be about 10% below league average. Peralta doesn’t fit the profile of a DH and the Cubs have a crowded outfield already, so his chances of breaking camp with the big club are slim.

As with pretty much all moves of this sort, there’s no risk whatsoever to have a seasoned vet in camp for a while.