"The Cubs will get their small waiver fee from the Blue Jays, and Cowles gets a 40-man spot with the Blue Jays - who may ultimately DFA him later on and try, themselves, to sneak him through waivers. The goal being that you'd get to keep Cowles on what is effectively a minor league deal for 2026, and he would not take up a 40-man spot. All the best to him on however that winds up playing out."
"For the Cubs, though, it's a hit to their Triple-A infield/utility depth. Then again, in the interim between claiming Cowles and DFA'ing him, the Cubs signed Owen Miller to a minor league deal, and I've gotta believe his big league experience and relative success at Triple-A (much more than Cowles so far) had him ahead of Cowles on the pecking order anyway when it comes to versatile emergency bench depth."
Ben Cowles was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays after the Cubs attempted to pass him through waivers. The Cubs appear to have kept Justin Steele on the 40-man roster to preserve a small chance of an earlier return before May 23 and to retain roster flexibility rather than immediately placing Steele on the 60-day injured list. Having previously claimed Cowles, the Cubs likely tried to sneak him through waivers now. The Blue Jays assume Cowles' 40-man spot and could DFA him later to again attempt passing him through waivers. The move weakens Cubs' Triple-A infield depth, though the team added Owen Miller on a minor-league deal.
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