NELSON VELÁZQUEZ NEWS

Heads to bench Saturday Velazquez isn't in the lineup Saturday against Pittsburgh.

Impact Velazquez has gone just 1-for-14 with a stolen base and eight strikeouts over his last five games and will be on the bench for the third time in the last four matchups. Patrick Wisdom will start in right field and bat third.

SEPTEMBER 24, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Sitting Friday Velazquez will sit Friday versus the Pirates.

Impact Velazquez will take a seat Friday after he went 0-for-3 with two punchouts in Thursday's win. Michael Hermosillo is starting in center field and will bat ninth against Pittsburgh.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Not starting Wednesday Velazquez isn't in the lineup Wednesday against Miami.

Impact Velazquez is getting a breather after he went 0-for-10 with six strikeouts over the last six games. Christopher Morel will take his place in center field and bat ninth.

SEPTEMBER 21, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Tallies RBI in win Velazquez went 2-for-4 with one RBI in Wednesday's win over the Mets.

Impact Velazquez tallied an RBI single with two outs in the first inning to extend the Cubs' lead to six. The outfielder has been dreadful in his last 18 games, slashing .122/.217/.146 over 46 plate appearances. The 23-year-old rookie has been significantly more productive on the road, recording an .814 OPS over 94 plate appearances compared to a .474 OPS over 74 plate appearances at Wrigley Field.

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Back in action Wednesday Velazquez (illness) is starting Wednesday against the Mets.

Impact Velazquez was out of the lineup for the last four games after being scratched with an illness Friday. However, he'll start in left field and bat eighth during Wednesday's series finale against the Mets.

SEPTEMBER 14, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Goes deep Monday Velazquez went 3-for-4 with a solo home run in Monday's 6-3 win over the Nationals.

Impact Velazquez was making his fifth start in six games, serving as the DH on Monday. The increased playing time is a good sign for the rookie, who now has six home runs and a .796 OPS this year. Assuming he continues to see a regular role, Velazquez could continue to provide decent power numbers down the stretch, which would give him some fantasy value.

AUGUST 9, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Playing time on upswing Velazquez will serve as the Cubs' designated hitter and No. 7 batter in Monday's game against the Nationals.

Impact Though he hasn't settled into a regular role at any one position, Velazquez's ability to fill in at all three outfield spots and DH has helped him earn more work of late. He'll stick in the lineup for the fifth time in six games, despite having gotten off to a 1-for-12 start to August. While the Cubs are in evaluation mode with their young prospects like Velazquez, he'll still likely need to show some improvement at the plate if he hopes to continue earning regular at-bats.

AUGUST 8, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Blasts fifth home run of 2022 Velazquez went 2-for-3 with a solo homer, two runs and a walk during Sunday's 4-3 win over the Phillies.

Impact Velazquez drew the start in left field during Sunday's matchup and gave the Cubs some insurance with his home run in the top of the fourth inning. Although Sunday's start was his first since the All-Star break, the 23-year-old has homered three times over the three games since the Cubs returned to action. During that time, he's gone 4-for-6 with three homers, seven RBI and five runs. While Velazquez has had sporadic time in the starting lineup, it's possible that his recent surge in production will earn him more at-bats in the near future.

JULY 25, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Starting Sunday Velazquez is starting in left field and batting ninth in Sunday's game against the Phillies.

Impact Velazquez appeared as a pinch hitter each of the last two days, notably popping two home runs after entering Friday's contest. The 23-year-old will now start the series finale, and though Friday's outburst was nice, he's not seeing enough starts to be much of a fantasy asset in many leagues at this point. That could change if the rebuilding Cubs trade away some veterans and Velazquez sees his role grow.

JULY 24, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Blasts two home runs Friday Velazquez went 2-for-2 with two home runs and five RBI in Friday's 15-2 win over the Phillies.

Impact It's an impressive stat line, especially considering Velazquez didn't enter the game until the eighth inning, when he pinch hit for Rafael Ortega. The former proceeded to hit a two-run home run, and an inning later, he hit a three-run shot. Velazquez doubled his season home run total in the process and nearly doubled his RBI total, which was six before Friday. The 23-year-old is still primarily a bench player at this point, though he's shown flashes of promise during his rookie campaign.

JULY 23, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Heads to bench against righty Velazquez is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Orioles.

Impact Velazquez started in each of the last three games and seven of the past eight contests overall, but he benefited largely from the Cubs facing a lefty-heavy slate of pitching in addition to Willson Contreras missing some time with a hamstring injury. Contreras is healthy again and the Cubs are facing a righty (Jordan Lyles) in their series opener with Baltimore, so Velazquez will be back on the bench and should be limited to a short-side platoon role moving forward.

JULY 12, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Lifts second homer Velazquez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 11-9 loss to the Dodgers.

Impact Velazquez's eighth-inning solo shot was the last run of the contest. It ended an 0-for-15 skid at the plate for the rookie outfielder. He's up to two homers, six RBI, eight runs scored, a stolen base, two doubles and a triple through 57 plate appearances in his first 20 major-league contests. With a .226/.281/.415 slash line, Velazquez is likely still going to have to compete with Christopher Morel, Rafael Ortega and Seiya Suzuki for playing time in the outfield.

JULY 11, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Getting fourth straight start Velazquez will start in right field and bat fifth in Wednesday's game against the Brewers.

Impact Velazquez remains in the lineup for the fourth game in a row after going 3-for-10 with a home run, a walk, two RBI and an additional run in the previous three contests. The rookie has mostly been benefiting from the continued absence of Willson Contreras, whose hamstring injury will keep him on the bench for the second day in a row. Once Contreras is ready to reclaim a full-time role at designated hitter or catcher, the Cubs will likely roll out an outfield of Seiya Suzuki, Ian Happ and Rafael Ortega in most games, leaving no room in the lineup for Velazquez.

JULY 6, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Hits first MLB home run Velazquez went 1-for-2 with a solo home run in Monday's extra-innings loss to the Brewers.

Impact Velazquez started the scoring, taking Milwaukee lefty starter Eric Lauer deep in the third inning. Velazquez was later removed for Rafael Ortega when the Brewers brought in a righty from the bullpen. The return of Seiya Suzuki (finger) Monday makes the outfield even more crowded. Velazquez should still see some at-bats against southpaws, but it doesn't look like he'll have an everyday role moving forward, so his fantasy value will be limited.

JULY 5, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Steals base as pinch runner Velazquez posted a stolen base and a run scored in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Red Sox.

Impact Velazquez pinch ran for Willson Contreras in the eighth inning, and he went on to steal second base and score on a Patrick Wisdom single. In his last 10 games, Velazquez has gone 6-for-20 (.300) with a triple, two doubles, a steal, three RBI and five runs scored. The 23-year-old is still likely only to see part-time duties as a reserve outfielder. The impending return of Seiya Suzuki (finger) Monday will likely limit Velazquez's opportunities further, if he remains on the big-league roster at all.

JULY 3, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Starting Saturday Velazquez is starting in right field and batting ninth in Saturday's game against the Cardinals.

Impact Jason Heyward and his .204 batting average will head to the bench in the matchup with St. Louis righty Miles Mikolas. Velazquez is slashing .333/.467/.417 through six games. It's a very small sample size, but he could earn more playing time over the struggling Heyward if he keeps producing at the plate.

JUNE 25, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Recalled from Iowa Velazquez was recalled from Triple-A Iowa on Monday, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Impact Velazquez spent two days on the big-league roster in late May, going 2-for-7 at the plate. He hasn't been particularly good at the Triple-A level this season, hitting .211/.290/.415 in 34 games while striking out 36.2 percent of the time. That suggests he probably isn't ready for a significant role in the majors just yet, but he'll join the roster nonetheless with teams across the league required to go to 13 pitchers and 13 hitters for the rest of the year. Adrian Sampson was optioned in a corresponding move.

JUNE 20, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Sent to Triple-A Velazquez was optioned to Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday.

Impact Velazquez spent the last few days with the Cubs and went 2-for-7 with two strikeouts over two games. However, the 23-year-old will head back to the minors after Jason Heyward (illness) was reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list Wednesday.

JUNE 1, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Making first career start Velazquez is starting in right field and batting sixth in the second game of Monday's doubleheader against the Brewers.

Impact Velazquez was called up from Triple-A Iowa earlier Monday, replacing Jonathan Villar (mouth) on the active roster. The 23-year-old outfielder didn't see action in the first game, but he'll make his MLB debut in the second half of the doubleheader. Velazquez was slashing .214/.291/.414 through 19 games at Triple-A, though he had a stronger .288/.394/.700 line in 22 games at Double-A Tennessee this year.

MAY 30, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Called up Monday Velazquez was called up from Triple-A Iowa on Monday, Tim Stebbins of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

Impact Velazquez will join the Cubs ahead of their doubleheader versus the Brewers on Monday. He'll fill the gap left on the active roster by Jonathan Villar (mouth), likely operating mostly as a bench bat. He is starting right field for Game 1 of the doubleheader and batting seventh.

MAY 30, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Big-league call-up awaits The Cubs plan to recall Velazquez from Triple-A Iowa ahead of Monday's doubleheader with the Brewers, Tim Stebbins of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

Impact Velazquez, a 23-year-old outfielder who was the 2021 Arizona Fall League MVP, will get his first call to the big leagues after he slashed .214/.291/.414 with three home runs and four stolen bases in 79 plate appearances at Iowa following his promotion from Double-A Tennessee earlier in the season. The Cubs already have a spot available on the 26-man active roster with reliever Chris Martin (personal) landing on the bereavement list Sunday, so the team won't have to clear room for Velazquez once his promotion his made official. Though Velazquez has experience at all three outfield spots, it's unclear if the Cubs intend to give him a trial in an everyday role. Chicago would likely need to place the banged-up Seiya Suzuki (finger) on the injured list or elect to move the struggling Alfonso Rivas into a reserve role to free up regular playing time for Velazquez in the outfield or at designated hitter.

MAY 29, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Bumped up to Triple-A Velazquez was promoted to Triple-A Iowa on Friday, Iowa Cubs broadcaster Alex Cohen reports.

Impact Considering Velazquez was the MVP of the Arizona Fall League and had a 156 wRC+ at Double-A last season, it shouldn't come as a surprise that he dominated in a return trip, hitting .288/.394/.700 with nine home runs in 22 games. However, his 35.1 K% is a pretty big red flag, even with an outstanding 14.9 BB%.

MAY 7, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

How Cubs prospect Nelson Velazquez made a career-changing adjustment that put him on the map The Cubs helped Nelson Velazquez get his swing in a better place en route to his AFL MVP award.

NOVEMBER 29, 2021 • THEATHLETIC.COM

Added to 40-man roster Velazquez's contract was selected by the Cubs on Friday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Impact Velazquez advanced to Double-A Tennessee during the 2021 campaign and slashed .290/.358/.581 with eight home runs, 27 RBI, 19 runs and five stolen bases across 34 games in Tennessee. He'll now be protected from the upcoming Rule 5 draft.

NOVEMBER 19, 2021 • ROTOWIRE