The Tigers acquired McKinstry from the Cubs on Monday in exchange for right-hander Carlos Guzman.
Chicago was overweight on utility options and McKinstry had no minor-league options remaining, so the team opted to cash him out for a minor-league pitcher who won't count against the 40-man roster. McKinstry will join the Tigers' Opening Day roster, and while he may not be in line for a full-time role out of the gate, he'll at least have a clearer path to seeing playing time in the corner outfield or at third base than he did in Chicago. Over parts of three seasons in the big leagues with the Dodgers and Cubs, McKinstry owns a .208/.269/.384 slash line in 364 plate appearances.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Gets look in left field
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McKinstry will get looks in the outfield for the rest of the Cactus League season, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports reports.
McKinstry got a look in left field on Saturday, and it's something the Cubs will have him do again during the exhibition season. The former Dodgers prospect is out of options, so Chicago would risk losing him on waivers if he doesn't make the Opening Day roster. Showing the versatility to handle the outfield would go a long way towards McKinstry being a part of the opening group.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: May see time at DH
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McKinstry is a candidate to see some time at DH or as a utility player for the Cubs in 2023, Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic report.
The Cubs signed Trey Mancini over the offseason, presumably to be the team's primary DH. However, the left-handed-hitting McKinstry could work into the mix in the right matchups. McKinstry didn't do much with the bat in 2022, registering a .199/.273/.361 line across 57 games, so fantasy managers shouldn't expect too much production.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Homers, drives in three
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McKinstry went 2-for-6 with a three-run home run in Wednesday's 15-2 victory over the Reds.
Mckinstry struck out swinging to lead off the game before adding a single in his third at-bat. He later jacked a three-run shot to right field in the sixth inning to give the Cubs a commanding 9-2 lead. The Cubs second baseman has now collected four hits in 14 October at-bats (.285) after hitting just .192 in the month of September.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: On bench Tuesday
Rotowire
McKinstry will sit Tuesday against the Reds.
McKinstry hasn't done much since coming to the Cubs at the deadline, hitting .201/.270/.342 in 45 games. There should be playing time available at Wrigley Field next season, but he's done very little to claim a meaningful portion. Patrick Wisdom starts at third base Tuesday.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Sits against southpaw
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McKinstry isn't in the lineup Saturday against the Reds.
McKinstry is on the bench for a third consecutive game since left-hander Nick Lodolo is starting for the Reds. Patrick Wisdom will take over at the hot corner and bat cleanup.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Still on bench Friday
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McKinstry isn't in the lineup Friday against Cincinnati.
Although right-hander Graham Ashcraft is on the mound for the Reds on Friday, McKinstry will head to the bench for a second consecutive matchup. Patrick Wisdom will take over at the hot corner and bat third.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Left out against lefty
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McKinstry is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Phillies.
McKinstry started the last 12 games and hit leadoff in all but one of them, but he will head to the bench Thursday with the Cubs employing an all-righty lineup against Philadelphia starter Ranger Suarez. David Bote will join the lineup in McKinstry's place, and Willson Contreras will take his spot at the top of the batting order.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Tallies two hits in loss
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McKinstry went 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and an RBI in Monday's loss to the Marlins.
The Cubs fell 10-3, though McKinstry did his job from the leadoff spot. The 27-year-old is still only batting .208 this season, so despite getting some opportunities atop the Chicago lineup, he hasn't been a consistent fantasy option. Nico Hoerner (triceps) and Nick Madrigal (groin) should be the team's primary middle infield options in 2023 when both are healthy, with McKinstry possibly around in a reserve role.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Day off Wednesday
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McKinstry isn't in the lineup Wednesday against the Mets.
McKinstry went 6-for-17 with a homer, a triple, a double, two runs and two RBI over the last four games but will head to the bench with left-hander David Peterson on the mound Wednesday. David Bote will start at the keystone and bat ninth.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Hits third home run
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McKinstry went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in Monday's win over the Mets.
McKinstry batted leadoff and gave the Cubs a spark with a two-run blast in the third inning, his third home run of the season. The versatile 27-year-old is batting just .204 for the season, though he's improved that figure to .281 over his last 10 games, and he's started three consecutive contests at second base with Nick Madrigal (groin) currently on the injured list.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Replaces Madrigal as leadoff man
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McKinstry will start at second base and bat leadoff in Monday's game against the Mets.
McKinstry will pick up his third straight start at the keystone and out of the table-setting spot, replacing the injured Nick Madrigal (groin). Though the lefty-hitting McKinstry is coming off one of the best games of his young career -- a four-hit performance in Sunday's 4-2 loss to the Giants -- he'll still likely head to the bench or plummet to the bottom of the order against left-handed pitching.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Collects four hits
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McKinstry went 4-for-5 with a triple, a double and a run in a 4-2 loss to the Giants on Sunday.
McKinstry ignited Chicago's offense from the leadoff spot with a single in the first inning, double and run in the fifth, single in the seventh and triple in the ninth. The four-hit performance is the 27-year-old's first of the season and snaps a 15 at-bat hitless stretch. McKinstry is slashing .205/.255/.318 with one home run, seven runs, four RBI and three stolen bases in 28 games with Chicago.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Triples, drives in one Wednesday
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McKinstry went 2-for-4 with a triple and an RBI in Wednesday's win over the Blue Jays.
McKinstry was a capable leadoff hitter for the Cubs as they rattled off seven runs. The infielder is still batting just .190, so while he's getting some looks atop the lineup here and there, it's hard to trust him much in fantasy given his lack of playing time or consistent production. He does have hits in four of his last five games, at least.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Out against righty again
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McKinstry is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Blue Jays.
The lefty-hitting McKinstry has now been on the bench for three straight matchups with right-handed pitchers and appears to have faded into a reserve role. Christopher Morel, who had previously seen most of his starts in center field or at second base, appears to have usurped McKinstry as the Cubs' top third baseman.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Sitting Monday
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McKinstry is not in the starting lineup Monday against the Blue Jays.
McKinstry will take a seat after he went 1-for-4 with a run scored Sunday versus the Brewers. Christopher Morel will slide over to third base while Rafael Ortega enters the lineup in center field and bats seventh in the series opener.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Not starting Saturday
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McKinstry isn't in the lineup Saturday against the Brewers.
McKinstry started the last three games and went 2-for-11 with a home run, three RBI, two runs and two strikeouts. Christopher Morel will take over at the hot corner and bat ninth Saturday.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Homers, drives in three Wednesday
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McKinstry went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and three total RBI in Wednesday's win over the Cardinals.
McKinstry did some damage from the bottom of the order, hitting just his second home run of the season in the seventh inning against St. Louis starter Miles Mikolas. McKinstry started at third base in this one, which is where he's been seeing more time recently with Patrick Wisdom playing over at first. The playing time is nice, but McKinstry is still batting just .175 with a .548 OPS, so he'll have to do more at the plate to establish fantasy value.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Takes seat for nightcap
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McKinstry is out of the lineup for Game 2 of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Cardinals
McKinstry hit leadoff in Game 1 and went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run in Chicago's 2-0 victory, and he'll head to the bench in the nightcap. Christopher Morel will shift to the hot corner while Nelson Velazquez starts in center field.
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Cubs' Zach McKinstry: Riding pine Monday
Rotowire
McKinstry isn't starting Monday against the Cardinals.
McKinstry is on the bench for the third time in the last four games since left-hander Jordan Montgomery is on the mound for St. Louis. Christopher Morel is starting at third base and batting ninth.
