Cubs activate Austin Romine, designate fellow catcher Tony Wolters

The Cubs announced Tuesday that they reinstated catcher Austin Romine from the 10-day injured list and designated fellow backstop Tony Wolters for assignment in order to open a spot on the roster. Romine was sidelined by a knee sprain partway through spring training, prompting the Cubs to bring Wolters in on a big league deal.

Romine, 32, inked a one-year, $1.5M deal over the winter and is expected to serve as the primary backup option to Willson Contreras. He hit just .238/.259/.323 in 135 plate appearances with the Tigers in 2020 but is only a year removed from a more impressive .281/.310/.439 output with the Yankees.

Wolters, 28, appeared in three games with the Cubs and went hitless in five trips to the plate. He spent most of spring training with the Pirates but opted out of that deal after Pittsburgh went with waiver claim Michael Perez as the backup to starter Jacob Stallings. Wolters spent the 2016-20 seasons as the Rockies’ primary catcher and posted a tepid .238/.323/.319 batting line in that time (57 wRC+, 61 OPS+), although he’s known more for his glove than his bat.

The Cubs will have a week to trade Wolters, pass him through outright waivers or release him.