The small moves keep pouring in for the Chicago Cubs this offseason while everyone waits around for the team to make a big splash. The most recent acquisition was that of a former Cub: Matt Carasiti.

The Cubs have signed RH RP Matt Carasiti to a minor league deal. Carasiti was acquired by Cubs mid-2017, pitched 19 good innings with Iowa, looked primed to ride the I-80 shuttle in 2018 but chose a season for Yakult in Japan instead. He returns to a busy spring Iowa competition.

— Cubs Prospects – Bryan Smith (@cubprospects) January 3, 2019

The Cubs traded for Carasiti during the season in 2017 as a part of a roster shuffle. In the deal, the boys in blue shipped Zac Rosscup out west to Colorado in order to save a 40-man roster spot.

Carasiti put up some rocking numbers in Double-A with the Rockies in 2016 (2.31 ERA, 28.7% K, 4.7% BB) and in Triple-A in 2017 (2.37 ERA, 32.3% K, 9.8% BB) before being shipped to the Cubs organization and putting numbers that were a little bit more pedestrian in his 19.1 innings in Iowa (3.36 FIP, 29.8% K, 11.8% BB).

He looked to be set up to be a depth arm for the bullpen last season until he was granted his release from the Cubs to pursue baseball in Japan.

After seeing competition that tends to be slightly better than Triple-A baseball in America for a full season, he must be ready to tackle baseball back home again.

He slots into a glut of depth arms that will already be stationed in Iowa to begin the season and will look to pick right up where he left off just a year ago.