The Cubs optioned left-handers Rex Brothers and Justin Steele to their alternate training site in South Bend, Indiana, as rosters were trimmed from 30 to 28 on Thursday.
But Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association agreed to keep rosters at 28 for the rest of the regular season and the postseason and to expand taxi squads from three to five players. There was supposed to be another roster cut from 28 to 26 in two weeks.
The Cubs also signed right-hander Kelvin Herrera and left-hander Matt Dermody to minor-league deals and assigned both to South Bend.
Herrera, 30, was designated for assignment Wednesday by the White Sox. He struggled on the South Side, going 3-3 with a 6.54 ERA in 59 appearances for the Sox. Dermody was pitching for the Sugar Land Skeeters of the independent Atlantic League and was 2-0 with a 0.52 ERA in five games (four starts) before signing with the Cubs.
‘‘We’re gonna keep adding players to the secondary site,’’ general manager Jed Hoyer said Saturday. ‘‘We’re gonna keep taking a look at different guys. I think things have gone well, but it’s obvious that depth is incredibly important, especially in the bullpen. . . . We’re going to continue to add arms, to add players. We want to make sure that we have the right amount of depth, and that’s something that has, unfortunately, needed to be utilized more than ever before.’’
The Cubs’ 60-man player pool is now full.
Quintana update
Left-hander Jose Quintana (left thumb) is getting closer to returning and cleared one of his final hurdles by throwing a two-inning simulated game in South Bend. Quintana threw 35 pitches and now will be on his normal five-day routine. He will throw a bullpen session Saturday.
‘‘I watched his outing,’’ manager David Ross said. ‘‘Everything looked clean, got all his pitches in. I saw a mix of the changeup, the cutter, the breaking ball and the fastball. He was throwing all four pitches today. So all that’s a positive.’’
Scheduling changes
The Cubs have two scheduling changes in their upcoming games. Their game Thursday against the Brewers was scheduled to start at 3:05 p.m., but it has been selected for a national telecast by Fox and now will begin at 6:15 p.m.
The Cubs and Reds will make up their rainout July 30 as part of a doubleheader featuring two seven-inning games on Saturday, Aug. 29. Game 1 will begin at 3:10 p.m.
