Cubs claim Cole Gillespie off waivers from Giants

The Chicago Cubs announced that they have claimed outfielder Cole Gillespie off waivers from the San Francisco Giants. The 29-year old was designated for assignment by San Francisco on Tuesday to make room for Kensuke Tanaka on the 40-man roster.

Gillespie, who signed a minor league deal with the Giants in December, has appeared in only three major league games on the season and was hitless in nine at-bats. In 74 games with Triple-A Fresno, he hit .277 with 9 HR and 31 RBI. In 53 career major league games with the Diamondbacks (2010-2011) and Giants (2012), Gillespie has posted a .218 average with 3 HR and 16 RBI.

According to Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune, Gillespie will join the Cubs' major league team in place of Scott Hairston, who was traded to the Nationals earlier in the week. He will be penciled in to platoon in right field with Nate Schierholtz, but those plans could change if Schierholtz is traded before the deadline. He is not playing in either of this weekend's games, leading many to speculate that a trade could be in the works.