He is not a starter and never has been. That is exactly why Chicago needed him on the roster now.
Justin Dean has spent his entire professional career being underestimated. A 17th-round pick who spent years grinding through the minor leagues, he has built a career not on power or headline numbers but on the two things that cannot be coached into a player: elite speed and an instinct for the game that shows up in the moments that matter most.
Today, the Cubs recalled Dean from Triple-A Iowa to fill the roster spot vacated by Moisés Ballesteros, who was optioned to the minors amid a prolonged slump. For Dean, it is the latest chapter in a journey that has taken him from organizational depth piece to unexpected contributor on baseball’s biggest stages.
A career built on doing the little things
Dean is 29 years old and has never been a regular starter at the major league level. That is not a failure of talent so much as a reflection of what he is and what he is not. He draws walks at a strong rate, runs extremely well, and plays outfield defense with a reliability that makes him a trusted late-game option. What he does not offer is power or consistent offensive production against major league pitching.
With the Dodgers last season he appeared in 18 regular season games, almost entirely as a pinch-runner or defensive replacement. He had just two plate appearances across those 18 games. And yet when October arrived, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts kept calling on him.
Dean played in 13 postseason games for Los Angeles, all in the same limited role. None of those appearances were larger than Game 6 of the World Series, when he was playing center field in a critical late-game situation. A ball hit by Toronto’s Addison Barger appeared to bounce into the outfield wall, which under the rules would have allowed any baserunners to advance. Dean immediately signaled to the umpires that the ball was lodged in the wall rather than bouncing free, a distinction that prevented Toronto from scoring and helped preserve a Dodgers victory. Los Angeles went on to win the World Series that night.
It was a heads-up play in a moment most players never experience, and it came from a man who had been in the game for just a few minutes.
What he offers the Cubs specifically
Chicago recalled Dean with a specific role in mind. Manager Craig Counsell made clear that Dean will function primarily as a pinch-runner and late-inning defensive replacement rather than stepping into Ballesteros’ spot as a regular designated hitter candidate. The Cubs have Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Seiya Suzuki as their primary outfielders, and Dean slots in behind all three while offering something none of them provide in the same way: pure, disruptive speed on the basepaths.
For a Cubs offense that ranks 26th in the majors in runs scored over the past 30 days, manufacturing runs through speed and smart baserunning is one of the few levers the team can pull without making a larger roster move. Dean gives Counsell a weapon off the bench that changes the dynamic of a late-inning situation simply by stepping onto the field.
The long road to Wrigley
Dean was claimed off waivers by the Cubs from the Giants in January, with San Francisco having previously claimed him from the Dodgers after the World Series. It is the kind of transaction that rarely draws attention, a veteran bench player changing organizations quietly in the offseason.
His Cubs debut will come this weekend at Wrigley Field, where Chicago opens a series against the Toronto Blue Jays. There is a certain symmetry in that. The last time Dean made a meaningful contribution on a big stage, it came in a game that ended a Blue Jays season. Now he makes his debut for a new team in a new city, against the same franchise, in a regular season game that carries its own significance for a Cubs team trying to climb back into contention.
He will wear number one. He will likely appear late in a game, run hard, and do exactly what he has always done. For the Cubs right now, that is enough.