MESA, Ariz. — If David Ross had any qualms about how Nick Madrigal would take to playing a new position, the infielder quickly shot them down.

“He told me he’d play outfield if it meant he’d be on the team,” Ross said. “It’s just the type of person [he is]. He wants to win. He wants to contribute. He wants to help.”

Madrigal has spent the offseason and the early days of Cubs camp taking reps at the hot corner — and at his natural second base — to accommodate the offseason acquisition of shortstop Dansby Swanon and the subsequent move of Nico Hoerner from short to second. And, while there’s been questions of Madrigal’s arm strength and whether it’ll play at the position, Ross doesn’t seem to worry.

“Yeah, he looks great,” Ross said. “The arm strength doesn’t seem to be a problem right off the [bat]. Nick’s looked really comfortable there so far. You can tell he’s taking some ground balls there. Ball’s carrying nicely, no fade on the ball as he throws across.”

But he knows that a few good days or reps don’t make Madrigal a bonafide third baseman.

“I’m sure there’s some stuff, ball in the hole, it’s different, slow rollers, how he moves and gets used to that,” Ross said. “We’ll be working on all those little things in camp but looks great so far.”

That’s the position the Cubs arguably have the most flexibility with. They can opt to use Madrigal there, go for a power hitter in Patrick Wisdom, choose a versatile player like Christopher Morel or a lefty bat in Zach McKinstry.

“We’re gonna try to set all guys up for success,” Ross said. “I think as long as everybody stays healthy it’s one of those things, we’ll try to find the right mix and who compliments each other well and make sure the buy-in’s real and go from there.”

Happ extension talks

A day after Jed Hoyer told the media he wouldn’t set a hard deadline on extension talks in spring, one of the players primed for a possible long-term deal, Ian Happ, shared his perspective on the whole process.

“All that stuff plays out behind closed doors and different guys go about different ways, but I’ve always been involved in everything that I do,” Happ said. “It’s something that I enjoy doing and have an understanding. I think it’s important.”

Happ has a special connection with the team, as he’s had a remarkable story with the organization so far — he was their first-round pick in 2015, had some success early on, struggled and was demoted to the minors, came back and eventually became an All-Star and Gold Glove winner in 2022.

“Being someone who’s only worn this jersey and has come up through this system, I take a lot of pride in this place,” Happ said.

But Happ is looking at the whole picture — Rafael Devers signed an extension in Boston and Manny Machado could sign one in San Diego — which means he could be one of the top free agents this upcoming offseason, if he replicates his 2022 season where he posted a 4.4 WAR.

“Yeah, it all factors in,” Happ said. “Those things definitely come into play. If you’re not looking at the full picture, you’re probably not doing your job, right?”

A new ‘do for Velázquez

Outfielder Nelson Velázquez strolled into the Cubs clubhouse at the Nike Performance Center with a fresh look. The 24-year-old was sporting blonde hair and proudly showed it off to a pair of reporters Thursday morning.

He’s rocking the new look because he’ll represent Team Puerto Rico at the World Baseball Classic. During the 2017 WBC, the players on team Puerto Rico all sported blonde hair looks and were dubbed “Los Rubios” or “The Blondes” on their way to a second-place finish in the tournament.