Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full), plus two players are on the 60-DAY IL 

26 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE, twelve players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors, one player is on the 15-DAY IL, and one player is on the 10-DAY IL

Last updated 4-18-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Colten Brewer
Ben Brown
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
Jameson Taillon 
Keegan Thompson
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

INFIELDERS: 7
* Michael Busch 
Garrett Cooper
Nico Hoerner
Nick Madrigal
Christopher Morel
Dansby Swanson
Patrick Wisdom

OUTFIELDERS: 4
* Cody Bellinger 
# Ian Happ
Seiya Suzuki
* Mike Tauchman 

OPTIONED: 12 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Jose Cuas, P 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Luke Little, P 
* Miles Mastrobuoni, INF
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 
Hayden Wesneski, P 

10-DAY IL: 1 
Seiya Suzuki, OF

15-DAY IL: 
* Justin Steele, P   

60-DAY IL: 2 
Caleb Kilian, P 
Julian Merryweather, P
 




Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Cubs Lose Two Hurlers in Rule 5 Draft

Submitted by Arizona Phil on

The Cubs lost two minor league pitchers in the AAA Phase of today's Rule 5 Draft at the Winter Meetings in Florida.

22-year old RHP Ronny Morla was selected by the Mets in the 1st Round, and 24-year old LHP Casey Lambert was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 2nd Round.

Players selected in the AAA Phase cost $12,000, and "all sales are final" in the two minor league phases, meaning neither player will be returning to the Cubs.  

Morla was one of three players acquired by the Cubs from Oakland a year ago (RHP Jeff Gray and 1B Matt Spencer were the other two) for INF Aaron Miles and C-IF-OF Jake Fox. Morla spent the 2010 season at Peoria, where he went 4-4 with a 4.00 ERA and 1.22 WHIP, allowing 76 hits in 78 IP, with a 20/86 BB/K. I was very surprised that Morla was made available in the AAA Phase and was not protected on the Iowa roster.

Lambert was the Cubs 6th round pick out of the University of Virginia in 2007. He was the Cavs closer in college and was used aa a reliever his first two years in pro ball before being moved to the starting rotation at AA Tennessee in 2009. He was sidetracked by Tommy John Surgery at the end of the 2009 season, and spent most of the 2010 season rehabbing at Fitch Park, before moving up to Daytona in July, where he posted a 1-0 record with a 2.95 ERA and 1.27 WHIP in 14 games (21 IP).

There were 48 Cubs minor leaguers eligible for selection in this year's Rule 5 Draft, and with a 38-man AAA Reserve List limit the Cubs could not put all of their Rule 5 eligibles on the Iowa roster. But I would have thought that both Morla and Lambert had enough upside to be protected on the Iowa roster, making them available in the more restrictive Major League Phase, where the Cubs at least might have been able to get them back next Spring.    

The Cubs did make one selection in the Major League Phase, tabbing RHP Mason Tobin from the Angels. But Tobin was subsequently traded to the Texas Rangers for cash, in what was obviously a pre-arranged deal. (The Rangers had the 26th pick. while the Cubs were picking 9th). The Cubs have done this before, spending $50,000 to draft a player (most famously Josh Hamilton in 2006), and then selling the player to the team for whom they made the pick for maybe $100,000 (thereby making a tidy $50K profit).  

It's also possible that the Tobin deal could be the pre-cursor to a trade involving Chris Davis.  

BTW, the Cubs were able to make a selection in the Major League Phase only because they still had one slot open on their 40-man roster, as Carlos Pena was not officially added to the Cubs MLB Reserve List until after the draft.

Tags
Rule 5 draft

Comments

Submitted by Old and Blue on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:12 am

"The Cubs have done this before, spending $50,000 to draft the player, and then selling the player to the team for whom they made the pick for maybe $100,000 (making a $50K profit)." Was that Josh Hamilton? Hendry gets creamed for that but it was an agreed upon deal if I remember right.

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Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:28 am

Submitted by Old and Blue on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 10:12am. "The Cubs have done this before, spending $50,000 to draft the player, and then selling the player to the team for whom they made the pick for maybe $100,000 (making a $50K profit)." Was that Josh Hamilton? Hendry gets creamed for that but it was an agreed upon deal if I remember right. ========================================== OLD & BLUE: Yes, the Josh Hamilton deal was a situation where the Cubs selected him from Tampa Bay in the Major League Phase of the 2006 Rule 5 Draft and then sent him to Cincinnati for cash. Hendry has done some dumb things in his career as Cubs GM, but the Hamilton deal was not really one of them. Although he had at one time been the top rated prospect in baseball, Hamilton was by 2006 a 25-year old admitted crack addict who had been out of baseball for several years. The Reds were the only team in baseball willing to take a chance on him, because Johnny Narron (brother of then-Reds manager Jerry Narron) knew Hamilton from Hamilton's high school days in North Carolina, and Johnny agreed to be Hamilton's full-time companion, body-guard, and mentor in Cincinnati.

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Submitted by MikeC on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:01 pm

I have a problem with being told by another team who to draft and then giving that said player to the team that told you to do it for cash. I mean seriously how much of a fucking push over can you be? I was happy and then incredibly pissed off like an hour later when he was traded to the Reds. He was one of those candidates you take a shot at and if it doesn't work out what do you lose? Not much. Instead we gambled with guys like Cliff Floyd. You know a one year rental ala Carlos Pena where once he is gone your still stuck in "what if" mode. Cliff Floyd wasn't going to do shit for our team and he wasn't going to be around later to build anything around. Jacque was on his last legs in CF and we were still waiting for Pie to figure out what a strike zone was. Nothing else was even remotely close in the minors to help fill out the OF. A Hamilton resurrection would of ment the Cubs passing on Fukudome and later Milton Bradley. Much like the Carlos Pena situation. Your buying a 1 year rental instead of trying to explore a long term solution in Chris Davis. Your gonna fail with Pena either way, whether he has a great season or a bad season. He isn't going to be in Chicago the following year anyways. These are what you call low risk gambles that have the potential for high reward. Its better than filling out the last spot on the roster with Jose Macias and Bobby Scales clones. It was bad all the way around with signing Hamilton. The Cubs should have kept him and they shouldn't be making picks for other teams.

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Submitted by MikeC on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:49 pm

You don't understand JohnT, even then I wanted Hamilton on the Cubs. You can't ignore the pedigree or the talent and around that time he was getting his life back together. He wasn't some guy still strung out on drugs whithering away. He was working out, getting in shape and off drugs. He was worth a 50K gamble. Its not like our system churns out talent with any semblance of power. Sorry didn't jump on the Hamiliton bandwagon when he went off in his first year with the Reds. The moment he was a Cub, i felt it was a good move to put him on our roster. If we can give spots to Macias and Neifi, Hamilton deserved a look. Our organization goes through some of the shittiest talent, and pays alot for it. He was worth a cheap gamble. Hell we paid 30 million to find out Milton Bradley will always be an unproductive asshole. I think we could of found out if Hamilton would have been a 150k shot in the dark.

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:02 am

For anyone interested, as things stand right now, here is next year's Cubs Rule 5 Eligible List and Rule 55 minor league free-agents... ELIGIBLE FOR SELECTION IN DECEMBER 2011 RULE 5 DRAFT: Jeffry Antigua, LHP Adrian Aviles, LHP (unless FA - see below) Jeffrey Beliveau, LHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx, RHP (unless FA- see below) Michael Brenly, C Justin Bristow, RHP Ryan Buchter, LHP Kyler Burke, OF David Cales, RHP Matt Camp, IF-OF Tony Campana, OF Rogelio Carmona, RHP Chris Carpenter, RHP Hung-Wen Chen, RHP Steve Clevenger, C-1B Manolin DeLeon, RHP Eduardo Figueroa, RHP Ryan Flaherty, IF-OF Luis Flores, C Marwin Gonzalez, IF-OF Yohan Gonzalez, RHP Jose Guevara, C Francisco Guzman, OF Gian Guzman, RHP Marcus Hatley, RHP Albert Hernandez, OF Chris Huseby, RHP-OF Jay Jackson, RHP Junior Lake, INF Blake Lalli, C-1B Jordan Latham, RHP James Leverton, LHP Antoni Lugo, 3B (unless FA - see below) David Macias, IF-OF Alessandro Maestri, RHP Oswaldo Martinez, RHP Craig Muschko, RHP Jon Nagel, RHP Jake Opitz, INF Jeremy Papelbon, LHP Blake Parker, RHP Mike Perconte, RHP Marcos Perez, LHP Nelson Perez, OF Andres Quezada, RHP Alvaro Ramirez, OF (unless FA - see below) Ramon Reyes, RHP Dae-Eun Rhee, RHP Rebel Ridling, 1B Carlos Rojas, RHP Carlos Romero, C Nate Samson, INF Ryan Searle, RHP Aaron Shafer, RHP Chris Siegfried, LHP Marquez Smith, 3B Luke Sommer, LHP Matt Spencer, 1B-OF Larry Suarez, RHP Tony Thomas, 2B Jose Tineo, RHP Jose Valdez, OF Josh Vitters, 3B Ty Wright, OF NOTE: A player on this list is not eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft if added to an MLB 40-man roster by 11/20. Any free-agent signed to a minor league contract prior to the Rule 5 Draft is eligible for selection. ------------------------------------- ELIGIBLE TO BE RULE 55 MINOR LEAGUE FREE-AGENT POST-2011: NOTE: A minor league player eligible to be a Rule 55 free-agent is not eligible to be a FA if the player is added to his club’s 40-man roster by the 4th day following the conclusion of the World Series. SIX-YEAR MINOR LEAGUE FA: James Adduci, OF Marco Carrillo, RHP Angel Guzman, RHP Dylan Johnston, RHP Bryan Lahair, 1B J. R. Mathes, LHP Scott Moore, INF Jonathan Mota, IF-C Jake Muyco, RHP Mike Parisi, RHP David Patton, RHP Scott Rice, LHP Chris Robinson, C Bobby Scales, INF Brad Snyder, OF Alvaro Sosa, RHP PREVIOUSLY RELEASED - WILL BE MINOR LEAGUE FA UNLESS SIGNED BEYOND 2011: Adrian Aviles, LHP (previously released by LAD) Austin Bibens-Dirkx, RHP (previously released by SEA) Antoni Lugo, 3B (previously released by CHW) Alvaro Ramirez, OF (previously released by NYY)

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Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:12 pm

Submitted by The Real Neal on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 11:28am. Going to be some tough decisions that the new GM will be facing. Phil, do you know how long the costs have been the same for drafting players for the Rule 5 draft and if there's any talk of increasing it? Getting a guy to put in the majors for $100K is so comparatively cheap now, I doubt the teams really even think about spending it. ============================================= REAL NEAL: The Rule 5 Draft price for the Major League Phase used to be $25,000. I believe it was increased to $50,000 sometime in the 1970's. Personally I would like to see a change in the Rule 5 Draft to where the drafting club does not have to keep the player on its 25-man roster the following season, but it cannot trade or outright the player for one year, either. That is, the player can be optioned to the minors just like any other player with minor league options left, so that selecting a player in the the Rule 5 Draft would be more like a waiver claim, but with trade and outright (but not option) restrictions.

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Submitted by Charlie on Fri, 12/10/2010 - 12:11 am

thought not sure they'd get anyone better than Gorz for Wells Why not move him for prospects, then? Or hold onto him through the beginning of the season, using him as a swing man, in case of injury to Webb (or any others)? Z, Dempster, Garza, Webb, Wells/Gorzo/Cashner/Jackson would be a fine rotation, and partway through the season the Cubs might then have the option to move Wells or Gorzo for prospects to replace some of the young players lost in the Garza deal. (It might also help the Cubs shift some of their minor league value from the mound to the field by trading pitchers for Garza and possibly getting a position player or two for Gorzo or Wells.)

Submitted by Rob G. on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:48 pm

Heyman says LAD, Brewers, Toronto, Washington, Texas are most active in Greinke talks. Have to admit that greinke/gallardo/wolf/marcum sure would make brewers interesting next year.

Submitted by billybucks on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:47 pm

Sorry to be late to the party -- I think Ricketts is going down a very slippery slope. If you are going to defile Wrigley with noodle statues and such, you need to do better than signing a .196 hitter for $10 million after you have had a terrible year. You need to win or contend -- virtually every year. See "Sox, Red" -- Fenway looks like a NASCAR event, but the Red Sox are always good, and they almost always spend the money well, so people are OK with it. If you mess up the Wrigley mystique and suck for several years -- that debt load is going to get awfully heavy.

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 12:37 pm

While players selected in the AAA and AA phases of the Rule 5 Draft rarely amount to much, RHP Adalberto Mendez (selected by Florida from the Cubs in the AA Phase of 2007 Rule 5 Draft) threw six innings of one-hit shutout ball for the Marlins at Philadephia in his MLB debut in September. Ex-INF Mendez was one of the first position players converted to pitcher by the Oneri Fleita-led Player Development Dept.

Submitted by crunch on Fri, 12/10/2010 - 12:04 am

"Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reports that the Reds have signed outfielder Jay Bruce to a six-year, $51 million contract extension. The deal also contains a club option for a seventh year that would bring the total worth to $63 million." niiiiice. wish the cubs could snag someone like that for loot like this at an age like his.

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Fri, 12/10/2010 - 12:41 am

Cubs 2010 5th round round draft pick OF Matt Szczur and his fellow Villanova Wildcats invade Boone, NC, and take-on the Appalachian State Mountaineers in a FCS playoff game this Saturday at 12 noon (EST) on ESPN.

Submitted by jacos on Fri, 12/10/2010 - 12:18 am

Just had a weird dream. I was at Santo's funeral procession as it was going down Sheffield ave.(I'm not going) It was beautiful day and they had the coffin on one of those manual crate movers as it was being pushed down the middle of Sheffield. The casket was covered by autographed baseballs, bats and gloves from past and current Cubs. For some reason I was really close to the casket and I saw Bobby Hill's embroidered glove. Like I said weird dream. As the casket goes by they lose control of the casket and it jumps the curb and hits one of those city metal garbage cans. Of course the lid comes off. The coffin that is. Everyone is aghast, I recognize Bob Uecker, who throws his head back and slaps his hand across his eyes in disbelief. Then I look down and my kids are with me and they are shocked so I sent them to the 7-11 on Sheffield and Addison to get Slurpees. My first thought after that was "I can't believe the Cubs f'd this up too." My second thought was "where's a computer I have to post this on TCR." Then I woke up. I do remember seeing Ron in the casket he looked at peace with his hands folded, tan and slight smile on his face. Rest in Peace Ronnie.

Submitted by John Beasley on Fri, 12/10/2010 - 12:44 pm

AZ Phil: What would you predict a guy like Matt Garza would make over his last three seasons of club control, assuming relative continuance of past performance? My guess is about $30M combined. Are there any relevant comparisons for post-Super-2 SP's with similar stats, to your knowledge? ==================================== JOHN B: I agree with $30M ($7-10-13) if he continues to put up the same numbers over 2011-13.

Submitted by The Real Neal on Sat, 12/11/2010 - 12:31 am

Playing a lot of QB in the Wildcat formation, looks pretty healthy. He rushed for their first TD and the commentators say the coaching staff has timed him in the 4.3's on the 40 yard dash.

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Submitted by The Real Neal on Sat, 12/11/2010 - 12:28 pm

They went on to elaborate that it would depend on how he did in the Senior Bowl, the cobine and in the draft. That being said, with the success of Danny Woodhead this year with the Pats and the popularity of the Wildcat formation, it's hard to see him falling below the third round in the draft. It's too bad, because he seems like maybe even a better baseball prospect.

Submitted by Sweet Lou on Sat, 12/11/2010 - 12:59 pm

Szcur ended up running for two touchdowns, throwing for one, and catching one. Big day for him as Villanova beat Division I-AA powerhouse Appalachian State 42-24.

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Submitted by Arizona Phil on Sat, 12/11/2010 - 12:09 pm

Submitted by Sweet Lou on Sat, 12/11/2010 - 3:59pm. Szcur ended up running for two touchdowns, throwing for one, and catching one. Big day for him as Villanova beat Division I-AA powerhouse Appalachian State 42-24. =================================== SWEET LOU: Actually Matt Szczur was responsible for five Villanova touchdowns (three running, one catch, and one pass), and racked-up 207 all-purpose yards (he also was the Wildcats punt returner, but he had no return yards). Although Szczur would be passing on a $500K bonus if he does not commit to baseball in February, it wouldn't keep him from playing baseball next year, at least until he signs an NFL contract. And with a possible work stoppage looming in the NFL next season, he might not even get a chance to play pro football in 2011. No matter what he decides to do, Szczur will likely report to Minor League Camp at Fitch Park in March, and then will play CF and hit lead-off at Peoria until if and when he leaves for the NFL. I'm sure the Cubs will be keeping the door open for him until he determines for sure where his future lies. Even if he opts to try the NFL, he could still end up returning to baseball with the Cubs in 2012 or 2013. Here is the Peoria Chiefs likely 2011 Opening Day lineup (as things stand right now): Matt Szczur, CF Arismendy Alcantara, SS Pierre LePage, 2B Richard Jones, DH Brandon May, 3B Reggie Golden, RF Ryan Cuneo, 1B Jesus Morelli, LF Micah Gibbs, C Austin Kirk, P

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Sun, 12/12/2010 - 12:48 am

Eastern Washington beat North Dakota State in OT, so it will be Villanova at Eastern Washington in FCS semi-finals next weekend (probably Friday night) on ESPN or ESPN2. Georgia Southern at Delaware on Saturday is the other FCS semi.

Submitted by Paul Noce on Sun, 12/12/2010 - 12:58 am

Looks like Brett Farve will never play another home game in Minnesota. The stadium roof completely collapsed overnight from snow. I'm glad it didn't happen during a game, it would have been a disaster.

Submitted by VirginiaPhil on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:25 pm

Canada is printing a Fergie Jenkins postage stamp in 2011. You can read the story in a lot of places, but this web page has a picture of the stamp. Love the uni. How cool is that?

Submitted by Rob G. on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:19 pm

Rotoworld say (and believe this has been mentioned before) that Royals want 2b, SS and CF guys a year or two from majors for Greinke. A good fit for Cubs if the Royals start being reasonable with their asking price.

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Submitted by Charlie on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:04 pm

I think the Royals would have interest in Brett Jackson and Brandon Guyer, but I'm not sure who the near-ready middle infield prospects are. Darwin Barney is the most near ready middle infielder the Cubs have (other than Castro), but he's probably not that interesting to the Royals. Lee and LeMahieu are both probably 2+ years away, and Flaherty might be just as far (and possibly more of a corner infielder now). Would the Royals have any interest in DeWitt as part of a deal?

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Submitted by Arizona Phil on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:57 pm

Submitted by Rob G. on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 3:32pm. fwiw, the Rotoworld blurb seemed to indicate they were happy with their catching situation and what's coming up the pipeline. ==================================== ROB G: Wil Myers is the Royals #1 catching prospect, but in the Royals post-2010 Top 10 Prospect list, BA projects him as an offensive-first catcher who is a candidate to move to corner OF at the MLB level. Also top SS prospect Christian Colon (KC 2010 #1 draft pick out of Cal State-Fullerton) is projected as an offensive-first SS who might be moved to 2B at the MLB level. BTW, BA rates the Royals projected 2011 AA starting rotation at NW Arkansas (Lamb-Montgomery-Duffy-Dwyer-Crow) as the best minor league rotation in baseball. As of right now the Cubs should have an Archer-McNutt-Cabrera-Rusin-Raley starting rotation to open the 2011 season at AA Tennessee, which is not to shabby, either.

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Submitted by Arizona Phil on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:42 pm

Submitted by The Real Neal on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 2:54pm. Aren't catchers "up the middle" guys? I don't see where the money is going to come from unless we ship someone on the MLB roster back to them, though. ================================ REAL NEAL: I would think Brett Jackson, Hak-Ju Lee (even though he's probably two years away from being "MLB ready"), either Welington Castillo or Robinson Chirinos (Royals choice), and either Chris Archer, Trey McNutt, Jay Jackson or Chris Carpenter (Royals choice) would probably be the package. If the Royals would take back Carlos Silva as part of the deal (with the Cubs agreeing to pay Silva's $2M 2012 buy-out), the Cubs would be adding $7.5M in additional payroll in 2011, and then Greinke's $13.5M in 2012 salary can be offset by several high-salaried players coming off the books post-2011.

Submitted by navigator on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 12:00 pm

What's the deal with this guy? Why does John Boehner cry so much? Is he a Cub fan?

Recent comments

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Miles Mastrobuoni cannot be recalled until he has spent at least ten days on optional assignment, unless he is recalled to replace a position player who is placed on an MLB inactive list (IL, Paternity, Bereavement / Family Medical). 

     

    And for a pitcher it's 15 days on optional assignment before he can be recalled, unless he is replacing a pitcher who is placed on an MLB inactive list (IL, Paternity, or Bereavement / Family Medical). 

     

    And a pitcher (or a position player, but almost always it's a pitcher) can be recalled as the 27th man for a doubleheader regardless of how many days he has been on optional assignment, but then he must be sent back down again the next day. 

     

    That's why the Cubs had to wait as long as they did to send Jose Cuas down and recall Keegan Thompson. Thompson needed to spend the first 15 days of the MLB regular season on optional assignment before he could be recalled (and he spent EXACTLY the first 15 days of the MLB regular season on optional assignment before he was recalled). 

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Indeed they do TJW!

    For the record I’m not in favor of solely building a team through paying big to free agents. But I’m also of the mind that when you develop really good players, get them signed to extensions that buy out a couple years of free agency, including with team options. And supplement the home grown players with free agent splashes or using excess prospects to trade for stars under team control for a few years. Sort of what Atlanta does, basically. Everyone talks about the dodgers but I feel that Atlanta is the peak organization at the current moment.

    That said, the constant roster churn is very Rays- ish. What they do is incredible, but it’s extremely hard to do which is why they’re the only ones frequently successful that employ that strategy. I definitely do not want to see a large market team like ours follow that model closely. But I don’t think free agent frenzies is always the answer. It’s really only the Dodgers that play in that realm. I could see an argument for the Mets too. The Yankees don’t really operate like that anymore since the elder Steinbrenner passed. Though I would say the reigning champions built a good deal of that team through free agent spending.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    The issue is the Cubs are 11-7 and have been on the road for 12 of those 18.  We should be at least 13-5, maybe 14-4. Jed isn't feeling any pressure to play anyone he doesn't see fit.
    But Canario on the bench, Morel not at 3B for Madrigal and Wisdom in RF wasn't what I thought would happen in this series.
    I was hoping for Morel at 3B, Canario in RF, Wisdom at DH and Madrigal as a pinch hitter or late replacement.
    Maybe Madrigal starts 1 game against the three LHSP for Miami.
    I'm thinking Canario goes back to Iowa on Sunday night for Mastrobuoni after the Miami LHers are gone.
    Canario needs ABs in Iowa and not bench time in MLB.
    With Seiya out for a while Wisdom is safe unless his SOs are just overwhelmingly bad.

    My real issue with the lineup isn't Madrigal. I'm not a fan, but I've given up on that one.
    It's Tauchman getting a large number of ABs as the de factor DH and everyday player.
    I didn't realize that was going to be the case.
    We need a better LH DH. PCA or ONKC need to force the issue in about a month.
    But, even if they do so, Jed doesn't have to change anything if the Cubs stay a few over .500!!!

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Totally depends on the team and the player involved. If your team’s philosophy is to pay huge dollars to bet on the future performance of past stars in order to win championships then, yes, all of the factors you mentioned are important.

    If on the other hand, if the team’s primary focus is to identify and develop future stars in an effort to win a championship, and you’re a young player looking to establish yourself as a star, that’s a fit too. Otherwise your buried within your own organization.

    Your comment about bringing up Canario for the purposes of sitting him illustrates perfectly the dangers of rewarding a non-performing, highly paid player over a hungry young prospect, like Canario, who is perpetually without a roster spot except as an insurance call up, but too good to trade. Totally disincentivizing the performance of the prospect and likely diminishing it.

    Sticking it to your prospects and providing lousy baseball to your fans, the consumers and source of revenue for your sport, solely so that the next free agent gamble finds your team to be a comfortable landing spot even if he sucks? I suppose  that makes sense to some teams but it’s definitely not the way I want to see my team run.

    Once again, DJL, our differences in philosophy emerge!

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    That’s just kinda how it works though, for every team. No team plays their best guys all the time. No team is comprising of their best 26 even removing injuries.

    When baseball became a business, like REALLY a business, it became important to keep some of the vets happy, which in turn keeps agents happy and keeps the team with a good reputation among players and agents. No one wants to play for a team that has a bad reputation in the same way no one wants to work for a company that has a bad rep.

    Don’t get me wrong, I hate it too. But there’s nothing anyone can do about it.

    On that topic, I find it silly the Cubs brought up Canario to sit as much as he has. He’s going to get Velazquez’d, and it’s a shame.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Of course, McKinstry runs circles around $25 million man Javier Baez on that Tigers team. Guess who gets more playing time?

    But I digress…

  • Sonicwind75 (view)

    Seems like Jed was trying to corner the market on mediocre infielders with last names starting with "M" in acquiring Madrigal, Mastroboney and Zach McKinstry.  

     

    At least he hasn't given any of them a Bote-esque extension.  

  • Childersb3 (view)

    AZ Phil:
    Rookie ball (ACL) starts on May 4th. Do yo think Ramon and Rosario (maybe Delgado) stay in Mesa for the month of May, then go to MB if all goes "solid"?
     

  • crunch (view)

    masterboney is a luxury on a team that has multiple, capable options for 2nd, SS, and 3rd without him around.  i don't hate the guy, but if madrigal is sticking around then masterboney is expendable.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    I THINK I agree with that decision. They committed to Wicks as a starter and, while he hasn’t been stellar I don’t think he’s been bad enough to undo that commitment.

    That said, Wesneski’s performance last night dictates he be the next righty up.

    Quite the dilemma. They have many good options, particularly in relief, but not many great ones. And complicating the situation is that the pitchers being paid the most are by and large performing the worst - or in Taillon’s case, at least to this point, not at all.

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