Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full) 

28 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE, and twelve players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors. 

Last updated 3-26-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 15
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Jose Cuas
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Caleb Kilian
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Julian Merryweather
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele
Jameson Taillon
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

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

OPTIONED: 12 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Ben Brown, P 
Alexander Canario, OF 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Keegan Thompson, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 
Hayden Wesneski, P 

 



 

Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

"Unbelievably Stupid"

...about sums it up.

Till game time.

Comments

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

...frustrated but believes there's lots of progress behind the scenes (infrastructure, scouting, etc) that will pay off down the road, but knows most fans don't care about that. ...get out of the mindset of spending a little extra on veterans and hope everything breaks right. Focus on building a solid nucleus. plays up how much fans enjoy watching young players come up everyone's game change planned in draft, after a certain point couldn't look for HS upside guys with 1st round talent in later rounds says he likes Castro even more now that he's been around him, cites defensive improvement and hard work, still hiccups along the way. "Moving his feet much better"..."this kid cares"... at the plate, Castro is a work in progress...5 years away from his prime. can't blame Rudy, recites the importance of on-base percentage and working the count and just wanted a unified voice....said it already started in the minors. Rudy very good at the mechanics but wanted to shift the nature of the conversation. Rizzo - "almost ready"...wants full season of at-bats at AAA level (162 games, not AAA season). Has to stay consistent with his hands, but has the right mental approach.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

**wants full season of at-bats at AAA levels (162 games, not AAA season).** So he'll get called up in 10 days or so? He currently has 153 games at AAA.

[ ]

In reply to by big_lowitzki

I think it's smart to keep Rizzo down a bit and see how LaHair does with a couple more months around the league. He had 3 strikeouts yesterday but the line you're showing is pretty good and shows that maybe he's adjusting to the adjustments. If he starts to get hot again, it just gives theocorp a little more to work with, and God knows, this team needs all the help it can get.

[ ]

In reply to by Old and Blue

Sample Size Issues abound, but... vs. LHP: 111/250/222 vs. RHP: 348/419/660 IMHO he's got a tremendous amount value given his production/salary ratio but platooning him is probably the right answer. Though please don't read this as an endorsement of Baker as the short side of that platoon :)

[ ]

In reply to by big_lowitzki

Agreed. There's nothing more to lose at this point. May as well answer the question conclusively not being able to hit LHP. Allows them to build around that next year and finding a lefty masher, and there should a large number of them available relatively cheaply.

[ ]

In reply to by big_lowitzki

there's always a reason, even if it's one many of us disagree with... by not playing him against lefties, it leaves other teams wondering if he's good against lefties (much like most of us on this board) and the hope/desire/curiosity if he is good could be more valuable than watching him flail away at sliders. I'm not saying I agree with that, but there could be some of the thought process. My guess is Sveum is just trying to win some games and thinks Baker vs. lefties is a better option.

I got a chance to watch the Peoria Chiefs play the Snappers last night in Beloit. Javier Baez sure has a lot of motion at the plate. Stride, cocking the bat, leg kick--like Victorian clockwork. But this seems to enable him to wait back and then generate a quick swing. He hit two balls hard, one for a ground single to left and one foul past third, and the ball makes That Sound when he squares it up. Defensively, he showed range and a strong arm, but last night he made Castro look like Mark Belanger glove-wise. Three errors. One was on a tough do-or-die slow chopper, but the others looked like he was preparing to throw before getting the ball in his glove. Dustin Geiger added two more errors, one on a hustling but ill-advised throw to the plate on a hopeless swinging bunt. The other was on a slow hopper that he played off to his side; I figure he's been playing baseball since he was six and all of his coaches said to get in front of balls like that. He and Yasiel Balaguert looked a little overmatched against some strong Beloit pitching. Zeke DeVoss looked solid. He was steady in the field, though he also played a grounder off to the side but got away with it. He's very fast and looks smaller than the 5'10" he's listed at. Obviously a candidate to be the Tony Campana/Sam Fuld/Augie Ojeda/Doug Dascenzo du jour in 2015. He does work the count, so that helps. Michael Jensen, who has been pitching very well, was the victim of the five errors, though he also let a few Snappers pound the ball. He has good stuff, as do the two relievers, big Larry Suarez (reminded me of a cross between Ferguson Jenkins and Lee Smith) and wiry Felix Pena. I should add that it's a great time at the Snappers ballpark. It's pretty basic compared to Peoria, Kane County, or Davenport, but for $9 ($7.50 in advance), you get a "box seat" of molded plastic with arms and back--sort of a giant booster seat--very close to the action. Tuesdays have the best discounts: Hot dogs, popcorn, and pizza slices are $1, and 12-oz Leinie's are a buck and a half. "Roll Out The Barrell" and "The Gang's All Here" at the stretch, a hog-calling contest, "cheap" gas in Rockton, and you can't beat fun at the old ballpark.

[ ]

In reply to by fullykräusened

I was there as well. Did you think ZeVo's double before his double down the RF line was fair? Also, did you think Baez was off on the wild pitch in the seventh? Either he was going, or he is crazy-quick on pitches in the dirt. It was called a wild pitch, which would indicate they thought he waited until it got away before running. Also, Baez nearly took the pitcher with him on his single in the seventh.

[ ]

In reply to by tim815

tim815- I think that first one was foul by about six inches. Couldn't tell on the Baez play, because I was watching the ball. I did think he was going to get picked off at second (later that inning? don't remember) and got lucky when the throw to third was in the dirt. Rob- I know what you mean, but at least he looked comfortable last night. Rooting for him too.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/draft/chat/2012/2613555.html Re: Trying to sign 25th round pick Rhett Wiseman and was it a back-up plan to not signing Almora Not really, because if Almora doesn't sign, his $3.25 million disappears from their draft pool. That said, I don't see how Almora will turn down a bonus in the neighborhood of $3 million. I think Wiseman is a totally separate consideration, albeit one who fell because he's going to be a very tough sign. We don't know how much the Cubs will have to play with because they haven't officially signed any of their first 10 picks, but they might be able to scrape up $1 million and make a run at Wiseman if they want. Re: Ranking Correa I'd put him behind Profar and Machado and on the same level as Lindor. This comes from someone who sees Hamilton and Baez moving off shortstop eventually. Re: Mid-Season Top 50 list That list usually comes out right after the Futures Game. In the past, we haven't included current year draftees. Not sure if that will change because the signing deadline has been moved up to the same time. Anyway, if we do include them, I'd say the first eight picks (Correa, Buxton, Zunino, Gausman, Zimmer, Almora, Fried, Appel) would be possibilities. I doubt we'll include all eight, though. My over/under would be four, with Buxton and Correa locks. Re: 2013 draft I think it's comparable to the 2012 crop, which was below average. The college bats aren't anything special (again), and I don't see pitchers to rival the Appel/Gausman/Zimmer trio. There are some interesting high schoolers, but no one lights me up like Buxton, Correa or a healthy Giolito do.

Sully sez Dodgers or Detroit have best chance to land Dempster. Who should be in Theocorp's sites to get in return?

Recent comments

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    There are two clear "logjams" in the Cubs minor league pipeline at the present time, namely AA outfielders (K. Alcantara, C. Franklin, Roederer, Pagan, Pinango, Beesley, and Nwogu) and Hi-A infielders (J. Rojas, P. Ramirez, Howard, R. Morel, Pertuz, R. Garcia, and Spence, although Morel has been getting a lot of reps in the outfield in addition to infield). So it is possible that you might see a trade involving one of the extra outfielders at AA and/or one of the extra infielders at Hi-A in the next few days. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    18-year old SS Jefferson Rojas almost made the AA Tennessee Opening Day roster, and he is a legit shortstop, so I would expect him to be an MLB Top 100 prospect by mid-season. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Among the relievers in the system, I expect RHRP Hunter Bigge at AAA Iowa and RHRP Ty Johnson at South Bend to have breakout seasons on 2024, and among the starters I see LHP Drew Gray and RHP Will Sanders at South Bend and RHP Naz Mule at ACL Cubs as the guys who will make the biggest splash. Also, Jaxon Wiggins is throwing bullpen sides, so once he is ready for game action he could be making an impact at Myrtle Beach by June.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    I expect OF Christian Franklin to have a breakout season at AA Tennessee in 2024. In another organization that doesn't have PCA, Caissie, K. Alcantara, and Canario in their system, C. Franklin would be a Top 10 prospect. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    The Reds trading Joe Boyle for Sam Moll at last year's MLB Trade Deadline was like the Phillies trading Ben Brown to the Cubs for David Robertson at the MLB TD in 2022. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Javier Assad started the Lo-A game (Myrtle Beach versus Stockton) on the Cubs backfields on Wednesday as his final Spring Training tune-up. He was supposed to throw five innings / 75 pitches. However, I was at the minor league road games at Fitch so I didn't see Assad pitch. 

  • crunch (view)

    cards put j.young on waivers.

    they really tried to make it happen this spring, but he put up a crazy bad slash of .081/.244/.108 in 45PA.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Seconded!!!

  • crunch (view)

    another awesome spring of pitching reports.  thanks a lot, appreciated.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Here are the Cubs pitchers reports from Tuesday afternoon's Cardinals - Cubs game art Sloan Park in Mesa:

    SHOTA IMANAGA
    FB: 90-92 
    CUT: 87-89 
    SL: 82-83 
    SPLIT: 81-84
    CV: 73-74 
    COMMENT: Worked three innings plus two batters in the fourth... allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits (six singles and two doubles) walked one, and struck out six (four swinging), with a 1/2 GO/AO... he threw 73 pitches (52 strikes - 10 swing & miss - 19 foul balls)... surrendered one run in the top of the 1st on a one-out double off Cody Bellinger's glove in deep straight-away CF followed one out later by two consecutive two-out bloop singles, allowed two runs (one earned) in the 2nd after retiring the first two hitters (first batter had a nine-pitch AB with four consecutive two-strike foul balls before being retired 3 -U) on a two-out infield single (weak throw on the run by Nico Hoerner), a hard-contact line drive RBI double down the RF line, and an E-1 (missed catch) by Imanaga on what should been an inning-ending 3-1 GO, gave up another run in the 3rd on a two-out walk on a 3-2 pitch and an RBI double to LF, and two consecutive singles leading off the top of the 4th before being relieved (runners were ultimately left stranded)... threw 18 pitches in the 1st inning (14 strikes - two swing & miss, one on FB and the other on a SL - four foul balls), 24 pitches in the 2nd inning (17 strikes - three swing & miss, one on FB, two SPLIT - six foul balls), 19 pitches in the 3rd inning (13 strikes - seven swing & miss, three on SL, two on SPLIT, one on FB - three foul balls), and 12 pitches without retiring a batter in the top of the 4th (8 strikes - no swing & miss - four foul balls)... Imanaga throws a lot of pitches per inning, but it's not because he doesn't throw strikes...  if anything, he throws too many strikes (he threw 70% strikes on Tuesday)... while he gets a ton of swing & miss (and strikeouts), he also induces a lot of foul balls because he doesn't try to make hitters chase his pitches by throwing them out of the strike zone... rather, he uses his very diverse pitch mix to get swing & miss (and lots of foul balls as well)... he also is a fly ball pitcher who will give up more than his share of HR during the course of the season...   
     
    JOE NAHAS
    FB: 90-92 
    SL: 83-85 
    CV: 80-81 
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day... relieved Imanaga with runners at first and second and no outs in the top of the 4th, and after an E-2 catcher's interference committed by Miguel Amaya loaded he bases, Nahas struck out the side (one swinging & two looking)... threw 16 pitches (11 strikes - two swinging)...   

    YENCY ALMONTE
    FB: 89-92 
    CH: 86 
    SL: 79 
    COMMENT: Threw an eight-pitch 5th (five strikes - no swing & miss), with a 5-3 GO for the first out and an inning-ending 4-6-3 DP after a one-out single... command was a bit off but he worked through it...   

    FRANKIE SCALZO JR
    FB: 94-95
    CH: 88 
    SL: 83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 6th inning... got the first outs easily (a P-5 and a 4-3 GO) on just three pitches, before allowing three consecutive two-out hard-contact hits (a double and two singles), with the third hit on pitch # 9 resulting in a runner being thrown out at the plate by RF Christian Franklin for the third out of the inning... 

    MICHAEL ARIAS
    FB: 94-96
    CH: 87-89
    SL: 82-83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and allowed a hard-contact double on the third pitch of the 7th inning (a 96 MPH FB), and the runner came around to score on a 4-3 GO and a WP... gave up two other loud contact outs (an L-7 and an F-9)... threw 18 pitches (only 10 strikes - only one swing & miss)... stuff is electric but still very raw and he continues to have difficulty commanding it, and while he has the repertoire of a SP, he throws too many pitches-per-inning to be a SP and not enough strikes to be a closer... he is most definitely still a work-in-progress...   

    ZAC LEIGH: 
    FB: 93-94 
    CH: 89 
    SL: 81-83 
    CV: 78
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and tossed a 1-2-3 8th (4-3 GO, K-swinging on a sweeper, K-looking on another sweeper)... threw 14 pitches (11 strikes - one swing & miss - eight foul balls)... kept pumping pitches into the strike zone but had difficulty putting hitters away (ergo a ton of foul balls)... FB velo is nowhere near the 96-98 MPH it was a couple of years ago when he was a Top 30 prospect, but his secondaries are better...   

    JOSE ROMERO:  
    FB: 93-95
    SL: 82-84
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 9th (14 pitches - only six strikes- no swing & miss) and allowed a solo HR after two near-HR fly outs to the warning track, before getting a 3-1 GO to end the inning... it was like batting practice when he wasn't throwing pitches out of the strike zone...