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

Reds @ Cubs: DeSclafani vs. Haren (Game 131)

Pfffft. Well, that game happened.

The Reds were supposed to be an easy welcome home from the coast. The Cubs offense was a bit improved but should’ve done more damage to the rookie starter, and it would have needed to do a whole lot more to overcome our pitching and the defense of one Starlin Castro.

Castro is a like an abusive lover. He does just enough to woo you and think he’s changed, then he bites your head off. In the parlance of Dan Savage, the Cubs need to DTMFA.

Moving on...

CIN (54-76): RHP Anthony DeSclafani (7-10, 3.84)
CHC (74-56): RHP Dan Haren (8-9, 3.90)
First pitch: 7:05pm

Haren lost to the Giants (6.1 IP, 5 ER) on Thursday. He’s 1-2 with a 6.31 as a Cub. He’s 1-1 with a 2.19 in the two games he had with the Marlins against the Reds. The Reds are 34-133 (.256) against him. Frazier is 4-11 with a HR. Philips is 8-27 with 2 HR.

DeSclafani is coming off of three straight losses, including the last one, to the Dodgers (7 IP, 1 ER), which should been awarded to the Cinci bats. He’s 1-1 with a 0.98 ERA in his two starts against the Cubs this season. The Cubs are 15-64 (.234) against him. Coghlan is 3-4. Montero is 2-4 with a HR.

IF Javy Baez and LHP Tsuyoshi Wada are returning to the Cubs today. RHP Trevor Cahill and OF Quintin Berry (a lefty) are also being promoted, which will require two substractions from the 40-man roster. Mike Olt (and the Cult of Olt) was DFA'd yesterday to make room for Austin Jackson. When Ross returns, that will put the big club at 31. Update: Soriano, who was on the DL, and James Russell were DFA'd, and Ross is back. That puts the roster at 30.

Go Cubs!

 

Comments

Unless the news wires haven't gotten word yet, I guess the Cubs were not successful finding some pitching help. The back of this rotation, which seems to start with Hendricks, doesn't inspire confidence. Cult of Olt

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

Signing Haren was very curious, at best. An over-the-hill fly ball pitcher can survive at Wrigley in April, May & June, when it's cold and the wind tends to blow in (i.e. the ballpark plays "big"). But, signing him to pitch at Wrigley in July, August & Sept., when it's warm and the wind tends to blow out...well, Theo, what did you expect? Gotta believe the Reds will be running up to the plate to get their swings against Haren tonight. Come on, offense -- we're gonna need another 6-7 runs tonight!

[ ]

In reply to by billybucks

i think they were just throwing shit at the wall to see what sticks. they wanted to push for the post-season without giving up anything. thank gawd for the cubs winning tear and SF's failure tear...hopefully that holds up until the season ends. once we're into the post-season (if that happens) then it doesn't matter about the 4-5 slot pitchers. arguably, the pen is much more important at that point when it comes to anyone but the top-3 starters.

"This is the show. We have certain expectations here. That's why you don't play." from a Tweet from Arrieta. I who do you think he is talking about.

Jeff Russell and Rafael Soriano DFA's to make room for the callups (Berry and Cahill)

just a theoretical thought...if Dusty was manager (WWDD) or if Lou (WWLD) was manager... would Javy Baez be in tonight's lineup? my thought is: Dusty... Bonifacio would have been brought up and started at 2B Lou..."I like playing the kids, really I do, but but but Jonathan Herrera really needs to play to stay sharp."

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

obviously.... dusty would have to start baez because both lastella + castro would be pitching because all the other pitcher's arms would have fallen off months ago. it would piss dusty off because baez is a rookie and theo couldn't go out and get him a 39 year old DH to play 2nd. i imagine it would be a 2-box-of-toothpicks night. lou would have quit his job already, so that's irrelevant and a trick question.

Rays DFA Hak-Ju Lee. Olt for Lee and the circle of life is complete

It'll be interesting to see if Baez is still a whirling dervish at the plate. He's rocking it good in AAA, and I've read some good stuff, so fingers crossed.

ah, the fair weather fans are back at wrigley. long popout to CF, not even on the track, and 1/2 the place was popping and cheering like it was gonna end up out of the park.

The Mariners recalled RHP Tony Zych from Triple-A Tacoma. First big league action for the former Cub prospect.

Baez strikes out in his first at bat, but not whirling dervish style. Just missed it, didn't unwind like a uncoiling spring - just a clean miss. Call me optimistic, but I call that progress.

Be nice if someone other than the Ace was capable of a shutdown inning after the Cubs score. Can't even get the freaking pitcher out.

c.richard pitching in a game where the team is only down by 1? barf. ...2 batters, 0 outs, and 1 run later it's grimm's turn.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

JOHN B: Pierce Johnson and Rob Zastryzny were likely 2015 AFL candidates (I mentioned them as likely candidates to get assigned to the AFL in an article about the AFL last month) because they are starting pitchers who missed part of the season due to injuries and they need to accrue more innings. Guys who have been pitching regularly as starters have thrown too many innings to be considered, so it probably came down to Johnson, Zastryzny, and Duane Underwood Jr, with Underwood odd man out because he hasn't pitched above Hi-A. Corey Black and Jeimer Candelario (and Pierce Johnson) are first-time Rule 5 Draft eligible after this season and so getting reps in the AFL will help the Cubs decide whether to add them to the MLB 40-man roster in November (if there are even any doubts at this point). Black has a golden arm but he has had control issues forever and he needs more experience working out of the bullpen (he was moved to the bullpen during the 2015 season). He was a starter because he featured a 96 MPH fastball, a plus-change, a curve, and a hard slider, but his size (5'11 175), nervous energy, and max-effort delivery plays better in relief. Candelario will soon replace both Mike Olt and Christian Villanueva as the Cubs #1 3B prospect. (With the year he has had at Myrtle Beach and Tennessee, Candelario has played himself back into the Cubs Top 10 Prospect List). Willson Contreras is eligible to be a Rule 55 minor league free-agent (6YFA) post-2015, but the fact that he has been assigned to the AFL means at the very least he has agreed to a 2016 minor league successor contract (can't be officially signed until 9/15), but he is a lock to be added to the 40-man roster anyway. Playing in the AFL will get him more experience catching MLB pitching prospects than he got at Tennessee. Like Candelario, Contreras has played himself into the Cubs Top 10 Prospect list with his breakout 2015 season at AA, and he is certainly the Cubs #1 catching prospect right now. Mark Zagunis was drafted by the Cubs as a catcher out of the U. of Virginia in the 3rd round of the 2014 Draft and was tried in RF at AZL instructs post-2014 (and looked great out there) before moving to RF full-time at Minor League Camp last March, and while he has been overshadowed by other more well-known prospects (Schwarber, McKinney, Almora, et al), Zagunis is absolutely a legitimate MLB prospect. He is a line-drive hitter with an outstanding eye at the plate and excellent strike-zone judgment, and he has above-average speed, too (he was compared to Jason Kendall when he was a catcher). and he is an OBP machine. Zagunis is not Rule 5 Draft eligible, but the Cubs may expect him to move fast through the system and want to challenge him by assigning him to the AFL. It would really help his cause a lot if he could play CF adequately (he has played CF every now & then), but he is still learning to play RF. Cael Brockmeyer was given an NRI to Spring Training with the big club this past February, and so the Cubs must like his receiving skills and work-ethic. The Cubs moved him back & forth from one affiliate to another (wherever he was needed) during the course of the 2015 season, and they wouldn't do that unless they thought he was mature enough to handle it. Some people think that at 6'5 Brockmeyer is too tall to be a catcher, but I think he will probably end up as an MLB back-up C-1B type. He is on the Mesa Solar Sox "Taxi Squad," so he will only be allowed to play on Wednesdays and Saturdays, unless there is an injury to one of the other catchers and he gets elevated to the full-time status. Like Zagunis and Zastryzny, Brockmeyer is NOT Rule 5 Draft eligible post-2015. The only real surprise (to me) among the Cubs players assigned to the AFL was RHRP David Garner, because I thought a more-advanced reliever like P. J. Francescon, Matt Brazis, Michael Jensen, Tayler Scott, or James Pugliese would be the more-likely choice. Garner actually began the season at Extended Spring Training because of his struggles at Minor League Camp, but he got it together fairly quickly, and had a nice year out of the bullpen, first at South Bend and then (especially) later at Myrtle Beach. Garner is a two-pitch pitcher who features a mid-90's heater and a plus-curve. He is NOT Rule 5 Draft eligible post-2015.

Nice bounce back game for Grimm, and "well done" Dan Haren. We'll take that (almost) every time.

That pitch Schwarber hit is the kind he's been missing a lot of lately. When Schwarber struggles it reminds me of how hard it is to hit baseballs at that level. It doesn't seem like they've found a weakness, just that he isn't seeing the ball that great and just missing. Same with Rizzo the last few days. Regardless of what the other fellas said in the thread earlier, I was pretty encouraged with Baez. The violent swing seems to be much more under control, and he took more bad pitches than he swung at. There were two pitches in particular that I bet the other team thought he'd swing at. One game, and no hits, but I liked what I saw.

Recent comments

  • 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...

  • crunch (view)

    pablo sandoval played 3rd and got a couple ABs (strikeout, single!) in the OAK@SF "exhibition"

    mlb officially authenticated the ball of the single he hit.  nice.

    he's in surprisingly good shape considering his poor body condition in his last playing seasons.  he's not lean, but he looks healthier.  good for him.