21 Cubs Minor Leaguers Declared Free-Agents - Three Others Will Return
21 Cubs minor leaguers eligible to be MLB Rule 55 minor league free-agents (the so called "six-year minor league free-agents" and the so-called "second-contract minor league free-agents") were declared free-agents by MLB at 5 PM last Friday, while three others who could have been Rule 55 free-agents agreed to 2013 minor league "successor contracts" and thus will be returning to the Cubs organization next season.
However, the three who are returning will be eligible for selection in next month's MLB Rule 5 Draft (as will any other minor league free-agent signed prior to the Rule 5 Draft).
The 21 Cubs who were declared Rule 55 minor league free-agents join six others who elected to be minor league free-agents per Article XX-D of the CBA over the past month.
WERE ELIGIBLE TO BE RULE 55 MINOR LEAGUE FA - RE-SIGNED (SUCCESSOR CONTRACT):
Kyler Burke, LHP
Marcos Mateo, RHP
Jonathon Mota, INF
NOTE: Burke is a former outfielder (he was the Cubs Minor League Player of the Year in 2009 before being converted to pitcher at Minor League Camp 2011) who pitched at Peoria and Daytona in 2012... Mateo and Mota both underwent TJS in June and likely opted to re-sign so that they can continue their rehab at Fitch Park in 2013 (as happened with Justin Berg this past season)...
DECLARED MLB RULE 55 MINOR LEAGUE FREE-AGENT BY MLB:
SIX-YEAR MINOR LEAGUE FA:
Jim Adduci, OF
Alfredo Amezaga, IF-OF
Juan Apodaca, C
Jairo Asencio, RHP
Justin Berg, RHP
Adrian Cardenas, INF
Brian Esposito, C
Jeff Frazier, OF-1B
Vladimir Frias, INF
Diory Hernandez, INF
Rodrigo Lopez, RHP
Seth McClung, RHP
Blake Parker, RHP
Horacio Ramirez, LHP
Ryan Rowland-Smith, LHP
Nate Samson, INF
Miguel Socolovich, RHP
Alvaro Sosa, C (player coach)
Matt Tolbert, INF
NOTE: Most of these players finished the season at AAA Iowa, and a few (Asencio, Cardenas, Lopez, Parker, and Socolovich) also spent some time in the big leagues with the Cubs in 2012... Lopez and Parker could have filed for free-agency earlier per Article XX-D but opted not to do so... Sosa was signed to a minor league player contract but served as a coach with the AZL Cubs...
SECOND CONTRACT (PREVIOUSLY RELEASED) FA:
David Macias, IF-OF (player-coach)
Nate Maldonado, C (player-coach)
NOTE: Macias and Maldonado were both signed to 2012 minor league player contracts after being previously released by the Cubs... Macias served as a coach at Extended Spring Training, AZL Cubs, and Instructs in 2012, and was recently hired as an Assistant to Cubs Minor League Player Development Director Brandon Hyde... Maldonado served as a coach at AA Tennessee during the 2012 season and at Instructs last month...
ELECTED TO BE ARTICLE XX-D MINOR LEAGUE FREE-AGENT:
Manny Corpas, RHP
Blake DeWitt, INF
Justin Germano, RHP
Alex Hinshaw, LHP
Joe Mather, OF
Randy Wells, RHP
NOTE: These six filed for free-agency per Article XX-D of the CBA at various times over the past month... They were eligible to be free-agents after the conclusion of the MLB regular season because they were outrighted to the minors after signing 2012 major league contracts, and they either had been previously outrighted in their career and/or had accrued at least three years of MLB Service Time...
A minor league free-agent can sign a minor league (or a major league) contract with any club, including the player's former club.
The player's former club receives no compensation if the player signs with a another club.
Baez has picked it up lately, hits in 13 of his last 14 games..something like 19/56 with 3 BB and 9 K over that span.
That Liberace movie is on HBO this week end.
/just saying
wow...that rizzo K in the 8th was a swing even sammy sosa would rag on.
It's hard to compare two very different eras, but as good as Urlacher was, Butkus was better.
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
cubs load the bases with 0 out...no one scores.
awesome!
I thought it would be strained neck from watching balls fly over his head
~~ right after Sveum stomped on his big right toe.
He sounds like Marmol minus the $9.8M.
i wonder how long until i.stewart asks to be traded...if for no other reason than to get ABs on someone else's AAA team
yet another day he didn't start...got a PH appearance, 0-1.
also, josh vitters continues to be unimpressive, 0-4.
b.bogusevic continues to make a joke of AAA...1-2 (HR) with 3bb...(.370/.475 avg/ob%)
"My right big toe is kind of sore, why do you ask?"
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Somewhere in the Cubs locker room, Bill Murray chimes in...
"an Army without leaders is like a foot without a big toe"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtbBmwgxKc0
I wonder how what converstion went.
"Hey Shawn, do you have anything that hurts?"
"My right big toe is kind of sore, why do you ask?"
i'm not sure the author of that report knows what "lights-out" reliever means.
if he means a reliever with spotty control that will throw 20+ pitches an inning in AAA is "lights-out" i wonder how high the praise goes for someone that deserves it.
he's got good velocity at least. he's worth taking a chance on.
s.camp on the DL (evidently sucking is an injury these days) with a "sprained right big toe" (no, seriously)...r.dolis up
File this under the banner of how's the Cubs organizational depth coming along...
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Must have stubbed that toe throwing the grand slam last night. How convenient.
per Roto...
But for 2013 the Cubs rotation depth is greatly improved.
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JB: I completely agree about the 2013 improvement.
In fact, the debacle that was 2012 was accelerated when Maholm/Dempster/Garza were gone which is a tough nut to crack for any team. If the trade deadline subtracts 2 starters this year from the Cubs they likely will have Villanueva and even Scott Baker should be ready by then...and if not then one AAA guy (Rusin, Vizcaino).