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

Cubs Minor Leaguers in a Hazy Shade of Winter Ball

The Arizona Fall League Championship Game will be played tomorrow at Scottsdale Stadium, with the Salt River Rafters (East Division Champs) facing the West Division Champion Peoria Javelinas.

Unfortunately, the Cubs players who went to the AFL were assigned to the Mesa Solar Sox, the worst team in the league.

Cubs #1 prospect SS Javier Baez hit a 450+ ft HR to CF in his first AFL game, and he was leading the AFL in HR & RBI before sustaining a season-ending injury (broken thumb) a couple of weeks ago, but otherwise none of the other Cubs players assigned to the Solar Sox had especially noteworthy performances.

2012 Cubs Minor League Pitcher of the Year RHP Nick Struck lacked command and struggled to throw strikes, RHP Dae-Eun Rhee was used as a starting pitcher and was hit hard, RHP Tony Zych generally pitched effectively but didn't get many swings & misses (something he needs to get to advance as a closer prospect), and RHP Kevin Rhoderick was inconsistent (just as he was during the 2012 minor league season), looking very good when his slider was breaking, but then not so good when it wasn't.

Matt Szczur was the Solar Sox primary CF and lead-off hitter and did a nice job, hitting 264/368/363. He tied for 5th in the AFL in stolen bases, 7th in walks, and 7th in triples, and played a steady (if unspectacular) CF. Szczur isn't a particularly good hitter, but he has learned to go deeper into counts, and that has transalated into more walks. Szczur reminds me a lot of Bob Dernier, and if Brett Jackson flames out, the steadier Szczur could eventually be the Cubs lead-off hitter and CF(at least until Albert Almora is ready).

23-year old athletic LH hitting Cuban Defector Rubi Silva (who received a $1M signing bonus from the Cubs in December 2010) played RF and 2B for the Solar Sox and was in a slump for most of the AFL season (hitting an anemic 206/260/265), and he even looked outright overmatched at times (the AFL is approximately equivalent to AA). Still, he will likely be the RF at AA Tenneessee in 2013.

And Cubs 2012 Minor League Player of the Year 2B Logan Watkins replaced Baez on the Solar Sox roster the last couple of weeks and had some nice games. Watkins also made some really bad throws, however, and looked like he might have a sore arm (maybe not too surprising after being inactive for a month after the close of the Southern League season). Still, Watkins (a Mickey Morandini clone) is a virtual lock to get added to the Cubs 40-man roster next week, and should be the everyday 2B at Iowa in 2013 and perhaps the eventual replacement for Darwin Barney at 2B in Chicago in 2014 or 2015. Unlike Barney, Watkins is a classic #2 hitter, taking lots of walks, lining doubles and triples from gap-to-gap, going from 1st to 3rd and 2nd to home on singles to the outfield, scoring from 1st on most doubles, and stealng bases. Some observers believe the athletic Watkins projects more as a utility IF-OF type at the big league level, but I see him as an everyday 2B.

Besides the eight Cubs prospects who played in the AFL, there are many other Cubs minor leaguers playing winter ball in Latin America, and three or four of them are doing very well.

22-year old SS Junior Lake (who was added the Cubs MLB 40-man roster last off-season) is off to a great start for Estrellas de Oriente in the Dominican Winter League, hitting 361/413/528 through his first 22 games. He leads the DWL in hitting (AVG), is 3rd in OBP and 5th in SLG, and is tied for 6th in SB and 8th in doubles. (He's also 8th in strikeouts, however). Lake has the best arm among position players in the Cubs organization, and I keep waiting for the Cubs to move him to RF.

29-year old RHRP Esmailin Caridad is pitching in the Mexican Pacific League, and he leads the LMP in HOLDS (he is the 8th inning set-up man for Obregon closer Greg Burke) and is second among LMP relievers in strikeouts with 26 (in just 19.2 IP). Caridad was signed by former Cubs Player Development Director Oneri Fleita five years ago after requesting (and receiving) his release from the Hiroshima Carp. (Like Alfonso Soriano and Timo Perez before him, Caridad was signed by the Carp and developed at their Dominican Academy). Caridad got some big league time with the Cubs in 2009 and 2010 before having his career sidetracked by a sore arm, but if he continues to throw as well as he has so far, he could be a candidate to get selected in the MLB Rule 5 Draft next month. And if he isn't selected, he should be a cinch to get an NRI to Spring Training.

28-year old RHSP Yoannis Negrin is pitching for Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League and is 6th in ERA and tied for 6th in strikeouts in the VWL. He also is third in the league in IP and is tied for the league lead in Games Started. The rubber-armed Negrin is a Cuban defector who signed with the Cubs in 2011 after pitching for Mazantas in Serie Nacional (the Cuban major league) for several seasons. He spent most of the 2012 season on "loan" to Tabasco in the Mexican League, before returning to the U. S. and getting assigned to AAA Iowa in August. His ceiling is probably (at best) a 5th starter or long reliever in MLB, but if he continues to pitch well in the VWL, he could (like Caridad) be in line for an NRI to Spring Training.

And finally, 22-year old LHP Jeffry Antigua has pitched very well out of the bullpen for Toros del Este in the DWL (he has a 4.50 ERA but only a 1.17 WHIP, with 2/12 BB/K in 12 IP over 11 games, and he is 6th in the league in HOLDS). He has a "live" arm that could play well as a lefty reliever out of a big league pen, and since a young LHP with upside is always in demand in the Rule 5 Draft, don't be surprised if Antigua gets tabbed. Antigua is scheduled to be a minor league FA post-2013 (if he isn't selected in the 2012 Rule 5 Draft), so the Cubs will need to watch him closely next season and try and get a good reading on his true potential before possibly watching him walk away as a FA.

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.