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

Pie Tastes Bitter

Felix Pie went 2-3 with a lead-off first-pitch double roped down the RF line, a bases loaded RBI walk on a 3-2 pitch, a grand slam HR hammered over the CF fence, and a hard-hit 4-3 GO, as the AZL Cubs thumped the AZL Royals 18-1 at Fitch Park Field #3 this morning in hot and sunny Mesa.

box score

So do I really think Pie was sent to Fitch Park to "rehab" a "sprained thumb"?

Well...

... from what I've heard, he did have a thumb injury, but it wasn't particularly significant, and it certainly wasn't the type of injury that would normally warrant a trip to the hell that is Fitch Park in June.

Reading between the lines, it appears that Pie being sent to Fitch Park was more for disciplinary reasons than it was to rehab an injured thumb, with the so-called "sprained thumb" the excuse needed to justify the DL stint and the Fitch Park rehab assignment.

What the exact nature of Pie's transgression at Iowa was, I don't know. Maybe Mike Wellman can find out. But I have heard whispers that he sulked big-time after being optioned to AAA by the Cubs in May, and that part of the reason behind the Cubs decision to option the Pie man to Iowa in the first place was related to his becoming a bit of a "party animal" in Chicago, staying out until all hours of the night and then showing up at the ballpark not necessarily "ready to play" the next day.

As a further tidbit of bizarro information, Pie had what sounded like an argument with someone from the Cubs brass (I couldn't see exactly who it was, but I could probably guess) who was sitting up in the Fitch Park Tower that overlooks the four fields as Pie was walking to the clubhouse after he left the game in the 6th inning.

I didn't understand the complete nature of the "discussion," but I believe it had something to do with Pie expecting to leave town immediately (like "who is driving me to the airport?"), but being told instead that he would be staying in Arizona for at least one more day.

Pie did not look happy, that's for sure.

As for the rest of the fellows, the AZL Cubs had a really poor performance yesterday (Saturday) versus the AZL Angels in Tempe, especially the hitters (OK, the defense sucked, too), leaving men on base all over the place and failing to advance runners into scoring position. All this in front of Cubs Organizational Hitting Instructor Dave Keller.

Well, Coach Keller (who is making his once-every-six weeks visit to Fitch Park) apparently was none too pleased with yesterday's effort, as he held a closed-door 90 minute meeting at the Fitch Park clubhouse with the hitters this morning at 7:00 AM, followed by an extended BP session that ran until almost game time.

I guess it must have worked, though, because the AZL Cubs slammed out 21 hits (the AZL Royals had only three).

On the pitching front, two AZL Cubs pitchers who were at the Fitch Park Infirmary made their first AZL appearances, and both looked VERY sharp.

RHP Cedric Redmond (torn labrum, but no surgery) threw a 1-2-3 1st inning, striking out two and keeping all three Royals hitters off balance with his fine screwball.

And then Ryan Acosta (injury unknown) threw a masterful 14-pitch (13 strikes) two-inning shutout stint (he was only supposed to throw one inning) where he just toyed with the Royals hitters. Acosta actually looked like a young Greg Maddux out there today, the way he threw strikes and with lots of movement on his fastball. And he worked VERY fast, too.

And please note that there were two mistakes made by the AZL official scorer (as appears in the "official" MiLB box score -- see above).

First of all, the AZL official scorer identified Ryan Acosta as Francisco Acosta (they are two completely different AZL Cubs pitchers), and then the official scorer had "F. Acosta" (who did not pitch today) working three innings, when actually "R. Acosta" (that is, Ryan Acosta) worked two innings, and then Toby Matchulat made his pro debut, working one inning. (The official scorer didn't even list Matchulat!)

See, this is the problem with the AZL official scorers. They don't have a clue. Maybe Oneri Fleita could yell at them, too.

So anyway, RHPs Toby Matchulat (2008 11th round pick out of Wabash Valley CC) and Justin Bristow (2008 5th round pick out of East Carolina) both made their pro debut today, throwing one inning a piece.

Working out of a wind-up, the long and lanky Matchulat walked his first hitter on four pitches as he appeared out of whack (please keep Rich Hill away from the young'uns!), but then once he got into the stretch, his mechanics became much more compact and he struck out two and got the other batter on a ground out FC.

Bristow retired the first two hitters he faced easily on infield grounders, before giving up a walk and an RBI double that resulted in the AZL Royals one and only run of the day.

Julio Pena (who normally would have started the game) worked the final four innings and looked very sharp, allowing no runs on just one hit and a walk, with two Ks.

On offense, Dutch-Aruban 2B Dwayne Kemp (signed out of the MLB European Baseball Academy last year) got his first three "official" pro hits (including two doubles) and first RBI. Also, Nelson Perez (a single, a double, and a triple, plus two RBI), Bryan Jost (a single, two doubles, an RBI, a walk, and three runs scored), Sean Hoorelbeke, and Jose Guevara also had three hits each.

In AZL Cubs roster news, INF (now C-INF) Robinson Chirinos has completed the Cubs six-week catching course at Fitch Park and has been assigned to Daytona, where he will alternate at catcher with Steve Clevenger and Blake Lalli (Mark Reed has been promoted from Daytona to AA Tennessee). .

The AZL Cubs don't play tomorrow, and let me tell you, I can really use the day off!

Comments

Recent comments

Childersb3 04/19/2024 - 04:54 pm (view)

Tauchman gets a pinch hit RBI single with a liner to RF. This is his spot. He's a solid 4th OF. But he isn't a DH.
He takes pitches. Useful. I still believe in having good hitters.
You don't want your DH to be your weak link (other than your C maybe)
crunch 04/19/2024 - 04:46 pm (view)

bit of a hot take here, but i'm gonna say it.

the 2024 marlins don't seem to be good at doing baseballs.
Dolorous Jon Lester 04/19/2024 - 04:25 pm (view)

Phil, will the call up for a double header restart that 15 days on assignment for a pitcher? Like will wesneski’s 15 days start yesterday, or if he’s the 27th man, will that mean 15 days from tomorrow?
I hope that makes sense. It sounds clearer in my head.
Charlie 04/19/2024 - 04:19 pm (view)

Tauchman obviously brings value to the roster as a 4th outfielder who can and should play frequently. Him appearing frequently at DH indicated that the team lacks a valuable DH.
TarzanJoeWallis 04/19/2024 - 04:06 pm (view)

Totally onboard with your thoughts concerning today’s lineup. Not sure about your take on Tauchman though.
The guy typically doesn’t pound the ball out out of the park, and his BA is quite unimpressive. But he brings something unique to the table that the undisciplined batters of the past didn’t. He always provides a quality at bat and he makes the opposing pitcher work because he has a great eye for the zone and protects the plate with two strikes exceptionally well. In addition to making him a base runner more often than it seems through his walks, that kind of at bat wears a pitcher down both mentally and physically so that the other guys who may hit the ball harder are more apt to take advantage of subsequent mistakes and do their damage.
I can’t remember a time when the Cubs valued this kind of contribution but this year they have a couple of guys doing it, with Happ being the other. It doesn’t make for gaudy stats but it definitely contributes to winning ball games. I do believe that’s why Tauchman has garnered so much playing time.
Arizona Phil 04/19/2024 - 04:43 pm (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 04/19/2024 - 04:51 am (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 04/19/2024 - 04:45 am (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 04/19/2024 - 04:21 am (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 04/19/2024 - 04:57 am (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.