Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

39 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (one slot is open), plus two players are on the 60-DAY IL and one player has been DESIGNATED FOR ASSIGNMENT (DFA)   

26 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE, and eight players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors, three players are on the 15-DAY IL, and two players is on the 10-DAY IL

Last updated 4-24-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Colten Brewer
Ben Brown
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Hector Neris 
Jameson Taillon 
Keegan Thompson
Hayden Wesneski 
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

OUTFIELDERS: 4
* Pete Crow-Armstrong 
# Ian Happ
Seiya Suzuki
* Mike Tauchman 

OPTIONED: 8 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Jose Cuas, P 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Miles Mastrobuoni, INF
Daniel Palencia, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 

10-DAY IL: 2
* Cody Bellinger, OF  
Seiya Suzuki, OF

15-DAY IL: 3
Kyle Hendricks, P 
* Drew Smyly, P 
* Justin Steele, P   

60-DAY IL: 2 
Caleb Kilian, P 
Julian Merryweather, P

DFA: 1 
Garrett Cooper, 1B 
 





Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Cubs Win At Something

The little LSU engine that could was defeated by the almighty Cubs Inc. today in their arbitration case. Theriot will take home a cool $2.6M instead of $3.4M in his final year as the Cubs shortstop and probably with the Cubs.

"I've known Ryan since his LSU days," Hendry said. "He's a good kid. He'll be an important part of the club this year. It's a matter of what side of the fence, business wise, you happen to be on right now. We'll get through it. Ryan Theriot's going to be playing on Opening Day here, and we need him to play well."

And Lou:

``Everything I've heard, he's a can't-miss kid. But this year, Ryan will be our shortstop,'' Piniella said. ``Remember, Castro is young, and there's nothing wrong with putting a good foundation under him at AAA.''

(H/t to Wrigleyville 23 for the find and formatting)

We'll see if that extra $800K is enough for the Cubs to bring in a reliever. There was some rumors by Bruce Levine if the Cubs won the case they might be able to afford Chan Ho Park, who is still looking for $3-4M.

Comments

They should have just split the middle. Yeah it's more than he deserves, but it's not like Hendry is real thrifty with money.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Theriot's value (i.e. salary) and production (made the routine plays at SS) were fine in 2007/2008 when the Cubs had enough offensive production coming from other spots in the lineup. If we had a GM with foresight, he would be looking to seriously find another team for Theriot to play for by mid summer. It appears Castro may be ready by then and has more offensive and defensive upside than Theriot will ever have. Unless a bottom third MLB team needs and everyday 2B or even SS, his future is a $750,000 to $1.25M backup middle infielder. Unless they form a high OBA 1-2 in the lineup/defensive keystone stars, I'm not sure how much of a 2B/SS upgrade that Castro/H. Lee would be.

It occurs to me that Ryan is a victim of his time. That 800K would be his right now if he had been born, oh, let's see...about 12 years earlier. Under the influence, he'd be at 25 HR's a year and slugging .700, and his locker would be right next to Slammin' Sammy. Yes, all that extra money we spent on watching McGuire, et. al., was well spent, eh, folks?

[ ]

In reply to by artskoe

OH MY GOD. Are you saying that some people benefited financially from the use of performance enhancing drugs during the 90s? And that some of those people were baseball players? Is that the implication here? Let's all us fans file a class action lawsuit against Sammy Sosa for delighting us so much that we bought tickets! Then we can give some of that cash to the scrappy, skinny guys that are screen surrogates on WGN.

http://www.baseballmusings.com/cgi-bin/LineupAnalysis.py?Player0=Therio… using the 1998-2002 method (no idea the difference) and CHONE 2010 projections: ideal lineup: Fukudome, Lee, Fontenot, Ramirez, Soto, Soriano, Byrd, Pitcher, Theriot 2nd best had Byrd and Fontenot flipped Putting Baker in:Fukudome, Lee, Byrd, Ramirez, Soto, Soriano, Baker, Pitcher, Theriot the 1959-2004 method (no idea): Fukudome, Lee, Byrd, Ramirez, Soto, Pitcher, Baker, Soriano, Theriot I used the composite 2009 numbers for Cubs pitchers.

[ ]

In reply to by Charlie

yeah, not sure where the pitcher batting 6th is a good idea, although I guess they only get up 2, maybe 3 times a game before being pinch-hit. A long time ago when Dusty was fucking up lineups every day and I cared, I read something that your best hitter should bat 2nd, not 3rd (worked for the Cubs with Ryno for awhile)...but don't recall the articles now or the reasoning.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

following your "best" hitter with fontenot or byrd is a great way for your "best" hitter to see something not worth swinging at. these kinds of projections that treat players as if they play in a single batter vs. pitcher vacuum are flawed right out of the gate.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

im just saying what was spit out by that process is flawed... i don't think byrd is horrible...i think people that thought j.jones was the worst thing since hitler won't be pleased with him, though. i don't think him or fontenot belong anywhere near the 3 slot. it's odd something had to churn stats to arrive at that decision. ...and this... "...Pitcher, Baker, Soriano, Theriot" i'm not touching that.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

The only problem, to me, with the ideal lineup is the pitcher/theriot thing at 8/9, but when Z plays that wouldn't bother me. I think the Brewers manager went with this logic but then realized that the impact to the 7th hitter wound up screwing up the spreadsheet math.

showing a 1969 game between Cubs and Phillies; Fergie vs. Rick Wise

college baseball on MLB Network? laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaame. well, i guess it's cool as hell if you're a fan. *ting* *ting* *ting* *ting* *ting* *ting*

Does Starlin Castro not being in camp yet say something about the kid? His first invite to big league camp with people saying he's going to push Theriot. And he doesn't show up early like the majority of the other players.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

Not so QUIET MAN: "Does Starlin Castro not being in camp yet say something...?" You have information on this? There is no evidence that Castro is not abiding by Fleito's wishes at all. If he has been playing basically the whole winter, and will be playing for the next seven months without a break - than I'd WANT him to have a little R&R if I was running things. I agree w/CRUNCH - "...and he did play the offseason in 2 leagues."

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

It may say that he is having visa issues. If he is always late to camp, I'd worry about it, but not being there early after having played for 4 teams over the previous 10 months is the definition of mountain of a molehill.

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

I saw Moises Alou on BBT Wednesday afternoon. He said the Cubs asked Castro to take more time off this winter, Castro asked Alou to talk to his contacts with the Cubs and ask if he could play more and not rest. Cubs said no. Based on that, I'd imagine Castro's absence is not because he doesn't want to be there.

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

Or that Starlin Castro isn't even remotely ready for the big leagues and is young enough and needs the minor league seasoning while we already have a perfectly acceptable SS. In other words, only a dumb ass franchise with no clue how to develop talent would rush him to the majors this season only to watch him fall flat on his face. So maybe he will replace Theriot, and we can trade his worthless ass just like Pie for nothing. All for the sole purpose of rushing a prospect because people don't like Theriot. Some times you just got to let them develop so they won't be eaten alive in the majors.

The Cubs' team may be quite different in 2011. In addition to a replacement for Theriot at shortstop, the Cubs may need to replace Ted Lilly, Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez. Ted Lilly and Derrek Lee will be free agents after then 2010 season and and Aramis Ramirez could opt out of the last year of his contract and become a free agent after the 2010 season. Even if Lilly, Lee and Ramirez are re-signed, their ages and injury histories make it unlikely that they will all be productive players in 2011 and beyond. I used Baseball Reference to identify players with comparable statistics through the same age. Then I examined how productive the comparable players were in future years. Derrek Lee will be age 34 during the 2010 season. He has experienced neck and back problems since 2006. Three comparable hitters through their age 33 seasons are Kent Hrebek, Fred McGriff and Will Clark. Hrebek played one final season at age 34 in 1994, playing 81 games with 53 RBI’s. McGriff was productive through age 38 during the 2002 season when he played for the Cubs. Will Clark had a fine season in 1998 at age 34 with 102 RBI’s. In 1999, he played in only 71 games with 29 RBI’s. His last season was 2000, when he had 70 RBI’s in 130 games. Aramis Ramirez will be age 32 during the 2010 season. In 2009, he had a reoccurrence of shoulder problems. Three comparable hitters through their age 31 seasons are Scott Rolen, Greg Luzinski and Gary Sheffield. At age 32 in 2007, Rolen had 58 RBI’s in 112 games. Subsequently he had 50 RBI’s in 115 games in 2008 and 67 RBI’s in 128 games in 2009. Luzinski had 95 RBI’s in 1983 at age 32 and 58 RBI’s in his final season at age 33. Sheffield was very productive through 2005 when he had 123 RBI’s at age 36. Ted Lilly will be age 34 during the 2010 season. He is recovering from 2009 knee and labrum arthroscopic surgeries. Last year, at age 33, Lilly was 12-9 with a 3.10 ERA in 27 starts. Comparable starting pitchers through their age 33 seasons are Kevin Tapani and Shane Reynolds. In 1997 at age 33, Tapani was 9-3 in 13 starts for the Cubs with an ERA of 3.39. At age 34, his ERA increased to 4.85, but he was 19-9 in 34 starts. At age 35, he was 6-12 in 23 starts with an ERA of 4.83. At age 36, he was 8-12 in 30 starts with an ERA of 5.01. In his final season at age 37, he was 9-14 in 29 starts with an ERA of 4.49. At age 33 in 2001, Shane Reynolds was 14-11 in 28 starts with an ERA of 4.34. At age 34, he was 3-6 in 13 starts with an ERA of 4.86. At age 35, he was 11-9 in 29 starts with an ERA of 5.43. In his final season at age 36, he was 0-1 in one start with an ERA of 4.50. Will Derrek Lee be productive through age 38 like Fred McGriff, or will he decline more rapidly like Kent Hrebek and Will Clark? Will Aramis Ramirez be productive through age 36 like Gary Sheffield or decline more rapidly like Greg Luzinzki or Scott Rolen? Will Ted Lilly make 29 starts at age 37 like Kevin Tapani or will he decline more rapidly like Shane Reynolds? I think it is unlikely that Lee, Ramirez and Lilly will all be productive in 2011 and beyond.

[ ]

In reply to by Rick- Houston TX

that's great info..thanks. one of the big worries with the team in 2010 is their age, at least for me. one thing I'll say is that BR.com ref index isn't as good as the BP one imho. Top 6 BP Comps: Lee: J. Torre, J. Olerud, E. Karros, B. Watson, F. McGriff, J. Adcock Ramirez: M. Lowell, D. Money, B. Robinson, S. Bando, B. Melton, G. Gaetti Lilly: F. Bannister, J. Koosman, Gary Peters, Chris Short, George Brunet, R. Guidry

Recent comments

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    azbobbop: Yes. 

  • Mike Wellman (view)

    I’ve got Tim’s The Last Out too, along with some other prints of his work.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Very well played game all around tonight.

  • crunch (view)

    best starter and 2 top hitters from the team gone...and they keep on winning.

    little ahead of myself here, but the RSox got 9 outs to find 6+ runs.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Richard Gallardo just left the Smokies game with an arm injury after going to the ground following a pitch. Doesn’t sound good at all.

  • azbobbop (view)

    Phil, do you think Wiggins will start out in ACL?

  • azbobbop (view)

    The level of conversation on this site is intelligent, reasoned and informative. Miles ahead of other Cub sites.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    This was Jaxon Wiggins previous "live" BP on 4/5: 

    JAXON WIGGINS
    ONE INNING (20 pitches - 10 strikes) 
    one batted ball in play (F-9 by Stevens)
    one walk (B. Davis) 
    one HBP (B. Davis)
    two strikeouts (Peralta & Escobar - both looking)
    three swing & miss 
    two fouls 
    four called strikes
    nine called balls 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Prior to the Cactus League game at Papago Park, three Cubs pitchers threw "live" BP on Field 1 at the Cubs Sloan Park complex, including RHRP Ethan Roberts (June 2022 TJS) and Cubs 2023 2nd round draft pick RHP Jaxon Wiggins (February 2023 TJS).  

    Wiggins last threw "live" BP three weeks ago before being shut down for a couple of weeks, and this was the first time Roberts has thrown to hitters in almost two years. 

    JAXON WIGGINS
    ONE INNING:
    25 pitches (11 strikes)
    no batted balls in play
    two walks (Suriel and J. Diaz) 
    three strikeouts (Carico, Lubo, and Escobar - all three swinging)
    six swing & miss
    two fouls 
    three called strikes 
    14 called balls 
    one WP 

    ETHAN ROBERTS
    ONE INNING 
    15 pitches (7 strikes) 
    two batted balls in play (G-3 by Carico and L-9 by Suriel) 
    two walks (Lubo and Carico)
    no strikeouts  
    no swing & miss 
    two fouls 
    three called strikes 
    eight called balls 
    one WP 

    Mat Peters was bumped by Justin Steele from his scheduled game work at Giants, so he threw two innings of "live" BP with Wiggins & Roberts. 

    MAT PETERS
    TWO INNINGS 
    44 pitches (23 strikes) 
    five batted balls in play (F-7, L-7, F-7, G-6, G-3) 
    three walks 
    two strikeouts (both Lubo and both looking)
    six swing & miss 
    three fouls 
    nine called strikes
    21 called balls 
    three WP 

  • crunch (view)

    wall stole a HR from busch...double.  nice to see him destroy a curve ball.

    upon further viewing, that might not have been a homer in too many parks...it had a lot of hang time, though.