Cubs MLB Roster

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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 

 



 

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Rule 5 Draft 
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Game Preview: Cardinals (27-21) @ Cubs (23-25)

UPDATE: Aramis Ramirez, who received a cortisone injection in his aching left hand yesterday, is back in the Cub lineup. Here's the batting order: Fukudome 9, Theriot 4, Lee 3, Ramirez 5, Soriano 7, Byrd 8, Soto 2, Castro 6, Wells 1


It's such a spectacular day in Chicago today, it's easy to imagine I live somewhere else.

As for this afternoon's matchup at Wrigley, if it seems late in the year for the Cardinals and Cubs to be meeting for the first time, that's because it is. Not since 1999 have the clubs gone this deep into the calendar without looking directly into each other's hate-filled eyes.

Our Cubs, winners of 8 of 11, seem to have dodged two injury bullets: Jeff Baker's problem yesterday, which included the loss of vision in his right eye, has been diagnosed as an ocular migraine. According to @CarrieMuskat this morning, he is now fine and is uniform. Also, Carlos Zambrano has fully recovered from whatever he had yesterday that seemed like it might be appendicitis but turned out not to be, and he is also ready to go. (BREAKING NEWS: Z's problem was "food-related." Do you really need to know any more?)

Derrek Lee, who could teach Albert Pujols a thing or two about how to slump (see below), looked like a different hitter in the L.A. series. He's 8-for-12 in the last four games and is also a .326 lifetime hitter against this afternoon's St. Louis starter, Chris Carpenter.

About the visitors...

After charging out of the gate 18-8 and building a five-game lead in the NL Central, the Cardinals have gone 9-13 and currently sit second, a game behind the Reds. They had lost four in a row before winning yesterday in San Diego. They have two starting pitchers hurt and unfortunately neither one of them is named Carpenter or Wainwright, who will go Sunday.

On offense, the great Pujols has looked very nearly mortal lately. He homered yesterday in San Diego, his first long ball in roughly two weeks—TWO ENTIRE WEEKS WITHOUT A HOME RUN!—but I think we can all agree that he still scares the crap out of us, can't we?

Oh, one more thing—Tony LaRussa is in a bad mood:

La Russa reiterated his frustration with a schedule that had his team start Thursday's game at 5:35 p.m. St. Louis time. The Cardinals then had to board a charter [from San Diego] for Chicago, then open a series against the Cubs at 1:20 p.m. today. La Russa said he voiced his displeasure over the scheduling with Padres chairman Jeff Moorad.

We don't like TLR when he's mad. Actually, we don't like him at all.

Friday's pitchers: Carpenter (5-1.3.09) v. Randy Wells (3-2, 3.99)

Carpenter is coming off a game he should have lost but didn't (8 H, 4 ER, 6 IP v. the Angels) because the offense bailed him out with an extra-innings victory. He has been relatively vulnerable to the home run ball this year, having already allowed nine after serving up just seven through all of 2009.

Wells limited the Rangers to just three runs over 8 1/3 IP last time out, though he didn't get the win. It was the third solid effort, none of which have provided a victory for Wells, since that ugly game in Pittsburgh back at the beginning of the month.


Comments

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

You're usually the reverse of naive, but I think it's naive to think that a manager has the freedom to put any name he likes on the lineup card. You have to play your expensive players, if only to keep their trade value up. It's Hendry's job to trade Fukudome/Byrd/Soriano to make room for Colvin, who has been something of a surprise, otherwise they wouldn't have gone after Byrd last winter. I've said before that I think Lou dislikes Soriano as much as I do, but they owe the guy $84 million for this year and four more years, whereas Lou is still owed a couple million for this year and then that's it. Who has the power in that situation? Lou manages the Cubs, and Soriano is the Cubs right now, unfortunately. Fukudome has his own little Brinks job going, pulling down $13 million this year, $13.5 next year. The Cubs are transitioning to a team of mostly homegrown players--not a moment too soon for my taste--where at least the best people will be on the field.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

I think you're right that neither the GM nor the Manager ought to be devastating a player's trade value if it can be avoided, whether that player is high-paid or earns the minimum. But aren't you neglecting the responsibilities of both the GM and the Manager to protect and develop other resources, like good young players who good provide value while keeping costs low (and who have trade value of their own to be developed)? Colvin has been on the bench long enough to rot (and all the credit should go to him for not rotting in that time, I think). A 4-man outfield would not reduce the playing time of any of the now 3 starters to significantly damage what trade value they have. What to do with Nady then becomes the problem, I guess.

marlon byrd demonstrating how much you can get away with while angry when you're a respected player. 1/2+ the league would have been ejected at a couple points there after that called strikeout.

Who was the last free agent the Cubs signed to suck this much and this consistently? He is f***ing useless right now.

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    neris has thrown 2 pitches at 93mph out of his first 5 pitches.  that's a positive turn.

  • hellfrozeover (view)

    I really am not interested in the wesneski head case experience again any time soon. Give me smyly over wesneski. Hell give me keegan Thompson over wesneski every day of the week. His stuff isn’t as good but at least he doesn’t melt down mentally every time something goes mildly awry. 

  • crunch (view)

    they might not want to start the clock on brown and give us wesn.  hopefully it won't come to that.

  • crunch (view)

    madrigal ground rule double!

    he blows a play and hits a double.  we're getting bizarro madrigal.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Close up video shows Steele saying to the Trainer "no it just cramped up"

    Hope so

    Ben Brown and not Smyly please

  • crunch (view)

    agreed and agreed.

    he walked off on his own, but we may not find out for a few days how this will impact the club.

  • hellfrozeover (view)

    Looked like a hamstring rather than a knee, not sure if that’s better or worse. 

  • crunch (view)

    steele leaves the game with a hamstring or knee injury.  sigh.

  • crunch (view)

    ...and a madrigal "non-error" leads to a sac fly for a tie game.  nice.

    having a ball clank off your glove, but still getting it count as a hit because it was hit hard is a nice stats gift.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    For sure. This lineup isn’t exactly stacked as is, and subbing out a Cooper or even a Tauchman for Madrigal won’t do it any favors.