Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full) 

42 players are at MLB Spring Training 

31 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE at MLB Spring Training, and nine players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors. 
11 players are MLB Spring Training NON-ROSTER INVITEES (NRI) 

Last updated 3-17-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 17
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Jose Cuas
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Caleb Kilian
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Julian Merryweather
Hector Neris 
Daniel Palencia
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele
Jameson Taillon
Hayden Wesneski 
* Jordan Wicks

NRI PITCHERS: 5 
Colten Brewer 
Carl Edwards Jr 
* Edwin Escobar 
* Richard Lovelady 
* Thomas Pannone 

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

NRI CATCHERS: 2  
Jorge Alfaro 
Joe Hudson 

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

NRI INFIELDERS: 3 
David Bote 
Garrett Cooper
* Dominic Smith

OUTFIELDERS: 5
* Cody Bellinger 
Alexander Canario
# Ian Happ
Seiya Suzuki
* Mike Tauchman 

NRI OUTFIELDERS: 1 
* David Peralta

OPTIONED:
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Ben Brown, RHP 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, RHP 
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Keegan Thompson, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 

 



Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Is Kid K Coming Back?

Dave Kaplan, fresh off his own new contract, is reporting that the Cubs and Kerry Wood are close to finalizing a deal.

That's my reaction to the news.

Comments

Love it. Mine too. (Although, is this a bad time to start talking about BABIP, other RH relievers for less money, money wasted on the bullpen, etc.?? You f'n know it's coming, here and elsewhere) I'll save my defense of the signing for when it happens. On a side note, I'll be up late doing papers all night, and watching Twitter for news on this very important front.

[ ]

In reply to by Tony S.

Also from Kaplan on Twitter, in response to a fan? "thekapman David Kaplan @ @mac_of_all_macs Trust me....He is going to end up a Cub. It may take a little time but he will be pitching for the Cubs." That almost sounds a little too sure for comfort....

Fucken' A. I don't give a damn if it's money not well-spent, after all the $$ the Cubs waste on losers year in and year out? Kerry Wood is this generation's Ron Santo, he's a goddamn Cub and I love him. BTW, Wood is no longer a kid, there's no long-term career to protect anymore. Which raises an obvious question: could he be a starting pitcher again? He's got 3 plus-plus pitches, and he knows how to use them (tho not always for strikes). Trade Zambrano and replace him in the rotation with Wood? Hell yeah, I'm on board for that.

[ ]

In reply to by Jim Hickmans Bat

When he signed the deal with Cleveland I thought that it could be a potential steal for them, if he pulled a Smoltz and moved back into the rotation, but he just hasn't been healthy enough. If he makes it through a season in the bullpen relatively healthy, and some of the Cubs minor league arms step up, maybe it's something to look at for 2012, but the Cubs need a light's out 8th inning guy right now more than they do a starter. Remember this is a team that finished 2nd in the majors in quality starts last year.

imagine it'd be in the 3/16m to 3/20m area...wonder how it'll be backloaded or broken down, though. if he's healthy i'd consider it a good deal at either price.

2/12M was the early rumor, imagine it will add up to that with some incentives and maybe a vesting option

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Submitted by Rob G. on Thu, 12/16/2010 - 1:33am. 2/12M was the early rumor, imagine it will add up to that with some incentives and maybe a vesting option ============================== ROB G: There's going to have to be at least $2M in performance bonuses each year based on GF in case something happens to Marmol and Wood ends up having to be the #1 closer for a while. Otherwise, I could see a base 2/$12M ($4M-$8M) two-year deal, or maybe even 2/$12M ($2M-$8M-$2M) with the "third year" money paid in January 2013 deferred from the first year (similar to the Carlos Pena deal).

marshall(L)/wood/marmol for the core... grabow(L)/cashner/russell(L)/maine(L)/diamond/caridad/m.mateo TB might be able to take either russell or maine from the cubs in a garza pacakage....

...i think this is the deal i would have rather seen, though... "MLB.com's Peter Gammons reports that the White Sox have reached a three-year, $13 million deal with free agent reliever Jesse Crain."

Here's the old cub fans fantasy scenerio... Kerry Wood re-signs for two jobs. Innings 1-6, color commentator with Pat Hughes ...bottom 6th he takes the catwalk tour heading down to the bullpen as the fans in the top rows of the grandstand go nuts Inning 7 or 8... KKK Then they re-mike him from the dugout for the 9th. Makes the post game interview a piece of cake.

It's been reported that the Cubs are looking for a starter and a reliever. Now with Wood in the pen, does that make Cashner the sought-after starter? I already see a team with Z, Dempster, Wells, Gorz, Silva, and Coleman on the depth chart, and if you throw Cashner in there, I don't think they'd even have room to audition another guy, let alone sign or trade for someone.

I don't care if K doesn't get one guy out. For saying what he said about not being able to put on a White Sox uniform, he can serve up 100 gopher balls and I won't boo him.

Put me down in the camp of please God let this happen as Wood should be a Cub and maybe Santo is pulling the strings on this. Best news in a while. And he'll be Kid K until he's 70 and shaking hands at the Cubs Convention.

Nady to D'Backs for 1/1.75M and $1M in incentives D-Lee liked by the Nats, Rosenthal says Orioles, Padres also interested along with LaRoche. Rangers, Rays, Blue Jays also lurking. Aardsma on the block.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

FWIW, Jose Pena actually has a higher career OBP and OPS than Nady: 351/841 vs 331/775. Pena's OPS with RISP is also quite a bit higher .936 vs .799 over the last three years, although Nady does have a higher BA over those three years with RISP

Love Kid K. If they did keep Z, I can't see him messing with the kid. Kind of like having a pit boss in the club house... However, if they are able to convince Z to accept the deal, I would consider including Marlon Byrd in the deal in an attempt to get Brett Gardner. Not sure the Yanks would do that, but Gardner would be the leadoff man we need. I'm also assuming the Cubs would want Joba in the deal... As far as the Garza rumors go, if you look at the Rays' roster, they clearly need help at short and in the pen. If I'm them, I would want Barney and Carpenter instead of J. Jackson and Lee.

[ ]

In reply to by carmenfanzone

I agree that he's more Barney's more "big league ready", but it would make more sense to get Lee and sign Izturis for a year at $1 million, than to get Barney and then still have to get a starting shorstop. Barney is a defensive replacement, who's probably better served playing in the NL where he can get in on double switches.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

I think Joba could compete for either. Of course, I'm still of the belief that Marshall should be a starter, especially if we trade Gorz. Aside from a loogy, is a lefty to pitch in the 7th or 8th a necessity? Interesting article a couple of weeks ago by Joe Posanski of SI. Sorry I don't have the link, but the gist is how much more the 8th inning plays into the winning pct than the closer. Might explain why the set-up guys are getting all the love this year.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

I think anyone who watched the Cubs in 2007-08 knows setup men can be much more important than closers. It was such a luxury to have Marmol come in when the other team had bases loaded / no outs only to go K-K-K. I understand why he wants to be the closer (payday), but for the team it seems much more valuable to have your reliever with the unbelievable K rate available for the highest leverage situations rather than just the 9th inning. Without Marmol pitching out of all those jams, there wouldn't have been nearly as many save opportunities.

[ ]

In reply to by Tony S.

Exactly why I have no interest in Marshall returning to the rotation. As long as he provides more value as a reliever (which he has for the last 2 years) than as a starter, I can't see why the organization would move him out of the bullpen......other than, this is the Cubs.

[ ]

In reply to by Sweet Lou

I'd sure love to have Greinke and happy to give them B. Jackson for it, but it's up to the scouts and colleagues to try and figure out if he could handle Chicago. I would guess it would take about 2 days before he hated Paul Sullivan. He did have a down year last year, but he truly seemed disinterested in the season and the team, not that coming to the Cubs will necessarily make that better.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

An excellent point. You would think that players who sign to play here (or manage here) know "what the deal is". But time and time again, most just cannot handle having a microscope placed above them with everything Cubs. Whereas in Chicago Cub Land everything is weighted - or referenced towards epic failure constantly, in New York or Boston, everything is weighted towards success.

[ ]

In reply to by The E-Man

while I agree, I don't think Bos was like that pre-2004. I think they got their success started by just not giving a darn about that stuff, and having fun. You can argue both sides of 'team chemistry', but let's be honest, when was the last time it seemed like the Cubs were 'having fun'? I can think of a)2003 and b)the last month and a half last year.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

You couldn't root for him in Cleveland? It pisses me off that Jim Hendry didn't even offer arbitration and take the free draft picks. Only to turn around and offer him multiple years coming off of 2 subpar, injury plagued years. Its the height of incompetence.

[ ]

In reply to by Dr. aaron b

well I'd obviously rather root for him as a Cub. the arb thing was dumb, Hendry obviously felt like he would accept it. let's see what the deal is, non-closer relievers are getting $5M a year in this market right now. Also, he apparently picked up Mariano's cutter pretty quickly as a Yankee, so see if that 26 innings is for real last year. I assume 0.69 ERA isn't sustainable, but hopefully the HR's stay down.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

That .235 BABIP and a little situational luck probably best explains his Yankees success, he had an X-FIP of 4.20 (all my caveats and reservations about FIP aknowledged). He's likely to pitch about as well as he did in 2009 for the Indians, but I am still happy he's with the team.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

I heard about it as well, but if I had to bet money I think the series of events was: 1. Hey, Wood has a really good ERA 2. What's up with that Kerry? Oh, I learned Rivera's cutter 3. You can see that Kerry is really controlling the cutter. I am a smart sportswriter. His control was awful with the Yankees. He wasn't throwing as hard in the playoffs as he was with us in '08, but I am all for him putting up 70 innings of 2.50 ERA ball next year, and wouldn't be shocked if he did.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

fwiw, and I screwed it up myself earlier as well, he says he's been throwing a cutter for awhile and just claims he's controlling it better and there were some good old fashioned anonymous scouts with the same observation of how much better the pitch looked as a Yankee. It could all be BS and doesn't mean he's doing any better with his regular FB or curve. Fangraphs does show an uptick in how much he threw the cutter with the Yankees (standard disclaimers).

Most likely to get dropped from the 40-man roster if the Cubs do sign Kerry Wood; 1. John Gaub 2. Jeff Stevens BTW, neither Gaub nor Stevens can be a minor league free-agent (yet) if outrighted, so if either one was to clear waivers the Cubs would be able to keep him in the organization and extend an NRI to ST.

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

I nominate Berg. His K/BB with the Cubs last year in 40 innings was 0.7. On the final day of the I-Cubs season, ready to clinch a playoff berth, they gave the ball to Berg with a man on in the 7th inning of a 6-3 game. Three outs later, 6-6. Stevens was 8 for 8 in save opportunities with the I-Cubs in the stretch run. Gaub will get snapped up quickly.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

Absolutely agree, am thinking it must be someone's idea other than Hendry, it's like he's making anti-last-few-years decisions, and heaven forbid, decent ones. Admittedly, Wood is a shaky sign from a pure baseball standpoint, but that all depends on the money (which I read is lower than we thought but haven't got that far in the comments yet), just like trading DeRo may have been the right baseball call at the time (it was) but good personalities are hard to replace in the clubhouse. Woody was a leader on the North Side before he left, and I think the team will benefit from having him back. Can they translate that into wins?? That's the big question, and I have no f'n idea, but I can hope....

Willingham to A's for 2 minor leaguers (I be baffled by the Nats strategy this offseason) magglio's deal is 1/10M from Tigres

One for AZ Phil... too lazy to get the link, but MLBTraderumors has a line about the minimum salary going up to $414K next year according to an AP report.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

Submitted by The Real Neal on Thu, 12/16/2010 - 2:02pm. One for AZ Phil... too lazy to get the link, but MLBTraderumors has a line about the minimum salary going up to $414K next year according to an AP report. =============================================== REAL NEAL: I have re-calculated the right sidebar to reflect the increase in the MLB minimum salary. I am presently estimating the Cubs 2011 payroll (actual payroll, not inccluding pro-rated signing bonuses not paid in 2011) at $123M.

EPat traded by Bosox to Padres. All we need is an article on Cherry-Pie and the gang's all here. ...well maybe Matt Clement's beard

http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=2…
AFFILIATE	                MANAGER	         PITCHING COACH	       HITTING COACH	
Iowa (AAA)	        Bill Dancy	         Mike Mason	               Von Joshua	
Tennessee (AA)      	Brian Harper	         Marty Mason	        Mariano Duncan	
Daytona (A)	        Buddy Bailey	        Tom Pratt	                Barbaro Garbey	
Peoria (A)	        Casey Kopitzke	     Jeff Fassero	        Ricardo Medina	
Boise (Short A)	        Mark Johnson	     David Rosario	                 Desi Wilson	
Mesa (Rookie)	        Juan Cabreja	      Rick Tronerud/Frank Castillo	Jason Dubois	
Dominican-1 (Rookie)	Manuel Callado	      Leo Hernandez	                Alberto Garcia	
Dominican-2 (Rookie)	Yudith Ozorio	      Anderson Tavares	        Leo Perez/Franklin Blanco	
bwahahahahaha Jason Dubois!!!!

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Submitted by Rob G. on Thu, 12/16/2010 - 3:23pm. I'm sure I just missed this somewhere, but did Jody Davis steal Hendry's donuts or something? if anyone cares, Brian Harper was the Hi-A San Jose Giants coach last year and they won their league. Former major league catcher ================================================= ROB G: Jody Davis fate with the Cubs was sealed when he forfeited a Northwest League game in August because he felt the field was not playable. Jo-Dee was fined and suspended by the league and the Cubs werern't real happy about it, either.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

I love K, but where was the players assoc when K was sitting for a year. If K wants to pitch for free, the PA should have no say about it, unless of course there's some tiny print legalese in the CBA. That's an amazing deal. You gotta wonder if K is hoping Hendry will use the extra money to beef up the team more. I think i'd be okay with a Webb crapshoot.

[ ]

In reply to by big_lowitzki

The point is that when players get injured and don't perform at all, they get paid 100% of their salary. Baseball is the only industry I can think of that has that deal going on, though maybe the UAW or one of the dockworkers associations does.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

the mlb player's association is only there to protect the players and their money (as a whole). when someone takes 1.5m over 3.5m (less than 1/2) the player's association generally wants to know why. it's usually a very un-intrusive formality, though. baseball does have a rather recent history of both owners trying to blackmail players and owner collusion.

[ ]

In reply to by Tito

NHL contracts are guaranteed for the entire length of the deal, however, a team can release a player and buyout the contract early at a reduced rate, depending on the service time of a player. One example is player x has been in the league so many years and qualifies for a 60% buyout. I'm not sure if the player has to take the buyout, but if they do, there is an odd hit to the salary cap. Say the player had 10 million left on his deal over 5 years. The team pays the 60% buyout, so $6 million, but for salary cap purposed the $6 million is spread out over twice the length of the contract, so 10 years, in this example. That's a $600k hit per year for 10 years. It's goofy, with lots of wiggle room, like the Blackhawks sending goalie Cristobal Huet to a team in Switzerland and getting his contract off the books (while paying the entire amount). Imagine the Cubs sending Soriano to play in Japan and footing the entire bill, but having his money removed from the salary cap. But the NHL has a hard cap in that it's a real cap in that sense. There is no luxury tax in the NHL.

Sun Times Chris Deluca tweets that Kerry Wood signs a one yr deal at $1.5M with Cubs ...somehow I think a decimal has been misplaced Its on mlbtr too

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

Regardless of the incentives, you have to ackowledge the sales ability of Jim Hendry. I've been as down on Jim as the rest of you but I must say, he's selling the Cubby kool-aid this year. Maybe Hendry was like Dunston-he just needed about 10 years to develop!

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-spt-1217-cubs-chi… naturally there was food involved in getting the deal done... In what may be remembered as the Pizza Summit, Kerry Wood and Cubs general manager Jim Hendry huddled Friday night in a cramped hallway at D'Agostino's restaurant in Wrigleyville. The two had spoken earlier that day at Ron Santo's funeral, but their second meeting at the pizza joint during a charity function for the Ryan and Jenny Dempster Foundation, was Wood's chance to make his pitch. also mentions incentives based on games finished

[ ]

In reply to by Stevens

My then 76 year old father and I went to see spring practices at Fitch park in 2004. The pitchers were running around the bases, and as you can see they are all about 6'3" in height with a little guy bringing up the rear. My dad says to me "why is the bat boy running with the pitchers?" I said "because that bat boy has nearly 300 wins." dad- "OHHH! That's Maddux???!!!"

The article in Friday's NY Times mentions a personal-services contract as an aspect of the Cubs' offer to Wood.
Later in the week, Wood said no to the Yankees, the Chicago White Sox and at least one other team to sign with the Cubs for one year and a $1.5 million base salary as a setup man, with the promise of future employment under a personal-services contract with the team once his playing days are over.
That's probably why Wood met with Ricketts before the deal was finalized.

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    SF snags b.snell...2/62m

  • Cubster (view)

    AZ Phil: THAT is an awesome report worth multiple thanks. I’m sure it will be worth reposting in an “I told you so” in about 2-3 years.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    The actual deadline to select a post-2023 Article XX-B MLB free agent signed to 2024 minor league contract (Cooper, Edwards, and Peralta) to the MLB 40-man roster is not MLB Opening Day, it is 12 PM (Eastern) this coming Sunday (3/24). 

    However, the Cubs could notify the player prior to the deadline that the player is not going to get added to the 40 on Sunday, which would allow the player to opt out early. Otherwise the player can opt out anytime after the Sunday deadline (if he was not added to the 40 by that time). 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Today is an off day for both the Cubs MLB players and the Cubs minor league players.  

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    For those of you keeping track, so far nine players have been called up to Mesa from the Cubs Dominican Academy for Minor League Camp and they will be playing in the ACL in 2024: 

    * bats or throws left 

    Angel Cepeda, INF 
    * Miguel Cruz, P
    Yidel Diaz, C 
    * Albert Gutierrez, 1B
    Fraiman Marte, P  
    Francis Reynoso, P (ex-1B) 
    Derniche Valdez, INF 
    Edward Vargas, OF 
    Jeral Vizcaino, P 

    And once again, despite what you might read at Baseball Reference and at milb.com, Albert Gutierrez is absolutely positively a left-handed hitter (only), NOT a right-handed hitter.

    Probably not too surprisingly, D. Valdez was the Cubs #1 prospect in the DSL last season, Cepeda was the DSL Cubs best all-around SS prospect not named Derniche Valdez, Gutierrez was the DSL Cubs top power hitting prospect not named Derniche Valdez, E. Vargas was the DSL Cubs top outfield prospect (and Cepeda and E. Vargas were also the DSL Cubs top two hitting prospects), Y. Diaz was the DSL Cubs top catching prospect, and M. Cruz was the DSL Cubs top pitching prospect. 

    F. Marte (ex-STL) and J. Vizcaino (ex-MIL) are older pitchers (both are 22) who were signed by the Cubs after being released by other organizations and then had really good years working out of the bullpen for the Cubs in the DSL last season. 

    The elephant in the room is 21-year old Francis Reynoso, a big dude (6'5) who was a position player (1B) at the Cardinals Dominican Academy for a couple of years, then was released by STL in 2022, and then signed by the Cubs and converted to a RHP at the Cubs Dominican Academy (and he projects as a high-velo "high-leverage" RP in the states). He had a monster year for the DSL Cubs last season (his first year as a pitcher). 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    DJL: The only players who definitely have opt outs are Cooper, Edwards, and Peralta (Opening Day, 5/1, and 6/1), and that's because they are post-2023 Article XX-B MLB free agents who signed 2024 minor league contracts and (by rule) they get those opt outs automatically. 

    Otherwise, any player signed to a 2024 minor league contract - MIGHT or - MIGHT NOT - have an opt out in their contract, but it is an individual thing, and if there are contractual opt outs the opt out(s) might not necessarily be Opening Day. It could be 5/1, or 6/1, or 7/1 (TBD).

    Because of their extensive pro experience, the players who most-likely have contractual opt outs are Alfaro, Escobar, and D. Smith, but (again), not necessarily Opening Day. 

    Also, just because a player has the right to opt out doesn't mean he will. 

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    I love the idea that Madrigal heads to Iowa in case Morel can’t handle third.

    The one point that intrigues me here is Cooper over Smith. I feel like the Cubs really like Smith and don’t want to lose him. Could be wrong. He def seems like an opt out if he misses the opening day roster

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Childersb3: Both Madrigal and Wisdom can be optioned without any restriction. Their consent is not required. 

    They both can be outrighted without restriction, too (presuming the player is not claimed off waivers), but if outrighted they can choose to elect free agency (immediately, or deferred until after the end of the MLB season).

    If the player is outrighted and elects free-agency immediately he forfeits what remains of his salary.

    If he accepts the assignment and defers free agency until after the conclusion of the season, he continues to get his salary, and he could be added back to the 40 anytime prior to becoming a free-agent (club option). 

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Phil, 
    Madrigal and Wisdom can or cannot refuse being optioned to the Minors?
    If they can refuse it, wouldn't they elect to leave the Cubs org?

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    In my opinion, the biggest "affirmative" mistake the Cubs made in the off-season (that is, doing something they should not have done), was blowing $9M in 2024 AAV on Hector Neris. What the Cubs actually need is an alternate closer to be in the pen and available to close if Alzolay pitched the day before (David Robertson would have been perfect), because with his forearm issue last September, I would be VERY wary of over-using Alzolay. I'm not even sure I would pitch him two days in a row!  

    And of course what the Cubs REALLY need is a second TOR SP to pair with Justin Steele. That's where the Cubs are going to need to be willing to package prospects (like the Padres did to acquire Dylan Cease, the Orioles did to acquire Corbin Burnes, and the Dodgers did to acquire Tyler Glasnow). Obviously those ships have sailed, but I would say right now the Cubs need to look very hard at trying to acquire LHSP Jesus Luzardo from the Marlins (and maybe LHP A. J. Puk as well).