Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full), plus one player is 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 3-28-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Jose Cuas
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Julian Merryweather
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

OUTFIELDERS: 4
* Cody Bellinger 
# 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 

10-DAY IL: 1 
Patrick Wisdom, INF 

15-DAY IL: 1 
Jameson Taillon, P 

60-DAY IL: 1 
Caleb Kilian, P 

 



 

Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Welcome Back, Augie!

Man, when you see that Augie Ojeda is 36 you know it’s getting late.

Last night my son was megabussing home from college when he e-mailed me the news about Augie inking a minor league deal with the Cubs. A decade ago Augie was our favorite player in Des Moines. Eventually he would hit three homers playing for the Chicagoans. We saw one of them in a game at Wrigley the only other aspect of which I can recall is that the Cubs lost. The rest of the details aren’t important enough to go looking for. Later Augie came back to annoy if not exactly haunt the Cubs when he hit .444 for the Diamondbacks while they were sweeping us out of the 2007 playoffs. Ojeda’s real first name is Octavio. His initials have more potential than he ever did.

Todd Wellemeyer is a yawn. But Augie Ojeda is like magic words that reopen a closed passageway.

His playing days are numbered. Mine are long gone. The kid’s just hitting his stride. Hard to believe we were all part of the same ballclub in 2001. And now we are again.

Comments

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

The Augie signing tells me that the Cubs weren't willing to let Cabrera or any of the other available veteran middle infielders compete for the starting 2B job,only a back-up spot. It also tells me that someone on the Cubs staff has a really weird sense of humor.

and he was traded with milton bradley to OAK for andre either. --- why trade for Bradley when you can buy him for 3/30?

Bruce Miles with some info on the Cubans: The Cubs aren’t commenting because all of the visa issues aren’t finalized, but they’re expecting outfielder Ruby Silva and catcher Yaniel Cabezas at their minor-league minicamp in February. Both players currently are in the Dominican Republic.... Cubs people I’ve talked with say Silva is a left-handed hitter who still could play some middle infield as well as center field. They like his athleticism, arm and speed. The Cubs seem to like Cabezas as a “catch-and-throw” guy, reminiscent of Yadier Molina, at least at this early stage and in that respect. The players’ contracts have been approved by MLB, sources said. ... Expect both of the new players to break camp with Class A Peoria. http://blogs.dailyherald.com/node/5136

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

One thing I have noticed with the Cuban defectors signed by the Cubs over the past five years (Sotolongo, Tuero, Sabates, Borges, and Serrano) is that they tend to be older and more set in their ways than other Cubs Latin minor leaguers, and they seem to believe that the best instruction they're ever going to get they got in Cuba, and now they just want to play and don't really want to be bothered by the Cubs coaches.

I may be dumb, but I ain't stupid: Have the Cubs released the date for individual ticket sales for the regular season? The 13-pack/whatever "deal" is a no-go here.Any info kind folks?

Baseball America's Top 30 Cubs Prospects from their Handbook. (Someone posted it elsewhere, I don't have it.) 1. Chris Archer 2. Brett Jackson (1) 3. Trey McNutt (2) 4. Hak-Ju Lee 5. Josh Vitters (3) 6. Chris Carpenter (4) 7. Matt Szczur (5) 8. Hayden Simpson (6) 9. Rafael Dolis (7) 10. Brandon Guyer 11. Alberto Cabrera (8) 12. Darwin Barney (9) 13. DJ LeMahieu (10) 14. Scott Maine (11) 15. Jay Jackson (12) 16. Robinson Chirinos 17. Welington Castillo (13) 18. Marcos Mateo (14) 19. Robinson Lopez (15) 20. Kyle Smit (16) 21. Logan Watkins (17) 22. Ryan Flaherty (18) 23. Reggie Golden (19) 24. Ben Wells (20) 25. Aaron Kurcz (21) 26. Brooks Raley (22) 27. Junior Lake (23) 28. Jae-Hoon Ha (24) 29. Esmailin Caridad (25) 30. Dae-Eun Rhee (26) 31. Matt Cerda (27)

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

Dolis, Cabrera, Barney, Mateo all rated too generously. Watkins, Golden and Raley rated too low (Golden would sneak into my top 10 post-Garza trade). Dae-Eun Rhee, is he still around? I thought he blew out his elbow and was finished.

[ ]

In reply to by Jim Hickmans Bat

HAs Golden done anything to be rated that high besides his draft #? Keep an eye on Jae-Hoon Ha and Junior Lake to move up...both making strides at young ages. Cabrera is a little high...but was solid at Daytona before faltering at AA. He's only 22..let's see what he does this year. I'd rather see Jackson or Carpenter in the pen than wasting time on Wellemeyer.

[ ]

In reply to by Dusty Baylor

Golden struck out 7 times in 15 professional league at bats, so I can see why people are excited. Seriously though, getting into the system gives him more exposure to more people who can give their opinions on him, so his highish ranking may be valid. I would want to see some more numbers though, and some better ones, since it will probably be a couple years before I get a chance to see him play.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

Submitted by The Real Neal on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 10:14am. Golden struck out 7 times in 15 professional league at bats, so I can see why people are excited. Seriously though, getting into the system gives him more exposure to more people who can give their opinions on him, so his highish ranking may be valid. I would want to see some more numbers though, and some better ones, since it will probably be a couple years before I get a chance to see him play. ========================================= REAL NEAL: Although it's not a large sample size, here are Reggie Golden's numbers from AZ Instructs: 263/364/500 14 GAMES 44 PA (10-38, 3 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 1 R, 5 BB, 14 K, 1 HBP, 1 SB, 3 CS, 1 PO) DEFENSE (RF-CF-LF): 3 E, 2 ASSISTS I can tell you from having watched him that he has plus-power to all fields, he isn't afraid to take a walk (or get called out on strikes), and he has a RF arm. On the negative side he strikes out a lot (although some of that is attributable to called third strikes as the result of the very inconsistent umpiring he has to deal with in A-ball), he has (at best) just average speed, he is a poor baserunner, and he is below-average defensively. The baserunning and defense can be improved with work, but the high K-total and speed are what they are. Also, just last season alone he suffered from a hamstring injury (HS), a sore wrist (AZL Cubs), and a strained oblique (AZ Instructs). That said, I ranked Golden #14 in my post-2010 Cubs Top 15, and he moved up to #11 after the Garza trade. I still think he has a good chance to open the 2011 season at Peoria (if he can stay healthy).

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

Submitted by The Real Neal on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 5:29pm. Thanks Phil, I had forgotten that you keep track of the instruct games. What kind of swings is he taking to generate that power? You mention he has power to all fields, which makes it sound a little more controlled. ============================================== REAL NEAL: Reggie Golden is the classic power hitter. He's a strong kid with an elevated swing and a really good pull stroke, but he will hammer the pitch to straight away CF or to RF (even down the RF line) if he is pitched that way. He also grunts (loudly) when he swings. And he knows the strike zone, too. He gets mad when umpires miss pitches.

[ ]

In reply to by Dusty Baylor

Submitted by Dusty Baylor on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 9:29am. HAs Golden done anything to be rated that high besides his draft #? Keep an eye on Jae-Hoon Ha and Junior Lake to move up...both making strides at young ages. Cabrera is a little high...but was solid at Daytona before faltering at AA. He's only 22..let's see what he does this year. I'd rather see Jackson or Carpenter in the pen than wasting time on Wellemeyer. ==================================== DUSTY B: I like Jay Jackson more as a starting pitcher because he has four pitches in his arsenal (including an above-average fastball and a plus slider), he is a well-conditioned all-around athlete, and he is one of the best-hitting pitchers in minor league baseball. You can't take advantage of his bat if he works out of the pen. He's probably the one pitcher in the Cubs systenm who could be successfully moved to CF (a la Rick Ankiel) if things don't work out on the mound. I suspect J. Jackson might be used as a trading chip if the Cubs can't find a spot for him in the starting rotation. Chris Carpenter throws about 4 MPH harder when working out of the pen than when he is used as a starter and he doesn't have J. Jackson's bat or athleticism, so I would say Carpenter's future (presuming he stays with the Cubs) is probably in the bullpen, although he could start if needed, and he probably will be used as a startter at Iowa in 2011 to get him more innings of minor league experience and to force him to keep using his secondary stuff (which he probably would not do if working out of the pen). There are some pitchers who are developed as relievers from the git-go, either because they have one or two pitches with no likelihood that they will develop a third, or because they are effective but just don't have the stamina to throw multiple innings. Most minor league starters can work out of the bullpen at the big league level if necessary (and most MLB relievers were starting pitchers in the minors), the one exception being soft-tossing lefties, who make their bones pitching to contact and working hitters over the course of three ABs (this would also apply to some RHP, too). And then there are the good hitting pitchers (like Jay Jackson) who can give an N. L. club an edge by providing a 9th bat in the lineup. But most managers like relievers who throw hard and who can get strikeouts and pop ups, at least in the 7-8-9 inning roles.

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

jay jackson can't get any love from the prospect list makers...a lot has to do with that whole "relief or starter?" thing i'd imagine. i find the kid and his stuff pretty damn interesting, especially given his age. though not similar in size or style (yeah, i know...i know), i see him as a guy who's value in the cubs system is/was similar to jeff neimann from TB. neimann's value was a bit lost in the shuffle of other arms once his round-1 "wow factor" wore off, but he had/has great middle-rotation stuff, imo.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

Another thing about Jay Jackson is that he is nearly two years younger than Chris Carpenter, and yet J. Jax spent the entire 2010 season at AAA (in what was just his second full minor league season), while Carp spent most of the year at AA after nursing a sore arm at Minor League Camp and EXST.

I wonder if Burgess or Morris would crack that list. Probably so since it's a top 27 currently.

via twooter... "Braden Looper's deal w/ #Cubs pays him about $1M salary if he makes club. If he's fulltime starter, it can max out around $3M w/incentives"

via rotowurld: "We like (Freddie) Garcia better than the recently-signed Bartolo Colon, but that isn't saying much. As of now, he'll compete with Colon, Ivan Nova and Sergio Mitre for one of the final two spots in the starting rotation." man...$200 million don't buy what it used to, eh yanks?

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    steele MRI on friday.  counsell expects an IL stint.

    no current plans for his rotation replacement.

  • hellfrozeover (view)

    I would say also in the bright side column is Busch looked pretty good overall at the plate. Alzolay…man, that hurts but most of the time he’s not giving up a homer to that guy. To me the worst was almonte hanging that pitch to Garcia. He hung another one to the next hitter too and got away with it on an 0-1. 

  • crunch (view)

    amaya blocked like 6-8 of smyly's pitches in the dirt very cleanly...not even an exaggeration, smyly threw a ton of pitches bouncing in tonight.

    neris looking like his old self was a relief (no pun), too.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    In looking for bright spots the defense was outstanding tonight. The “stars” are going to need to shine quite a bit brighter than they did tonight offensively though for this to be a successful season.

  • Eric S (view)

    Good baseball game. Hopefully Steele is pitching again in April (but I’m not counting on it). 

  • crunch (view)

    boo.

  • crunch (view)

    smyly to face the 2/3/4 hitters with a man on 2nd in extras.

    this doesn't seem like a 8 million dollar managerial decision.

  • crunch (view)

    i 100% agree with you, but i dunno how jed wants to run things.  the default is delay.  i would choose brown.

    like hellfrozeover says, could be smyly since he's technically fresh and stretched.

    anyway, on a pure talent basis....brown is the best option.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Use pitchers when you believe they're good. Don't plan their clock.

    I'm sorry. I'm simply anti-clock/contract management. Play guys when they show real MLB potential talent.

    If Brown hadn't been hurt with the Lat Strain he would've gotten the call, and not Wick.

    Give him a chance. 

    But Wesneski probably gets it

  • crunch (view)

    alzolay...bro...