Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
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 

 



 

Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Game 146 Thread / Cubs @ Cardinals (3 of 3)

Game Chat | Press Pass | BR Preview

SP Rich Harden
SP Todd Wellemeyer
(NL) 4-1, 1.50, 75 K, 18 BB, 54 IP
12-6, 3.74, 116 K, 51 BB, 168.1 IP
       
LF
Alfonso Soriano
SS
*Skip Schumaker
SS
Ryan Theriot
LF #Aaron Miles
1B Derrek Lee
1B
Albert Pujols
3B Aramis Ramirez
RF
Ryan Ludwick
RF Mark DeRosa
3B #Felipe Lopez
2B *Mike Fontenot 2B *Adam Kennedy
C Geovany Soto
C Jason LaRue
CF
Reed Johnson P Todd Wellemeyer
P *Rich Harden
SS #Cesar Izturis

 

The Cubs last game for at least two days as they'll head home after the game and wait out Hurricane Ike. Rich Harden returns after skipping a start, now ready to throw 110 mph and strike out the 27 batters on 81 pitches...anything less would be disappointing.

Brewers and Phillies start a four game set, so there's a good chance one of the Cubs magic numbers will go down today although the playoff magic number is now muddled by the Cardinals and Astros who are tied with the Phillies in the lost column. The best thing is to just win tonight - let's say 15-0 - and then let the other teams duke it out while the Cubs watch the carnage over the weekend.

Comments

Fontenot the lone lefty in the lineup? Rich Harden does not count. Guess Hoffpauir will have to wait for Lee to hit under .270 in order to get some playing time. To be fair, the Hoff doesn't appear to be much of an outfielder. I'm torn on Pie not getting another start tonight, but I understand why one good game doesn't buy him much playing time after an atrocious start in the majors and a fairly mediocre season in AAA.

[ ]

In reply to by mannytrillo

I didn't intend to say that Hoffpauir is better than Lee. I intended to note that even in a lineup that lacks lefty bats against a righty pitcher, Hoffpauir is not playing RF because he isn't an acceptable defender. Therefore I concluded that Hoffpauir is only an option to play at first and will (rightfully) have to wait until Lee becomes an absolutely terrible hitter in order to see any playing time. It is probably justified. I just thought, about a week ago when Hoff got some starts in RF, that the Hoff was quickly becoming one of Piniella's top picks. I did not intend this as a criticism of Lee, although I now see why it would be taken that way. Damn I am a poor blogger.

Wasn't there a stat put up during last night's game saying Lee was hitting .400 during his mini hitting streak? No power, for sure. Lots of grounders too. But his average isn't in free fall.

The Dismal Stats... Here is our everyday Cubs, and their clutch stats, two out, RISP - to Date: SORI - .193 DLEE - .222 ARAM - .278 SOTO - .140 DeRosa - .268 TheRiot - .218 The above would indicate that unless the Cubs have a sizable lead going into the later innings, OR they don't jump on pitching early in an inning, we are toast. As I have said earlier, the team will get into the playoffs, and that's it.

It don't come easy, You know it don't come easy. It don't come easy, You know it don't come easy. Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues, And you know it don't come easy. You don't have to shout or leap about, You can't even play the Cardinals easy.

I know the sky is falling (nothing is easy) I know that I can't catch it (nothing is easy) I know the weight is too great (nothing is easy) I know that I can't hold it yeah NOTHING IS EASY My fool heart --Lungfish, "Nothing is Easy"

Think they would have survived the 8th and 9th innings in 1969? How in the world did the Cardinals not score? They were teeing off on Marmol -- great plays by Fonzie and Kosuke saved the day. Better lucky than good -- - If the ump doesn't blow the call at 3rd base in the 9th, Cards would have had 1st and 3rd and no outs. Terrible call. - Cubs score one earned run in each of the last 2 games, and win 'em both. Getting closer, though -- Soto missed an RBI double by an inch, and Lee missed a HR by a foot. Hopefully, the off days will cool down the 'Stros. Bad luck for the Cubs, though -- looked like the Astro rotation would have been a mess this weekend. Hope we don't get Oswalt and Wandy in the makeup games -- that would suck.

If the Cubs go 9-7 from here, the Brewers will have to go 15-0 to win the division. But let's not get too comfortable because they still control their own destiny -- we have 6 games left with them! Still, for the first time all year I feel this odd comfortable feeling. Are you guys hearing the same junk I am lately about how "the Cubs gotta win the World Series or this year is a waste" or on the flip side, "they are gonna win it for sure", or other such nonsense? Do people not understand that they will probably NOT win it this year? Each major league team -- no matter how good -- will probably not win it. Take just the Angels, Cubs, Mets and Red Sox for example. If they played a 4 team playoff tournament 100 times, I'd say each would win in the range of at least 15 and at most 35 times. Expand the tournament to 8 teams and the win totals get diluted even further. If you play the tournament just once, someone has to win, but each team probably won't. Look at it another way. Assume (favorably) that the Cubs have a 75% chance of beating LA in the first round, and a 66% chance of winning the NLCS, and then a fair 50% shot of winning the WS against the Angels or whomever. The odds of winning all 3 under those generous assumptions -- i.e. winning the World Series -- is only 25% (3/4 x 2/3 x 1/2)! I mention this not to rain on any ticker tape parades, but to keep things in perspective. The Cubs have a relatively great chance of winning the whole thing -- as good as anybody. But even that chance is maybe 1 in 4 under the most generous of assumptions. The way championships are won is to build a team to get into the playoff mix for several years in a row, and hope that your ping pong ball gets picked at least once. That's what the Cubs have failed to do historically, but they finally seem to be positioned to enjoy one of those 3-5 year windows where anything can happen.

Just read that the Mets had a 99.80% chance of winning the division last year at this point, 17 games to go with a seven run lead. Now, that was Epic Fail. Here's hoping lightning strikes twice.

Hey Sabreheads: Jason LaRue: Strike swinging, Ball, Ball, LaRue singled to center Braden Looper hit for Kyle McClellan. Braden Looper: Looper sacrificed to pitcher, LaRue to second. Cesar Izturis: Izturis flied out to left. Skip Schumaker: Schumaker flied out to right. This is a perfect example of why bunting just for because the book says so is stupid. I personally would have pinch hit with a guy who could put it over the wall before I sent up a pitcher to bunt.

[ ]

In reply to by Jeff_Pico

Felipe Lopez won that game for the Cubs, he's pretty sweet with the leather at 3b, Ryan Braun wasn't impressed. Didn't he get DFA'd by the worst team in the NL(Wash)? Troy Glaus had his annual breakdown at the right time this year, thank you sir for being made of the same material as the former #22 of the Chicago National League ball club.

Derrek Lee has become Matt Murton. He will use these off days to die his hair orange.

If the weather warnings are accurate, the idea of playing anything in Houston even on Monday seems stupid. If Galveston is horribly damaged by what is predicted to be a 20 foot storm surge, who the hell is going to want to go to a game up the road two days later? People will die in this thing. It would be nice if the game had a commissioner who could make a decision in the best interests of the game and not in the interests of a single owner.

Seems unlikely they will get any games in Sunday -- the Texans have moved their game to Monday night, and Houston is likely to be an absolute mess. So -- let's assume they schedule a make-up game for Sept. 29th -- if the game means something to the Astros (and thus the Brewers/Phillies/Cards), while the Cubs are in playoff prep mode -- who does Lou put on the flight to Houston? Are Lance Dickson and Ty Griffin still available? Good thinking, Bud.

bud selig sucks i totally agree with t-bone lets put one owner ahead of the game,does houston owner actually think alot of people will come to a sundaay monday game,i think the residents of houston will be occupied elsewhere. at least roger goddell made a announcement before selig concerning a game which was scheduled on sunday. billybucks is correct to the cubs have clinched do you really think lou will play to win on sep. 29. what will probally happen is on saturday afternoon selig will tell teams pack up and go to atlanta to play/ smart bud what happens if astros cant get out of houston.

Submitted by Charlie on Thu, 09/11/2008 - 7:14pm.

Ward reads the routes better. Maybe. Actually, who can tell? His range is about two steps in any direction. I don't think there is a position on the field Ward can play better than Hoff. The man does not run well.

=============================

CHARLIE: Even given his lack of mobility, I would say Daryle Ward is still a better corner OF than Micah Hoffpauir.

1st base is a different matter, however. In Baseball America's "best tools" issue last month (where minor leaguers are rated by scouts and rival league managers), Hoffpauir was rated the #1 defensive 1st baseman in the PCL, and based on what I've seen of him over the years, I would agree that he is a good defensive 1st baseman. I have seen him make some really nice plays at 1B.

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

I will take your word for it on his D at first, since I haven't seen him play much. I have heard differing reports on his defense, but I've heard at least as much good as bad. But I've seen Daryle Ward play more than enough outfield to come to the conclusion that Jason Marquis could outdefend him in RF, and I don't see how Hoffpauir could be worse given that he can run at least a little. Can he catch a fly ball that if he is in position? Can he field a grounder if he is in position? Can he throw to the cut off man? Then he is at least as good as Ward given Ward's extremely limited range. Hate to disagree with the Everything Guru of TCR (and I really, really mean that), but on this one I will. But I do have to ask, since you have seen him play some outfield, just how bad is Hoffpauir?

Rich Harden threw a nice game last night, and he got outs, but if there is nothing wrong with his arm, why was his heater consistently running at 87-89 MPH (touching 90 once and 91 once), when a month ago he was throwing his fastball consistently at 93-95 and occasionally touching 96? He had the same loss of velocity in his previous start (8/29) prior to getting shut down for 12 days.

So do the Cubs shut him down again and hope he can get his velocity back with rest, or do they just live with a Rich Harden who throws a high 80's fly ball fastball and low 80's change combo for the rest of the season?

I certainly wouldn't want to see him start a post-season playoff game in Wrigley Field with the wind blowing out if he can't throw harder than he did last night and in his previous start.

Submitted by Jace on Fri, 09/12/2008 - 9:20am.

AZ Phil - That's the first I have heard of his velocity last night. Was it maybe just the gun they were using? I know that would only maybe account for 2-3 mph, but I can live a little more with him throwing 90-92 on his fastball if that was the issue...

 ===============================

JACE: The same gun showed Wellemeyer's fastball consistently at 91-93 MPH and touching 94 a couple or three times, which is a typical fastball for Welly.

JACE: I read the Sun Times article you linked (and thanks for that, BTW), and Harden is quoted as saying he intentionally was holding it back in order to try and throw more strikes and make better pitches, and also so he would have something left available in the tank when he needed it.

The problem is, in the 6th inning when he probably should have been reaching back for something extra, he was still throwing 87-89 (max). I don't think he could have thrown a mid-90's fastball last night if his life depended on it.

Personally, I'll take the "old' Harden and his virtually unhittable mid-90's fastball & killer-change combo that produced a hyper-K count, no hits, and a few too many walks, over a high 80's "straight" four-seamer that he can throw consistently for strikes, but gets nothing in return but fly balls and where his "out" pitch is his change-up.

A high 80's straight four-seamer without any movement & low-80's change combo with no breaking ball is just not a good formula for long-term success (especially in the post-season), IMO. 

I don't see what was gained by sitting Harden for 12 days if he still has trouble hitting 90. It looks like he's at exactly same place he was on 8/29 (before he got shut-down). 

Maybe Harden's reference to having something left in the tank was referring to later in the season, not in the game... I agree that I thought the old Harder was better, but maybe he's just tinkering, trying something new that will help him stay healthy. I am not sure that mid-September is the time to do something like that, but if the alternative is to not have him for the post-season, I'll take it.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bb/5995567.html The Astros are still considering multiple possibilities to make up those games, but owner Drayton McLane would prefer to have those games at Minute Maid Park either Sunday and Monday or after Sept. 28, which is currently the date of the season finale and The Cubs had hoped the potentially crucial series could be moved to a neutral site, and they made their displeasure clear to the Astros, the commissioner’s office, the union and to the media. "It wasn't the Cubs' unilateral decision not to come,” Astros general manager Ed Wade said. “This was a process, conversations that had been taking place over the better part of 24 hours at this point with regard to what was going to happen. Everybody's looking at the same weather data and trying to look at the schedule and trying to determine what the right thing to do is. “The Cubs had very strong feelings about what they felt was appropriate and everybody got on the same page and everybody is comfortable with the announcement.” As for Selig waving the hand of god and forcing everyone to a neutral site, I'm not sure the CBA allows for that. Seems like both team and their players have to agree and the union gets involved as well. Right now the hope is for a doubleheader Sunday and game Monday. It's very possible they'll do a doubleheader Monday and then make up the game at the end of the year if needed.

TOM RICKETTS, 42, Wilmette Chief Executive of Incapital LLC---Chicago investment bank specializing in packaging corporate bonds for retail investors. BS??

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

Why is everyone in a tizzy to play this series? They just swept us and are still playing amazing baseball. Avoiding them and being able to set the rotation versus the Brewers seems like a win-win.

Nonetheless, I'm not sure unless Bud uses his best interests of baseball powers that he can just move the series. Obviously they're not going to jeopardize anyone's safety by flying them in just so they can play Sunday. I think there's a better chance the they play a double-header Monday and play a makeup game at the end of the season if necessary, which it probably won't be. 

If this decision stands, it could turn into a terrible PR move by MLB, not to mention the idiocy involved in logistical problems for the players and fans. Imagine the juxtaposing of TV images of widespread destruction in Houston and the surrounding area - but look over here, baseball! Let's play two!

The AFL scored big points PR-wise when they cancelled games the Sunday after the Kennedy assassination. The NFL went ahead and played without TV coverage. While this wouldn't be quite the idiotic PR move that was, the National Weather Service's forecast doesn't sound so great. LIFE THREATENING INUNDATION LIKELY! ALL NEIGHBORHOODS...AND POSSIBLY ENTIRE COASTAL COMMUNITIES... WILL BE INUNDATED DURING THE PERIOD OF PEAK STORM TIDE. PERSONS NOT HEEDING EVACUATION ORDERS IN SINGLE FAMILY ONE OR TWO STORY HOMES MAY FACE CERTAIN DEATH. MANY RESIDENCES OF AVERAGE CONSTRUCTION DIRECTLY ON THE COAST WILL BE DESTROYED. WIDESPREAD AND DEVASTATING PERSONAL PROPERTY DAMAGE IS LIKELY ELSEWHERE. VEHICLES LEFT BEHIND WILL LIKELY BE SWEPT AWAY. NUMEROUS ROADS WILL BE SWAMPED...SOME MAY BE WASHED AWAY BY THE WATER. ENTIRE FLOOD PRONE COASTAL COMMUNITIES WILL BE CUTOFF. WATER LEVELS MAY EXCEED 9 FEET FOR MORE THAN A MILE INLAND. COASTAL RESIDENTS IN MULTI-STORY FACILITIES RISK BEING CUTOFF. CONDITIONS WILL BE WORSENED BY BATTERING WAVES CLOSER TO THE COAST. SUCH WAVES WILL EXACERBATE PROPERTY DAMAGE...WITH MASSIVE DESTRUCTION OF HOMES...INCLUDING THOSE OF BLOCK CONSTRUCTION. DAMAGE FROM BEACH EROSION COULD TAKE YEARS TO REPAIR. Nice, Bud. Are you ready for some baseball?!

"Avoiding them and being able to set the rotation versus the Brewers seems like a win-win." I agree, but we're not really avoiding them; moving the series would at least take away the home - field advantage. And playing a double header wouldn't seem to be in line with the Cub's strengths at this point.

Sunday DH Z and Marquis Monday pitcher Dempster lilly tuesday-Mil harden wednesday-Mil Thurs- Marshall or z/marquis short rest, not smart if it's Z

from landfall. McClane needs to get the idea of playing in Houston out of his head. Play this series in St. Louis or Atlanta two on Sunday and finish it on Monday. Charge half-price on the tickets and donate all revenues of the games and have each organization donate something like a grand per homeruns hit in the series to Hurricane relief.

earlier this week. The Astros won't be leaving Houston until Sunday at the earliest. The only day there's going to be baseball is on Monday and probably not in Houston. They will have more important things to deal with - like the aftermath of the fact that a quarter of the population of Galveston has decided to stay home.

Hey 10Man, looks like Lou Agrees with our theory that losing pitchers actually does effect hitting. It's not that hard of a concept (from Suntimes): "We got into this funk when we lost our two starting pitchers [Harden and Carlos Zambrano]. I've said along that this club here is pitching first, defense second and timely hitting third. We've got to pitch here. And for the most part, we have. But as we lost those pitchers, our offense cooled.'' - Lou does this help our argument blockhead, neal, pelmel and tbone??

[ ]

In reply to by superjimmer

sounds like a load of shit to me. not like this is a pennant chase. granted...i cant disprove it...but... 1- i rarely take serious what most managers not named jim "there is crying in baseball" leyland say to the press. meaningless phrases and a manager's style really muddle up pretty much every q/a session. hell, lou's fond of asking the reporter exactly what was going during a game when they ask him "what happened when/why did you..." does that mean he's a retard who has no idea what he just managed? no...it means he's doing a q/a with the press, imo. 2- i have no idea how lou or anyone would even go about proving how Z/haren effect the bats. i saw a lot more issues with bad D during that stretch more than bad bats...not like the bats were good, though. still...i cant imagine a 1st place team with a decent lead in sept. and a whole new crew of rookies to pad out the roster would fall to crap over that. hell, its a season...people do good at the plate 30-40% of the time and very few do it consistently month 1 through 6...and no one gets to choose when they slump.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

you must be a politician. anyway here's how I comprehend the statement: "We got into this funk when we lost our two starting pitchers [Harden and Carlos Zambrano]." lou is saying that the funk is a result of losing those pitchers. Clear to me . . . but you would argue by using the word "WHEN" he was implying that there was no causal relationship - just luck that it happened at the same time? shallow argument. "I've said along that this club here is pitching first, defense second and timely hitting third". Lou seems quite clear here that he does not rely on hitting but it rates third . . . and that pitching ranks first. You don't have those you don't win. And also clear that he is saying that losing those pitchers is the reason for the slump. "We've got to pitch here. And for the most part, we have. But as we lost those pitchers, our offense cooled.'' I think any reasonable human being would agree that lou is saying there is a causal relationship. like: as the rain fell the dirt slid down the hill. Or: as we drove west we came nearer to the Pacific Ocean. Also Lou is also indicating that THOSE pitchers were special and integral to the teams performance and I would argue "confidence". You may not agree with lou and I can respect that . But don't act like that is not what he is saying. Pedantic to say the least. Also it's not a "reading comprehension" issue, and that is a low blow. We can all read here and my guess is if we took a poll most people would see a causal inference. So at the very least it is not SIMPLE.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

and now for fun . . . Neal's argument: "We got into this funk when we lost our two starting pitchers [Harden and Carlos Zambrano]." In case you guys are putting a calendar together, the slump happened somewhat coincidentally around the time we lost those pitchers. If you guys need a date for the start of the slump -- well -- it was about then. But it's not related. "I've said along that this club here is pitching first, defense second and timely hitting third." I Lou Piniella thought I would throw this in here as an aside. Again I am not inferring a relationship between my previous statement about losing pitchers and a slump starting. Just wanted to use my first three fingers for something, um, anything. "We've got to pitch here. And for the most part, we have. But as we lost those pitchers, our offense cooled.'' Look guys I just want to reiterate that the timing of the slump was right about the time we lost those darn pitchers. What were their names again? Well it doesn't matter. OH GUYS! again if you need a date for the time our hitters stopped hitting, you can probably just use the dates of losing those pitchers. My memory is they fell on about the same day. But it's not really important so don't waste your time.

Recent comments

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Javier Assad started the Lo-A game (Myrtle Beach versus Stockton) on the Cubs backfields on Wednesday as his final Spring Training tune-up. He was supposed to throw five innings / 75 pitches. However, I was at the minor league road games at Fitch so I didn't see Assad pitch. 

  • crunch (view)

    cards put j.young on waivers.

    they really tried to make it happen this spring, but he put up a crazy bad slash of .081/.244/.108 in 45PA.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Seconded!!!

  • crunch (view)

    another awesome spring of pitching reports.  thanks a lot, appreciated.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Here are the Cubs pitchers reports from Tuesday afternoon's Cardinals - Cubs game art Sloan Park in Mesa:

    SHOTA IMANAGA
    FB: 90-92 
    CUT: 87-89 
    SL: 82-83 
    SPLIT: 81-84
    CV: 73-74 
    COMMENT: Worked three innings plus two batters in the fourth... allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits (six singles and two doubles) walked one, and struck out six (four swinging), with a 1/2 GO/AO... he threw 73 pitches (52 strikes - 10 swing & miss - 19 foul balls)... surrendered one run in the top of the 1st on a one-out double off Cody Bellinger's glove in deep straight-away CF followed one out later by two consecutive two-out bloop singles, allowed two runs (one earned) in the 2nd after retiring the first two hitters (first batter had a nine-pitch AB with four consecutive two-strike foul balls before being retired 3 -U) on a two-out infield single (weak throw on the run by Nico Hoerner), a hard-contact line drive RBI double down the RF line, and an E-1 (missed catch) by Imanaga on what should been an inning-ending 3-1 GO, gave up another run in the 3rd on a two-out walk on a 3-2 pitch and an RBI double to LF, and two consecutive singles leading off the top of the 4th before being relieved (runners were ultimately left stranded)... threw 18 pitches in the 1st inning (14 strikes - two swing & miss, one on FB and the other on a SL - four foul balls), 24 pitches in the 2nd inning (17 strikes - three swing & miss, one on FB, two SPLIT - six foul balls), 19 pitches in the 3rd inning (13 strikes - seven swing & miss, three on SL, two on SPLIT, one on FB - three foul balls), and 12 pitches without retiring a batter in the top of the 4th (8 strikes - no swing & miss - four foul balls)... Imanaga throws a lot of pitches per inning, but it's not because he doesn't throw strikes...  if anything, he throws too many strikes (he threw 70% strikes on Tuesday)... while he gets a ton of swing & miss (and strikeouts), he also induces a lot of foul balls because he doesn't try to make hitters chase his pitches by throwing them out of the strike zone... rather, he uses his very diverse pitch mix to get swing & miss (and lots of foul balls as well)... he also is a fly ball pitcher who will give up more than his share of HR during the course of the season...   
     
    JOE NAHAS
    FB: 90-92 
    SL: 83-85 
    CV: 80-81 
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day... relieved Imanaga with runners at first and second and no outs in the top of the 4th, and after an E-2 catcher's interference committed by Miguel Amaya loaded he bases, Nahas struck out the side (one swinging & two looking)... threw 16 pitches (11 strikes - two swinging)...   

    YENCY ALMONTE
    FB: 89-92 
    CH: 86 
    SL: 79 
    COMMENT: Threw an eight-pitch 5th (five strikes - no swing & miss), with a 5-3 GO for the first out and an inning-ending 4-6-3 DP after a one-out single... command was a bit off but he worked through it...   

    FRANKIE SCALZO JR
    FB: 94-95
    CH: 88 
    SL: 83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 6th inning... got the first outs easily (a P-5 and a 4-3 GO) on just three pitches, before allowing three consecutive two-out hard-contact hits (a double and two singles), with the third hit on pitch # 9 resulting in a runner being thrown out at the plate by RF Christian Franklin for the third out of the inning... 

    MICHAEL ARIAS
    FB: 94-96
    CH: 87-89
    SL: 82-83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and allowed a hard-contact double on the third pitch of the 7th inning (a 96 MPH FB), and the runner came around to score on a 4-3 GO and a WP... gave up two other loud contact outs (an L-7 and an F-9)... threw 18 pitches (only 10 strikes - only one swing & miss)... stuff is electric but still very raw and he continues to have difficulty commanding it, and while he has the repertoire of a SP, he throws too many pitches-per-inning to be a SP and not enough strikes to be a closer... he is most definitely still a work-in-progress...   

    ZAC LEIGH: 
    FB: 93-94 
    CH: 89 
    SL: 81-83 
    CV: 78
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and tossed a 1-2-3 8th (4-3 GO, K-swinging on a sweeper, K-looking on another sweeper)... threw 14 pitches (11 strikes - one swing & miss - eight foul balls)... kept pumping pitches into the strike zone but had difficulty putting hitters away (ergo a ton of foul balls)... FB velo is nowhere near the 96-98 MPH it was a couple of years ago when he was a Top 30 prospect, but his secondaries are better...   

    JOSE ROMERO:  
    FB: 93-95
    SL: 82-84
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 9th (14 pitches - only six strikes- no swing & miss) and allowed a solo HR after two near-HR fly outs to the warning track, before getting a 3-1 GO to end the inning... it was like batting practice when he wasn't throwing pitches out of the strike zone...

  • crunch (view)

    pablo sandoval played 3rd and got a couple ABs (strikeout, single!) in the OAK@SF "exhibition"

    mlb officially authenticated the ball of the single he hit.  nice.

    he's in surprisingly good shape considering his poor body condition in his last playing seasons.  he's not lean, but he looks healthier.  good for him.

  • crunch (view)

    dbacks are signing j.montgomery to a 1/25m with a vesting 20m player option.

    i dunno when the ink officially dries, but i believe if he signs once the season begins he can't be offered a QO...and i'm not sure if that thing with SD/LAD in korea was the season beginning, either.

  • crunch (view)

    sut says imanaga getting the home opener at wrigley (game 4 of the season).

  • crunch (view)

    cubs rolling out the who's who of "who the hell is this guy?" in the last spring game.

  • videographer (view)

    AZ Phil, speaking of Jordan Wicks having better command when he tires a bit, I remember reading about Dennis Lamp 40 years ago and his sinker that was better after 3 or 4 innings when he would tire a bit and get more sink with a little less speed on the pitch.  The key for Lamp was getting to the 4th inning.