Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full), plus two players are on the 60-DAY IL 

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

Last updated 4-17-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Colten Brewer
Ben Brown
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
Keegan Thompson
Hayden Wesneski 
* 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: 10 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Jose Cuas, P 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Luke Little, P 
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 

10-DAY IL: 2 
Seiya Suzuki, OF
Patrick Wisdom, INF 

15-DAY IL: 2
* Justin Steele, P  
Jameson Taillon, P 

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





Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Triple City in Seven Run Cubs 6th Trips A's at Fitch Park

Marco Hernandez, Jesus Morelli, and Yaniel Cabezas ripped run-scoring triples to highlight a seven-run 6th, as the EXST Cubs rallied from an early 4-1 deficit to defeat the EXST Athletics 9-6 in Cactus League Extended Spring Training action at Fitch Park Field #3 in Mesa this morning.

EXST games usually are played as nine inning games where the home team takes an AB in the bottom of the 9th even if it is ahead, but this morning’s game was stopped after eight innings when both the A’s and Cubs ran out of available pitchers.

Angel Guzman (2010 shoulder surgery rehab) got the start for the Cubs and went more than one inning for the first time since his surgery. The right-hander breezed through his first inning of work, throwing an 11-pitch 1-2-3 1st inning (F-7, K, 4-3), but then he began to falter in his second inning (F-8, BB, 2B, 4-3, BB), throwing 20 pitches (but only ten strikes) before being relieved with two outs, one run in, and runners at the corners.

Gooz was quite obviously frustrated with his inability to throw strikes in the 2nd inning, cursing himself when he bounced his final pitch (a curve) into the dirt on a 3-2 pitch for ball four. While he has his fastball velocity up to 92 MPH, he also has control lapses from time-to-time, especially if he has to throw more than a dozen pitches in an inning. So don’t expect to see Angel Guzman in Chicago anytime soon.

Here is today’s abridged box score (Cubs players only):

LINEUP:
1. Vismeldy Bieneme, 2B: 3-4 (3B, K, 1B, BB, 1B, R)
2. Yaniel Cabezas, C: 2-2 (BB, BB, 1B, 3B, BB, R, 3 RBI)
3. Wilson Contreras, 3B: 1-4 (5-4 FC, P-4, 2B, HBP, K, R)
4. Marco Hernandez, SS: 1-4 (P-5, 4-3, 3B, K, R, RBI)
5. Dong-Yub Kim, DH: 1-4 (K, 1B, K, K, RBI)
6a. Reggie Golden, RF: 0-1 (BB, F-8)
6b. Eduardo Gonzalez, RF: 1-2 (1B, K, R, RBI)
7. Chad Noble, 1B: 1-4 (6-4-3 DP, K, E-5, 1B, R)
8. Jesus Morelli, LF: 1-3 (BB, 4-3, 3B, F-9, R, 2 RBI)
9. Kyung-Min Na, CF: 1-4 (6-3, 1B, E-4, K, 2 R, RBI)

PITCHERS:
1. Angel Guzman: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 1 K, 31 pitches (17 strikes), 2/2 GO/FO
2. Alvido Jimenez: 2.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R (3 ER), 1 BB, 2 K, 1 WP, 50 pitches (31 strikes), 3/2 GO/FO
3. Alvaro Sosa: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, 33 pitches (19 strikes), 2/0 GO/FO
4. Dustin Fitzgerald: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K, 19 pitches (16 strikes), 1/1 GO/FO
5. Amaury Paulino: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 2 R (2 ER), 4 BB, 0 K, 2 WP, 30 pitches (12 strikes), 1/0 GO/FO

ERRORS: NONE

CATCHERS DEFENSE
Yaniel Cabezas: 0-1 CS

ATTENDANCE: 10

WEATHER: Sunny with temperatures in the 90’s

 

Comments

Castro and Soriano sit... Kosuke Fukudome, RF Barney, SS Marlon Byrd, CF Aramis Ramirez, 3B Carlos Pena, 1B Geovany Soto, C DeWitt, 2B Tyler Colvin, LF Casey Coleman, P

yeah.... the rest of the nation must be glued to the sub .500 matchup between Red Sox and Twins.

strikes out Votto twice... baseball can be funny.

Tim McCarver: "Left Fielders are normally the worst fielding outfielders, so very few Left Fielders have a chance to win a gold glove." I'm surprised Brennamen hasn't smothered McCarver to death with a pillow or pushed him out the booth.

"On May 22nd, Fox will debut a special about all the things that have happened in the world since the Cubs last won a World Series. It's in HD, so you can see the fans hearts breaking. If you miss it on the 22nd, don't worry, we'll bring it up every five minutes and show it constantly."

Coleman leaves game with runners on first and third. Wood comes in and gets a force out and letting runner on third score and Coleman's other runner is out at second base. So is the guy on first Wood or Coleman's responsibility? Box score seems to say it's Coleman which I guess makes some sense. Gonna be a tough loss for Coleman if Cubs don't come back.

Definitely deserved that comeback win after having Brennaman relieve Game 6 in painful detail in the 8th inning and the disappointment that is inherent in Cubdom. At least he didn't get in a Bartman reference, suprisingly.

Per Musket tweet and Rotoworld followup... Todd Wellemeyer has retired from baseball. Wellemeyer made the announcement Saturday after allowing eight hits and four earned runs in 3 2/3 innings Thursday at Triple-A Iowa. The 32-year-old will call it quits with a 4.83 career ERA and 1.51 career WHIP. He played eight major league seasons. (and they still owe him a ws ring)

Howard Berk and the Boys rejoyce! Bleacher Bugler/Bum and radio personality Mike Murphy resurfaces tomorrow on ESPN-1000 at 9 am with his ol' sidekick Fred Huebner. Murph was embroiled in a legal despute with CBS and wscr over a restrictive covenant issue. He has been off the air since June 2009 but was under contract thru May 2010 (so he kept getting paid till then). After the contract expired he filed a class action suit vs CBS radio which owns wsux/wscr because the contract claimed to block local employment vs competitors for 6 months after contract expiration. The suit has yet to be resolved. Even though Murph is often repetitive and usually off the deep end, I admit I missed his Cub loving presence on Chicago radio. Since Ron Santo is gone, nobody on radio leaves his Cub emotions on his sleeve like Murph. His show will be weekly, every Sunday am, 9-1. His yellow note pad will really be full tomorrow. http://chicagoradioandmedia.com/news/1572-mike-murphy-returning-to-spor…

Put an 8 spot up in the 2nd inning - Ha with a grand slam the big blow. More impressive: lead-off man Junior Lake draws his 1st walk on the season (against 29 K).

[ ]

In reply to by Eric S

I look at Daytona's lineup, and I don't see how they get to 22-8. I know they've had good pitching, but they score a lot of runs, too: first in the FSL in runs, home runs, BA, OPS. It's not all Jae-Hoon Ha. If this continues, we'll have to start taking some of their other players--like Lake, Bour, Cerda, Nelson Perez and Evan Crawford--more seriously as prospects.

Recent comments

  • Childersb3 (view)

    I wanted Almonte gone last week, but that was before Merryweather went down and Little got demoted. Almonte in his last 5 appearances has gone 4.1 IP with no ER or Runs. NO hits, 3 BBs and 8 SO. He did hit 96 with his 2S FB in AZ on Tues.
    I don't see Jed waiving him when we have injuries all over and guys with options that can be sent down.
    I probably won't like the move Jed makes, but he can't play the "let's hope no one wants his 1.7mil remaining deal and we can hide him in Iowa" card.
    That's why I think the current Bullpen stays as is and Wicks goes to Iowa.
    I don't like that, but that's the fix I see.
    We'll find out soon enough!!!

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Teheran minor league deal is done, per MLB.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Based on Phil’s sound analysis it sounds like a no brainer for Almonte to be placed on waivers as today’s roster move. We shall see.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    I suspect Counsell/Hottovy will use the piggy-back extensively, with Taillon and Hendricks pitching as the "pig" (and with a very short leash) and some combo of Wicks, Brown, and Wesneski (whichever two do not start) as the "backers."  

    Keep in mind that Keegan Thompson has a minor league option available, and if Yency Almonte is not outrighted by 4/26 he cannot be sent to the minors without his consent after that date. Almonte is out of minor league options, so I am talking about him getting outrighted to the minors if he is not claimed off waivers, and if he is claimed off waivers, the Cubs save the pro-rated portion of his $1.9M salary, which helps lower the Cubs 2024 AAV.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Totally agree. The 26 man roster very rarely consists of the 13 best position players and 13 best pitchers.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Based on what Jed has done in the past, I’d say the plan is to

    -give Hendricks another few starts
    -give Taillon some runway ot get his season underway

    -Mix and match in the bullpen and see what sticks

    Jed usually doesn’t do a whole lot of waiver wire plays in-season, at least early in the season. He only reallly did that after he blew up the rosters in 21 and 22 because they needed bodies (guys like Schwindel, Fargas, etc).

    I think he’s a little handcuffed by a full 40 man in that he can’t really maneuver much with giving anyone showing ability at AAA (R Thompson/ Sanders/ Edwards etc). Brewer has the most tenuous grip there, and we will see what kind of chance he gets. Other than his spot, there isn’t a ton of 40 man wiggle room.

    I’m very curious to see what happens with Brown now that Taillon returns. Bullpen? Wicks to Iowa? 

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Pro teams have to play their "big money" guys if they are healthy and not "locker room" issues.
    The Cubs wanted to deal JHey off well before they bought him out. They just didn't want to pay him to play for someone else for that long. Jed did give him 20+mil to play for LAD last yr.
    Jed might also let Kyle walk at some point this year. Similar scenario to JHey, except Jed thought Kyle was going to be good/solid in '24!!
    You'd think Smyly is in the same book as well. Same with Neris (he's a 1yr vet RP, so he's not really in this convo too much).
    That's ~35mil between those three and those three are going to get opportunities until at least late June) over younger guys even if their performance is "iffy".
    But, Jed is going to play Taillon a lot. They have to try and justify that contract and hope a veteran works out.
    So, Taillon, Imanaga, and Hendricks are locks for the rest of April and probably May.
    Assad, Brown and Wicks handle the last spots until Steele is ready.
    Now, you're question has real merit when Steele comes back. That will interesting if Brown is still good and Hendricks is still bad. But Taillon is entirely safe as long as he's healthy.

    And the bullpen moves were "money" based as well. Smyly has actually been okay. But he hasn't been clearly better than Little. Little had one bad outing. But Smyly makes 9mil. If they needed another RHRP and one of Little and Smyly had to go, it was going to Little. But that doesn't mean Smyly is one of the best 13 arms for the team. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Childersb3: I think there was an issue with Luke Little coming into a game with men on base. He seems to need a "clean" inning to be dominant. So he is a future closer and needs to be used in that role at AAA. Same goes for Michael Arias. He needs to come into a "clean" inning, and is a future closer and needs to be used in that role at AA. Porter Hodge is a more versatile pitcher, a better version of Keegan Thompson (multi-inning RP). But Little, Arias, and Hodge (probably in that order) are the Cubs top three RP prospects (all three are Cubs Top 15 prospects).

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    So, let’s do a little war gaming. Taillon is back for tonight’s game. He pitched two rehab games, just a few innings each, and not especially sharp. Let’s face it, he hasn’t been lights out since the Cubs gave him the big contract. In other words, as flat out bad as Hendricks has been, the chances of Taillon being the savior don’t look exactly promising.

    If Taillon is equally ineffective or perhaps even worse, what’s the next move? Winning teams can often find a way to work around a dud fifth starter - kinda. Two dud starters make things much more difficult.

    I believe the biggest reason for the recent bullpen moves was dissatisfaction with the recent blowing of big leads and the recognition that the bullpen wasn’t all it was thought to be. In other words, they are exploring alternate options and configurations. If similar juggling becomes necessary (even more so than it already is), what kind of reasonable maneuvering do we think could be explored?

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Cubdom needs to prepare themselves for Wicks to be sent to Iowa for Taillon to come up.
    Ben Brown has 4 appearances. Wicks has 4 appearances.
    Ben has 16.1 IP.  Wicks has 17 IP
    Ben was a 1.1 WHIP.  Wicks has a 1.7 WHIP. Wicks does have significantly more SOs. 
    Ben has been better, though.
    I love Wicks. I think he's a fighter and his stuff has improved.
    But, Jed isn't ditching Hendricks just yet. He should. But he won't.
    Hendricks should go to the IL and Taillon-Imanaga-Assad-Wicks-Brown should be the rotation.
    Wont' happen though.