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

Tribe Trusts the Fungus, As Luigi Leads the Way

Luigi Rodriguez belted a two-run HR, tripled, scored twice, and made a run-saving diving catch, leading the AZL Indians to a 10-2 thumping of the AZL Cubs in Arizona League action tonight at Dwight Patterson Field at HoHoKam Park in Mesa, AZ.

An 18-year old speedy, switch-hitting Dominican CF, Rodriguez leads the AZL in batting average, is second in OBP, and is 4th in SLG, after leading the Dominican Summer League in triples and stolen bases last season. He is the likely front-runner for 2011 AZL MVP, and if the Cubs do make a stretch-drive deal with the Indians, and if I'm Jim Hendry, I'll take Luigi Rodriguez, thank you.

box score

There weren't many bright spots for the AZL Cubs tonight, although Marco Hernandez did reach base three times (a single, a double, and a walk), Oliver Zapata (who was yanked out of Friday night's game after dropping a pop fly in the top of the 1st inning) reached base twice on a single and a walk (his AZL-leading 18th walk), and recently-signed 21st round draft pick LHRP Andrew McKirahan (U. of Texas) retired the Indians easily over his two innings of work, six-up and six-down. The 21-year old McKirahan was a lefty reliever for the Texas Longhorns, and pitched in the College World Series last month. No question he is WAY too advanced for the AZL, and in fact I would say he probably could handle a promotion to Peoria right now.

Another recently-signed collegian made his professional-debut in tonight's game, as 21-year old catcher Taylor Davis (2011 NDFA - Morehead State) got the start behind the plate for the AZL Cubs. He went 1-3 with an RBI single and a walk in four Plate Appearances.

Davis was an offensive force at Morehead State this past season (his junior year), putting up a staggering 414/510/736 line (with 13 HR) over 47 games, good for 6th in NCAA D-1 in SLG % (one spot ahead of current Boise 1B Paul Hoilman) and 9th in OBP %. However, Davis has a big leg-kick and an upper-cut swing that might not translate too well to pro ball, his receiving skills are just so-so (at best), and he has a weak & scatter-gun throwing arm. Maybe that's why he was not selected in last month's draft despite the rather gaudy offensive numbers at MSU.

Recently-signed 2011 13th round draft pick OF Trey Martin (Brookwood HS - Snellville, GA) is in uniform but has yet to make his game debut. The 18-year old Martin is a lanky (almost skinny) long-striding outfielder who gave up a chance to play college ball at Kennessaw State when he signed with the Cubs last week.

Tonight's game in Mesa was the last scheduled night game and the last home game at HoHoKam Park for the AZL Cubs this year. For the balance of the 2011 season the AZL Cubs will be playing their home games (and road games, too) at 11 AM (MST), and remaining home games will be played at Fitch Park.

Comments

Arizona Phil, you mentioned Trey Martin is in camp. How about Gretzky? Someone metioned he signed, but I couldn't find confirmation on Baseball America's web site or any place else. Has he signed? If so, I'm sure you'll let us know when he shows up anmd he probbaly was above slot. Actually if he did sign I'm a little surprised because he has an offer from San Diego State, he obviously shouldn't need the money and I suspect his parents might emphasize college.

[ ]

In reply to by TJ

Submitted by TJ on Mon, 07/25/2011 - 10:57am. Arizona Phil, you mentioned Trey Martin is in camp. How about Gretzky? Someone metioned he signed, but I couldn't find confirmation on Baseball America's web site or any place else. Has he signed? If so, I'm sure you'll let us know when he shows up anmd he probbaly was above slot. Actually if he did sign I'm a little surprised because he has an offer from San Diego State, he obviously shouldn't need the money and I suspect his parents might emphasize college. =================================== TJ: Trevor Gretzky is presently with the injury rehab group at Fitch Park, as he tries to get his shoulder into playing shape. Gretzky was a star QB at Oaks Christian HS when he suffered a torn labrum in a game last October, and he is still trying to rehab the injury. He decided against surgery, so he was used as a DH this past season at OCHS before getting drafted and signing with the Cubs. He may ultimately end up at 1B, but the Cubs would like for him to be able to play a corner OF spot (if possible), too.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

If this is true, then LaHair will be given two months to show what he's capable of before the Cubs go shopping in the offseason for a cheaper version of Pena. Without LaHair around, I'm not sure the Cubs trade Pena just to bring up Ridling or Colvin. (If Colvin could hit, he'd be an outfielder.) The fact that Hendry has talked about hanging on to Baker suggests to me that Aramis will be cut loose also. Baker would be the incumbent at third while LeMahieu, Flaherty, Gonzales and Vitters are the challengers. With Aramis around, Baker makes little sense to me, since three of the names I mentioned have better gloves and are more versatile.

[ ]

In reply to by WISCGRAD

There are no bench spots for first basemen. That's why it's so hard to make the grade as a major league 1B. I'm merely saying that if the Cubs are looking for something less pricey than Pena for next season--and I think they are--then LaHair is the only option that they can plug in tomorrow. Why not do it? Why keep looking at Pena? You don't want to give LaHair a chance, for the usual reasons--career minor leaguer, too old, etc. But only one minor-league player has more HRs (29) than LaHair's 28, and that player--Goldschmidt--is in AA. LaHair is hitting 117 points higher than Pena, and his OBP is 81 points higher in spite of Pena's 54 walks. LaHair has 46 walks. I have said I don't know anything about LaHair's glove. That could certainly be an issue. Are you worried that he might crush the ball for two months? Chances are he won't, and they'll go out and find somebody else.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

I am precisely worried that he will crush the ball for two months, be given the starting job for 2012, prevent the team from signing someone else, then hit terribly in 2012 and lose the team games. LaHair is 28 and has an OPS of 1.086 in AAA. Jason Dubois had an OPS of 1.019 in AAA as a 25-year old. Maybe LaHair could be an awesome first basement in the major leagues, but it is probably more likely that given an extended chance to play he would perform like Dubois did in the big leagues - poorly. If the Cubs had a $45 million payroll and were rebuilding with young guys, then whatever. But if you have a top 5 payroll there is no reason to play around with guys like LaHair.

[ ]

In reply to by WISCGRAD

Not many righty-hitting first basemen in the majors. The reason is that you want a balanced lineup, and first base is one of only four positions where a player is allowed to throw lefty. (I realize that LaHair throws righty, but that's not the point--although there is a preference for lefty-throwing 1Bs also.) So no right-handed hitting first baseman is a good prospect, unless he's a stud like Pujols or Derrek Lee. That's one strike against Dubois. (The righty thing is a big obstacle for Ridling, whom I would not consider a real prospect at this point.) Dubois was also a klutz, which is strike two and strike three. LaHair may also be a klutz, I don't know, as I said. LaHair has a career minor-league FP at first base of .994. Dubois is .980. In left field, LaHair has one error and seven assists while Dubois has nine errors and seven assists. As I argued about Murton a couple of days ago, to be a good prospect it helps to be a two-way player.

Hey Phil, just wondering if you've heard/ seen anything of our unsigned draftees, which seems to be a lot of them considering the deadline is approaching. Also, have you heard anything about the guys listed as signed by BA, but haven't appeared in games (Ethan Elias, Arturo Maltos-Garcia, Casey Lucchese, and Scott Weismann)? Thanks as always Phil!

[ ]

In reply to by Koyies Bansaw

Submitted by Koyies Bansaw on Mon, 07/25/2011 - 5:39pm. Hey Phil, just wondering if you've heard/ seen anything of our unsigned draftees, which seems to be a lot of them considering the deadline is approaching. Also, have you heard anything about the guys listed as signed by BA, but haven't appeared in games (Ethan Elias, Arturo Maltos-Garcia, Casey Lucchese, and Scott Weismann)? Thanks as always Phil! ======================================== KOYIES B: Arturo Maltos-Garcia is on the AZL Cubs 60-day DL after undergoing TJS last month. Jhon Rodriguez and Amaury Paulino are also on the AZL Cubs 60-day DL. Tarlandus Mitchell (knee or ankle) and Eric Rice (post-2010 TJS?) are on the Boise DL, but Mitchell is throwing at Fitch Park and is probably close to getting reactivated. Scott Weismann is on the AZL Cubs Active List and has been since AZL Opening Day, but I don't know why he isn't pitching in games. He may have an injury but expects to pitch before the end of the AZL season, in which case he just stays on the AZL Cubs Reserve List. Rookie "A" league teams like those in the AZL have a 35-man Reserve List, and then each game 25 players (of which at least 10 must be pitchers) are designated as "Active," so only players on the 60-day DL (who do not count against the 35-man Reserve List roster limit) would be listed as being on the AZL Cubs DL. I don't know about Casey Lucchese. He's not on the AZL Cubs Active List or 60-day DL, so he might be attending school to finish his degree. If that's the case, he's probably either on the Boise Reserve List or the Restricted List, and then he'll make his debut at AZ Instructs. Or there's always the possibility that his contract was voided, although I haven't heard that. Ethan Elias just signed, so the Cubs have 15 days before they need to add him to a Reserve List. Generally speaking, the later a pitcher signs, the more-likely he will be held out until AZ Instructs. That's what happened last year with Ben Wells, Kevin Rhoderick, Casey Harman, and Brian Smith (all four signed right at the deadline). BTW, milb.com still shows Johan DeJesus, Max Kwan, Vismeldy Bieneme, Jose Valdez (rehab), and James Adduci (rahab) on the AZL Cubs roster, but Adduci was reactivated from the DL at Tennessee last week, Kwan, Bieneme, and Valdez were released, and DeJesus was sent back to the Dominican Academy.

Just looked at the ESPN Trade deadline Blog. What a depressing read. A guy named Jim Bowden (who?) says that the Cubs are not sellers this year, and in fact are buyers. While I would say that the Cubs don't seem overly desperate to sell, I haven't heard anything about them trying to bring anyone in, either. I think perhaps this guy is just wrong...

http://www.minorleagueball.com/2011/7/26/2293839/chicago-cubs-2011-pre-… It's pretty depressing. Here's the first 5 1) Brett Jackson, OF, Grade B+: .256/.373/.443 with 15 steals, 10 homers, 45 walks in 246 at-bats for Double-A Tennessee, .175/.298/.374 since promotion to Triple-A Iowa. Broad skills base. 2) Trey McNutt, RHP, Grade B+: 4.33 ERA with 32/20 K/BB in 52 innings for Tennessee, 63 hits. Huge decline in strikeout rate is worrisome. 3) Chris Carpenter, RHP, Grade B: 5.11 ERA combined between Tennessee and Iowa, 30/24 K/BB in 38 innings, 35 hits. 9.2 major league innings with 12 hits, three runs. I felt he was capable of better. 4) Jay Jackson, RHP, Grade B: 6.18 ERA with 59/30 K/BB in 95 innings for Iowa, 122 hits. Ugly numbers, reports on declining stuff quality are disturbing. I have liked him a lot in the past but his stock has taken a big hit. 5) Hayden Simpson, RHP, Grade B-: 5.72 ERA, 46/27 K/BB in 61 innings for Low-A Peoria, 76 hits. Unimpressive performance, was sent back to Arizona Rookie League and has been hit hard in four starts. Right now the gamble doesn't look too good.

[ ]

In reply to by navigator

B.Jackson and Carpenter are fine and will be in Cub uniforms some time between next week and next season. McNutt may or may not be fine but he was a 32nd rounder. Jay Jackson was a 9th rounder whose Daytona numbers attracted the notice of Internet scouts like Sickels, who in Dec. '09 called Jackson "a personal favorite" and ranked him 4th on the Cubs. It's not terribly surprising when a 9th rounder can't get out of triple A, but Sickels has a right to be disappointed, I guess, since he was there beating the drum. Simpson will be a big bust if he doesn't get better fairly soon. Cashner, Barney, Samardzija, Russell and Campana are already on the team. Guyer is apparently a top prospect at TB. In addition to his customary offensive numbers I notice he has 16 outfield assists at Durham. Donaldson has turned into a catcher with an arm like W. Castillo's. I worry about Vitters but his offensive numbers compare favorably with the other four 21-year-olds in the Southern League, especially his 9 HRs, 47 RBI and .429 SLG. Relievers Beliveau, Rhoderick, Hatley, Kurcz and Harman have pitched consistently well this season. So have starters Loosen, Kirk and Whitenack (out with TJ surgery, or he might have been our 4th or 5th starter at some point). Struck and Rusin are holding their own--i.e., throwing better than Jackson--at Iowa.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

What the hell is Brett Jackson going to do for us? For a top prospect he hits like crap. He didn't exactly earn his promotion as he was hitting .256 in AA. He only hit .276 the previous season in AA and now in AAA he is hitting .205. That is our best hitting prospect? Really? Him? The only real defense you can give him is that he is 22 years old and should still be in A ball. But going back to what i keep on saying we have shitty scouts, and development people....he is being rushed through the system because the rest of the system sucks. He isn't ready for the majors he isn't even ready to take over AA ball.

[ ]

In reply to by Dr. aaron b

On average, I would disagree. I would argue that the percentage of plays on which a runner advances a base or the hitter reaches when an error occurs is greater than, for most every player, the percentage of times that the player hits into a double play. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but know that Darwin Barney hit into his 8th double play last night. I am absolutely certain that he has made outs with runners advancing or reached on an error more than 8 times. Not saying if it is true for Barney, it is true for everyone. Rather, saying that the times runners move over on ground outs, advance/score on sacrifice fly and advance on errors appears from watching games to greatly exceed the number of times a player hits into a double play (for most players).

[ ]

In reply to by Dr. aaron b

Well since player B is imaginary, I will go with player A. Batting average is a much more important component of OBP than walks. Type of outs may not bother you, but if you have a guy who walks 15% of the time, and strikes out the other 85%, and a guy who hits ground balls 100% of the time, the ground ball hitter will have a higher OBP. But back to the original point. Jackson strikes out too much. Now that he doesn't have a unsustainably high BABIP (it's still really high) his OBP is way down. I can't agree that anyone who is striking out as often as he is, and homering as infrequently has control of the strike zone. He may only be swinging at strikes, but he's not hitting them, and that's not control. That's just waiting too long to swing.

[ ]

In reply to by Dr. aaron b

Szczur doesn't strike out much, and is willing to take a walk, though he doesn't seem to go up to the plate with the priority of taking pitches or working deep counts. He also has plus speed and some power is showing up lately. He's a lot farther from ready, but he looks like his upside might be significantly higher than Jackson's. I wouldn't be surprised if they both end up putting up similar OBPs, maybe .360 or .370-ish, but Szczur does it with a higher batting average. I don't think it would be fair to say Szczur doesn't control the strike zone as well as Jackson though. He hasn't proven to be an excessively aggressive hitter--or, at least, there have been no signs that his aggressiveness is getting him into any trouble yet.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

Of course, Jay Jackson is what...23? Early to be labeled as "not getting out of AAA." Agreed on Simpson...I get the whole mono thing....but some results..or even looking like a prospect would be good. It's hard to believe Vitters is still so young isn't it? Ah poor Whitenack...lol..figures yeah?

[ ]

In reply to by Dr. aaron b

You can scroll through the Cubs draft classes season by season at BR, here's the link for the first year Wilken picked. http://www.baseball-reference.com/draft/?query_type=franch_year&team_ID…; I do have to say that while he hasn't picked, so far, any real impact players, he has done a far better job than any scouting director we've had since the Dallas Green era. At least we have some players who are starting to become major leaguers, but where are the pitching prospects? Wilken's record here has been very mixed without any real HR's yet. After 6 drafts one would hope to have more than just a lot of future major league utility players or replacement players. But let's look at the top 2-3 picks each year and any other notables: 2006: 1st Round: Tyler Colvin 5th R: Jeff Samardzija 7th R: Steve Clevenger Others: Marquez Smith (DNS), Blake Parker 2007: 1st Round: Josh Vitters 1st Supplemental: Josh Donaldson 2nd: Tony Thomas 3rd: Darwin Barney Others: Brandon Guyer, Marquez Smith (again), James Russell, Andrew Cashner (DNS) 2008: 1st Round: Andrew Cashner 1st Supplemental: Ryan Flaherty 2: Aaron Shafer 3: Chris Carpenter Others: Josh Hamilton (Pirates), Campana, Casey Coleman 2009: 1: Brett Jackson 2: DJ LaMehiu 3: Austin Kirk Others: Trey McNutt, Robert Whitenack, and a ton of guys still in minors, but no standouts so far. 2010: 1: Hayden Simpson 2: Reggie Golden 3: Micah Gibbs Others: Matt Szczer, no other standouts yet 2011: 1: Javier Baez 2: Vogelbach 3: Devoss Others: Gretzky, Dunston, etc.

ArizonaPhil - I don't know the answer to this, and don't know where to go to find out. Perhaps you know. Do the scouts that do the international scouting (DR, far east, europe, etc) report to Wilken, or is he only in charge of domestic scouting?

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

Submitted by jacos on Tue, 07/26/2011 - 3:18pm. "Do the scouts that do the international scouting (DR, far east, europe, etc)" Europe? That's probably Cubs problem should have not opened that French Baseball academy before the DR. ===================================================== JACOS: There is an MLB European Academy in Italy, and so far the Cubs have signed three players out of the MLB Euro Academy (Italian RHP Alessandro Maestri in 2006, Dutch 2B Dwayne Kemp in 2007, and 16-year old Italian C Alberto Mineo in 2010). Maestri and Kemp have since been released, and Mineo will probably make his U. S. debut at AZ Instructs post-2011. Bill Holmberg and Bill Froberg are the Cubs scouts in Europe, ande they report to Paul Weaver.

[ ]

In reply to by DavidP

Submitted by DavidP on Tue, 07/26/2011 - 3:02pm. ArizonaPhil - I don't know the answer to this, and don't know where to go to find out. Perhaps you know. Do the scouts that do the international scouting (DR, far east, europe, etc) report to Wilken, or is he only in charge of domestic scouting? ========================================================= DAVID P: Tim Wilken is in charge of scouting only in the U. S., Canada, and Puerto Rico (in other words, players eligible for selection in the June Draft). Wilken reports to Hendry. Paul Weaver is in charge of International Scouting, and Weaver reports to Oneri Fleita, and then Fleita reports to Hendry. But Fleita is personally involved pretty heavily in Latin America.

And the fun begins WSCR reporting Marlon Byrd was in shouting match with Cub fan during bp. ANd this gem from Paul Sullivan tweet- "Quade says Cubs can get back in race this trip, adds: "I'm not a lunatic." You are not lunatic Mike, just dumb.

I'm also concerned they are rushing Jackson. This is the same thing they did with Corey Patterson and others, i.e., pushing them through the system without having much success at the stops on the way. I don't follow other teams systems like the Cubs, and I wonder if others handle it the same way and what level of success they have. Maybe it is simply a difference between real prospects and suspects. Castro was rushed and look at the results. I also wonder about guys like Vitters. He was highly rated when the Cubs drafted him, so it was not a reach like some others they drafted #1. Is it the Cubs farm system that failed to develop him and Harvey, Montanez and others that were highly rated. Might they have developed better in other systems?

[ ]

In reply to by TJ

Jackson isn't being asked to learn much at each stop offensively--he already has all the basic tools, including plate discipline, power, and baserunning. I think he's just being asked to adjust. I do think it would be a good idea to make sure that he stays at AAA or AA long enough to acclimate so that MLB isn't a huge jump from his last stop. I'd like to see him put up a .370 or better OBP at AAA or 400-500 PAs at AA (with his power numbers consistent) before they get him to the majors. Corey was pushed through the minors with completely inconsistent numbers, his only great success being at Lansing, and then OK numbers at AA (which would've been fine if he'd shown that he could do that consistently). The biggest difference between Patterson and Jackson is the patience, though, and I think that we've seen that be a huge factor in players transitioning to MLB except when, like Castro, they just have an amazing ability to put the good part of the bat on the ball.

[ ]

In reply to by Charlie

One other point...I thoroughly agree with your analysis of what they did with Corey Patterson. The Cubs were desperate to get something from their farm system (beyond Kerry Wood) and there developed a huge pr push on the surge of young future star Cubs. Corey, David Kelton (sweet swinging 3b seemingly similar to Vitters (though I've never seen Vitters live), though struck out more), Jeff Goldblach (catcher with some power), Hee Sop Choi, Carlos Zambrano and, a little later, Juan Cruz, were going to form a huge foundation for future Cubs success. As such, they were moved forward without much development. Kelton had a cup of coffee in the majors, but never stuck. Goldblach stumbled at AA and then was, I believe, released (possibly for something more than lack of development). Patterson, Choi, Zambrano and Cruz all made the majors. It is hard for me to say for certain that it was the Cubs failure to develop these players that was the problem; most minor leaguers do not develop into major league regulars, so the fact that Patterson, Z and Cruz had long careers and Choi spent some time in the majors (and may have been significantly limited by the injury) may actually say the Cubs did a pretty good job. Also, some players respond better than others to change; Starlin Castro is reputed to have been a very diligent student of the game always striving to improve, while I don't believe the same is true of Corey. That said, the Cubs had a long string of failing to develop hitters, so there could be some credibility to your suggestion that one or more factors in the way the Cubs handle their hitting prospects historically has hindered their development.

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).