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

Clevenger and Dolis Up

The Tennesee Smokies lost in the Southern League championship yesterday and the Mobile Bay Bears take the series 3-1. The upside for two members was a call-up to the Show to watch the other Cubs players over the last 10 days of the season. Congrats and here's your steak knives.

- The Red Sox death spiral would bring about interviews with Theo Epstein and his entourage a lot sooner, so you know where my rooting interests are. Not that I needed the further enticement to root against the Red Sox.

- Some absurd rumor that Ricketts have soured on Billy Beane because the Moneyball concept is not playing that well with the fans. I don't think 99% of Cubs fans really know what the "Moneyball" concept is, not to mention it's not all too dissimilar to what about 50% of teams are currently running now including the golden boy, Theo Epstein's organization.

- It doesn't appear an extension is happening for scouting director Tim Wilken, but he was told after Sunday to continue to operate as usual and will be kept on for the 2012 season.

- Marco Hernandez and Gioskar Amaya were named among the Top 20 prospects that played in the Arizona Rookie League.

- If Q-Ball has his say (and hopefully he won't in about 10 days), he'd consider Samardzija for the rotation but thinks Marshall is too valuable in the set-up role. Pretty much the opposite way I see it...I think trying Marshall in the rotation has a lot more upside, while I think Samardzija was more lucky than good this year.

- The Cubs still holding at the 7th spot in the draft, a half game behind the Royals for the 6th spot, but just a game ahead of the Pirates for the 8th spot.

Comments

Wood shelved for the season, torn meniscus. Sullivan says Wood wants to come back in '12.

In the CSN link Rob posted in the article, Wilken was told to go ahead and renew contracts of his scouting department.

Wonder if he bowled last nite. Kerry and his wife do great charity work for Childrens memorial in Chicago.

It strikes me that it is too late to look at either Samardzija or Marshall for a start this late in the season. However, I question your feeling that Shark has been more lucky than skilled this year. Even his control has improved as the year has progressed. With the lack of quality FA starters this year, it makes sense to search our deep bullpen for a guy or two. It makes little sense to me to keep Marmol, Wood, Marshall, Samardzija, Cashner, Russell, Carpenter and possibly Beliveau and Dolis for the late innings. Personally, I'd stretch Cash, Marshall and Shark in ST and see how they look. Use the depth we have to our advantage in an off playoff year.

[ ]

In reply to by tharr

I don't think they were going to try either this season. I still don't trust Samardzija, walks too many, goes deep into the count on every hitter, just seems lucky to me. His BABIP this year is pretty lucky and an overall 5 BB/9 is gonna take way too many pitches for him to be a useful starter. But sure, stretch him out in spring training, no harm in that. Just make sure he's #7 or 8 on the depth chart.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Exactly. They ought to all get stretched and it ought to be Cashner, Marshall, then Samardzija in line to join the rotation. The order should only change if something disastrous occurs or if somebody has a massive breakout. And they ought to bring back at least one Rodrigo Lopez type of fill-in starter in waiting at AAA or swingman for the bullpen.

Things are not going well for Ryan Theriot in St Louis. LaRussa implies that Riot is too strong fat ("He wanted to hit more power and bulked up some.") and it's cost him quickness. Theriot counters that the Cards put too much pressure on his defense in ST and it made him "timid" at shortstop for the first time in his playing career. Then it gets good,
The Cardinals led the division until July 27, four days before the Furcal acquisition. Speaking only about his own role, Theriot noted, "When I was playing shortstop we were in first place. I know that. It is what it is."
Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_80ab5f6f-2…

[ ]

In reply to by navigator

Oh my: "When I was playing shortstop we were in first place. I know that. It is what it is." Wow. That guy makes friends everywhere he goes, eh?

[ ]

In reply to by big_lowitzki

While at the game last night, I was thinking about Barney and the "Theriot Light" moniker CRUNCH labled him kiddingly. So, as of last night, their stats are nearly identical. It is pretty funny actually. But Barney is several years younger. My guess is he will remain employed in the MLB, if Jerry Hairston can...

If anyone else had charge of filling out the lineup card for the last nine games, would there be any reason to play Hill at all unless it was the third catcher in an extra innings game?

[ ]

In reply to by George Altman

I'll be surprised if Clevenger gets one At Bat. Today's beaut from Q was that there would be no "kids days" because the Brewers may clinch in Chicago. So I guess he is trying to guarantee it with that fantastic squad of vets that has done so well this year.

[ ]

In reply to by navigator

Good one. I didn't think of it because I don't like disabling JavaScript as a rule, but yes, you can just use a browser option to disable it temporarily (I use Firefox web dev tools). I don't know why they don't use paywall stuff server-side. I imagine they'll catch on soon enough, so enjoy while you can. For now, it's completely JavaScript-based, which means you can also post a comment if you are so inclined if you disable Javascript (George Altman, are you reading this?).

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/chi-ricketts-to-keep… says Jackson could be in 2012 plans and doesn't think Szczur is too far behind "He kind of had to rest now," Wilken said of the former Villanova wide receiver. "He was in wide receivers' football camp last year in January, and it's been a long year for him. I think he held up pretty good. He played real well in the playoffs. And I think he can be a very exciting player. I don't think he's come anywhere near his ceiling."

in Fielder sweepstakes http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/jon_heyman/09/19/prince.f… then negates what little credibility he has with this They could also take a poke at the NL Central-rival Brewers by stealing their biggest star and set themselves up for three-fourths of a superb under-30 infield, with also 21-year-old shortstop Starlin Castro and 25-year-old second baseman Darwin Barney. some GM talk in there, mostly that Cubs will want to interview some of the big name GM's and that means waiting for the playoffs to end for them.

greg maddux-lite is being greg maddux tonight...rather than the lite...very very lite...

Okay crew, I haven't been around in forever but I have a favor of the community. I was at Wrigley this weekend and saw a hat with a logo I've never seen. I can't even find a picture of it online or the hat itself. The hat was sold out of my size so I couldn't buy it there. I found it in the cubs team shop right as you walk in the left field line (didn't see it in any other shops in Wrigley). The logo was a read cub throwing a baseball with a high leg kick. It kinda looked more like a monkey if you ask me, but who knows. If anyone can track down that logo, a place to buy that hat online, or wants to buy that hat at Wrigley for me (7 3/8ths), I'd gladly pay them for the hat, shipping, and extra for their inconvenience (via paypal). Let me know. I'll check here or you can email me [email protected] Thanks! P.S. - The lady said it was the 1934 logo. I can't find it anywhere. Not a mention of the logo anywhere.

[ ]

In reply to by CPH2133

I think that is BS, personally. Even the 1927 Little Cubbie logo was only on the unis and not on the cap. from 1927-1936 it was this little Cubbie holding a bat under the arm in sillouette. You see them now on the popular black cap of today.

Rotoworld reports that Berkman and the Cards can't agree on a contract; I think he'd be worth a look as next year's first baseman if the pie-in-the-sky Fielder dreams don't work out. Probably could be had for 2/$25ish.

[ ]

In reply to by garsky

I suppose money trumps all, but Berkman hates the Cubs and Wrigley. He has intimated this before. Of course Favre hated the Vikings... As I said, money can trump all (Donald).

[ ]

In reply to by garsky

"It's always about money," Berkman said. "No matter what people say, it's always about the money." Is that because agents are on commission? I would think that an athlete who has already made a lot of money would care more about who he is working with and whether they have a chance to win than a small increment in income.

[ ]

In reply to by Craig A.

there's guys out there making 10-20+ million a year who will go shill something for someone in exchange for 10-30K...or free meals...etc. hell, manny ramirez was trying to sell a grill he had in his garage taking up space for a couple grand a few years ago via ebay. you'd think he'd be more prone to kick it down to a friend or donate it for a write-off...or something rather than having ebay buyers coming to his house to clean his garage. myself...i wouldn't do 1/2 the stuff some of these guys do for a few grand if i had 10s of millions in the bank. then again, i won't ever have to worry about that or know what it's like...heh.

//As they sat in the offices of the San Carlos, Calif., nutritional supplement company he started, Victor Conte and bantamweight boxer Nonito Donaire were brainstorming names for Conte's newest consumer product - an energy drink designed to stimulate "mind and body for more powerful and effective workouts." "What if we called it PED?" Conte joked. "I think it's great!" Donaire said. The acronym was too good to pass up. For those in anti-doping circles, the three letters will not be lost in translation - PED is most often the acronym associated with "performance-enhancing drugs" - but these days Conte can afford to poke fun at his BALCO past and his once-sullied reputation. Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning, or SNAC, is Conte's company, and business is booming. PED - which stands for Performance Energy Drink - is about to hit the market, joining a list of other SNAC products, including ZMA, that fuel Conte's highly successful supplement business and allow him to do what he says he enjoys doing most, work with world-class athletes. Donaire is one of several elite athletes who train under Conte, and word has traveled quickly: if you want .exceptional performance results, the man you need to see is Victor Conte. "He's helped me become a better fighter and athlete," Donaire says of Conte. "My performance level has increased dramatically." Yes, the BALCO founder who pleaded guilty and served four months in jail for his role in the biggest sports doping scandal of the 21st century - the ring that ensnared the likes of Olympic track star Marion Jones and home run king Barry Bonds and led to an effort to rid sports of doping that has stretched into the current investigation of cycling king Lance Armstrong - can now scarcely field the myriad calls lighting up his cell phone.....// Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/iteam/2011/09/17/2011-09-17_business_…

Marmol pitching, McGehee batting, Soto catching and calling the pitches. Marmol throws two quick fastball strikes. McGehee takes the first and swings late at the second--very late, like he's sitting on the slider (which a lot of guys do with Marmol). McGehee takes a slider outside and then hammers the next one, a fat one. What am I missing? Isn't the rule that you throw the fastball until they show they can catch up with it, by fouling it off, for example? McGehee looks overmatched, until Marmol starts showing off his effing slider, which he loves to do. So Marmol proves once again that stupid loses. Soto seems like a smart hitter. As a catcher, not so much.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

Isn't the rule that you throw the fastball until they show they can catch up with it, by fouling it off, for example? or hitting it out? and I've never heard that rule, but that could be me. also if he took the first and you think he was waiting for a slider on the 2nd, maybe they figure he was expecting the fastball the third time? and if he hung the slider as you suggest, that's just poor execution not poor decision making. his fangraphs page shows him getting hurt pretty badly on his fastball this year, with his slider still as unhittable as ever. Also when your slider is considered one of the best sliders in the game, you're probably gonna want to throw it a lot. And then there's the thing about his declining fastball velocity. other than all that, yeah, Soto needs to remember to call for the good slider, not the hanging one.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

"or hitting it out?" Usually a hitter doesn't go from swinging late to hitting a home run, unless the pitcher helps him out by throwing something off-speed. For example, Marmol has yielded two grand slams recently. Lee hit a slider. Bogusevic hit a fastball. Marmol started Bogusevic with three fastballs. The first two he missed, the third he fouled off. (That happens to be the scenario I mentioned in my comment: if he's late, throw the fastball until he fouls one off.) Then Marmol threw two sliders, but they were very low and Bogusevic laid off, although he almost bit on the second one and I remember Brenly praising him for resisting that pitch. The sixth pitch was a fastball that he connected on. Big difference between Bogusevic on any of those fastballs and McGehee on the only fastball he swung at last night. You might look at McGehee's at bat if you can find the time. He looked very uncomfortable when Marmol was throwing fastballs. He couldn't pull the trigger on the first one, and swung awkwardly late on the second. When Marmol went into slider mode, McGehee got comfortable: he had no trouble laying off the first one, even though it was just outside, and the second one was like knocking apples off a tree.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

Marmol started Bogusevic with three fastballs. The first two he missed, the third he fouled off. (That happens to be the scenario I mentioned in my comment: if he's late, throw the fastball until he fouls one off. a sample size of one does not make a working theory... You might look at McGehee's at bat if you can find the time. He looked very uncomfortable when Marmol was throwing fastballs. He couldn't pull the trigger on the first one, and swung awkwardly late on the second. the first pitch was on the outside corner, it's generally a bad idea to swing at a first pitch on the outside corner. You're presuming he had trouble with it, rather than presuming that maybe he just had a game plan, which is to not swing at a pitcher's pitch on the first pitch. The second pitch he was late on a high fastball, yes. The second slider was just a bad pitch that missed its location. Marmol throwing 90-92 mph is his current problem, no one is scared of his fastball anymore and can look slider on just about every pitch, figure they can catch up to it. But stick with the Soto's a moron theory, it fits your Koyie Hill is a demigod narrative better.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

"a sample size of one does not make a working theory..." The well-bruited idea that you don't throw an offspeed pitch to a hitter who is having trouble catching up to your fastball is not based on a small sample size. I'm sorry you never heard it. Maybe Soto never heard it either, or maybe he forgot. He probably gets a lot of advice. He also knows that if you call for a slider, Marmol seldom if ever shakes you off. I have another theory, by the way, that throwing fastballs is work and throwing sliders is play, and pitchers get lazy. "Marmol throwing 90-92 mph is his current problem, no one is scared of his fastball anymore " I've been talking about Marmol (and Dempster, when he was a reliever) losing velocity on their fastballs for a long time. Pitchers have to take care of their fastballs. Howry was a great example of this. It used to take him two months at the start of every season to get his fastball up to 94-95. (This, by the way, was the origin of the funniest joke in the history of TCR, if not the entire internet, when I said that Hill encouraged pitchers to rely on their fastballs more than other catchers on the team and certainly more than the pitching coach.) In any case, if you actually watch Marmol's innings rather than get all your input from Fangraphs, you see that hitters are usually late on his 90-92 mph fastball. It's still a great "secondary" pitch for him.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

It would explain why he's on the roster. I don't think he's Hendry's bastard son. I'm sure they don't think he can hit. I don't really care about Hill either way, except that he strikes me as one of baseball's likeable working stiffs. Guys like him don't bother me at all. Behind the plate, he seems to know what he's doing. Don't worry, he won't have a long career as an active player.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

if you actually watch Marmol's innings rather than get all your input from Fangraphs, you see that hitters are usually late on his 90-92 mph fastball. It's still a great "secondary" pitch for him. Translation: If you rely on what I tell you, from my very biased perspective, rather than, you know, facts, it's still a great secondary pitch for him. Is your theory that the average major league hitter can not catch up to a 92 MPH fastball? Because that's wrong. If someone is late on his fastball, it's because he's guessing slider. If he throws more fastballs, guess what - they're going to expect the fastballs more often, and the gulf between the effectiveness of the two pitches will deepen. Could it be, and this is admittedly, just a theory, that he is throwing fewer fastballs this year, because they're coming in 2 MPH slower than they did in previous years, and he knows with his poor command he can't get away with leaving one in the zone, where maybe he could if it was a 95 MPH pitch?

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

If Marmol establishes a good mix of fastballs and sliders, hitters won't be able to sit on the slider the way McGehee was. Marmol has been touched for several home runs lately because hitters are adjusting to him. He has to adjust back. McGehee has faced Marmol many times and surely knows by now that with an oh-and-two count, the next several pitches will be sliders. Hitters also know that if they ever see Marmol shake off the catcher, a slider is coming. Marmol just isn't a thinking man's pitcher; and if he's losing his fastball it's because he hasn't worked hard to maintain it. This might be unfair because I'm not at the games and I don't see what's going on in the bullpen, but I wonder how many pitches Marmol throws in the pen before he decides he's ready, and how hard he throws. On TV, it seems that whenever they show Marmol in the bullpen he is watching the game. Cubbery?

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

if he's losing his fastball it's because he hasn't worked hard to maintain it. or he has an injury, or has worked a lot of innings, maybe his mechanics are messed up, maybe some "dead arm" issues, or just one of those can't quite figure it out things that we don't have the answer for quite yet. certainly can't be any of that though, it must be his intelligence. fwiw (and admittedly not much), Q-Ball believes it's his unorthodox mechanics causing the velocity drop. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-08-18/sports/ct-spt-0818-bits-c… "I think mechanically, he's so unorthodox and so tough to keep in line, that to me (is it) probably as much as anything," he said, referring to Marmol's quirky delivery and stride. "All the stuff that makes him who he is, and especially gives him so much deception to go along with the slider form hell he normally shows up with, also makes it tough to get him back on track from time to time."

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

I have another theory, by the way, that throwing fastballs is work and throwing sliders is play, and pitchers get lazy. my theory is that you're wrong about a lot of stuff and find these one-off examples to try and prove points while ignoring the dozens of occurrences or studies that disprove the narrative you're trying to spin...you're like the Fox News of TCR. In any case, if you actually watch Marmol's innings rather than get all your input from Fangraphs, you see that hitters are usually late on his 90-92 mph fastball. It's still a great "secondary" pitch for him. says the minor league box score scout.... but seriously think logically for a second about losing up to 5 mph off a fastball because one catcher doesn't call a fastball 2-3 times more a game.

Castro SS, Barney 2B, Ramirez 3B, Peña 1B, LaHair RF, Soriano LF, Byrd CF, Soto C, Wells P

[ ]

In reply to by Charlie

dewitt at least has some pop in his bat...just saying...plus he's had a really weird season vs. righties...and by comparison vs. lefties, too. a bit of over-achievement meets underachievement. quade probably likes barney's D more, though...meh/sigh/ultimately no big deal anyway.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

http://espn.go.com/chicago/mlb/story/_/id/6997623/chicago-cubs-special-… While with the Florida Marlins, Hughes was instrumental in hiring Hendry out of college baseball. Hendry had been the head baseball coach at Creighton. Hughes has been in baseball for 44 years with nine organizations. He was a scouting director for the Montreal Expos, and he was general manager and scouting director for the Marlins when they began in 1991. He stayed with the Marlins through the 1997 world championship. Hughes has made many contributions to baseball, including starting a special fund for baseball people who become indigent. Along with Chicago White Sox consultant Dennis Ibert, Hughes has raised millions of dollars for this cause with special events in California over the last six years.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Isn't he likely to retire instead of move to another organization? I think he's way up there in years, I would think that traveling a lot has to get old once you're 65+. (or way earlier than that).

Congrats to #Cubs Bryan LaHair & Jeff Beliveau who were named the team's Minor League Player & Pitcher of the Year.

Sullivan makes a funny... If you are one of the few who haven't thrown out a ceremonial first pitch at Wrigley Field this year, tomorrow is your last chance.

for Castro, plus HR #10. He's a triple away from double digits in 2B, 3B, HR and SB.

with a quad strain, likely to miss his potential Wrigley swan song tomorrow.

[ ]

In reply to by George Altman

In 8.5 years, he has been on the DL every one of them, IIRC. Some years for long stretches. I have plenty of good memories (Brewers walk-off, NLDS, NLCS series of '03), but plenty of shit too. He sucked-ass in the last post-season play of 2007/2008, including hitting .000 in the 2007 series. Not a fucking hit in three post-season games. Mostly shit the last three years, and, of course in his last year he manages to do well. Thanks for the (somewhat) good memories, and good luck in the future.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

Looking at his career PA's, I would guess that he had DL stints 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010 (he missed time for injury - not "official" DL'd), and he will be out 2011 for strained quad, now. So, you are right in that he did not get injured every year, but more than half his time here. And, only downhill at this point.

Cubs lose Royals, Padres, Mariners win and Pirates are up in the 5th inning to the Dbacks Cubs now tied with Royals for 6th spot, move to a game behind Padres for 5th spot, 2.5 behind Mariners for 4th spot, 3.5 behind Orioles for 3rd spot and would get a game up on Pirates to stay out of 8th spot. it's the closest thing the Cubs have to a pennant race

Looking for A-Ram, Big Z and @OzzieGuillen to wind up together in Miami. just send the Cubs L. Morrison for Z and we'll call it even :)

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).