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

Marlon Byrd for John Lannan Opportunity Exists

Submitted by Rob G. on

So John Lannan lost his arbitration case to the Nationals and wil be paid $5M for next season (as opposed to $5.7M he was asking). Now that the money is settled, the Nats are trying to move Lannan for a position player, preferably a center fielder, so that they can sign Edwin Jackson instead. I'm not quite sure why they want to make that swap, but that seems to be the goal for them. If the Cubs cared to add another mediocre pitcher with 2 years of club control while moving Marlon Byrd and the one year left on his contract, while saving about $1.5M, it appears a match could be made.

I certainly don't see the Cubs doing it, not much difference between Paul Maholm and Lannan and it seems that the pitching depth problem has been more than solved. And if you're a fan of FIP, Lannan's numbers are worse than what he's actually put up. But on some level it could make some sense, especially if the Cubs are afraid they won't have a taker in 2 months for Byrd. And they do have Reed Johnson, Tony Campana, Brett Jackson, David DeJesus and possibly Yoenis Cespedes that can step up in center field if Byrd is moved.

Speaking of arbitration, Matt Garza's case is heard tomorrow. Once that's settled, I wouldn't be surprised for the rumor mongering to start up again, once teams are certain of his cost.

Tags
Cubs rumors
Marlon Byrd

Comments

Submitted by Dr. aaron b on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 02:28 pm

I'd do it in a second if I were the Cubs. Randy Wells can start the year in Iowa and we can save on a little bit of service time. Also makes it much easier to deal Dempster mid season. Especially since Lannon won't be on the market as a Dempster alternative.

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Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 02:25 pm

Thu, 02/02/2012 - 2:21pm — Dr. aaron b Both guys have minor league options left. So even worst case you are still going to save some service time on each guy. Randy Wells is a 3.016 right now. So if you keep him in Iowa for 17 days you get to keep him through 2016. Travis Wood is at 1.039 right now. So 40 days in Iowa will keep him under club control thru 2018. Byrd has no future with the club at this point either way. He's window dressing on a 100 loss team this year. ============================= DR AARON B: Right now Randy Wells is under club control only through the 2014 season. To be under club control through the 2015 season, he would have to lose those 16 days over three seasons (3+016) he has now, plus at least one more day. To get there in 2012, Wells would have to spend at least 28 days (not 17 days) on Optional Assignment to the minors. Here's why: If a player spends 19 or fewer days on Optional Assignment in a given season, he gets credit for a full year of MLB Service Time. (A "full season" of MLB Service Time is 172 days, but the MLB regular season actually is 183 days). So if Wells is optioned to the minors for a total of 19 days or less in 2012 he gets credit for a full season MLB Service Time. If he spends more than 19 days on Optional Assignmentf he cannot get credit for a full season, but the first 11 days on Optional Assignment don't count because of the difference betwen the MLB regular season (183 days) and what constitutes a full season of MLB Service Time (172 days). Only AFTER the first 11 days can you start to count the 17 days needed. So that's why it's 28 days. Likewise with Travis Wood. To get an extra year of club control, T. Wood would need to spend at least 51 days on Optional Assignment in 2012, because the first 11 days don't count, and then he still needs 40 more. BTW, if a player is optioned to the minors during Spring Training, time spent on Optional Assignment prior to MLB Opening Day does not count for anything, other than relieving the club of having to pay him at the MLB salary rate if he is injured prior to Opening Day (an injured player cannot be optioned to the minors). Also, the following players have accrued less than five years of MLB Service Time through the 2011 season (so they cannot refuse an Optional Assignment to the minors) and have options remaining (so they can be optioned), but each must clear Optional Assignment Waivers before they can be optioned to the minors in 2012: Blake DeWitt Matt Garza Andy Sonnanstine Ian Stewart Chris Volstad Randy Wells (Bryan LaHair, Marcos Mateo, Jeff Samardzija, and Geovany Soto have each accrued less than five years of MLB Service Time through the 2011 season, too, but they have no minor league options left, and Lendy Castillo cannot be optioned to the minors because he is a Rule 5 player). Optional Assignment Waivers are revocable (so the waiver request can be rescinded if the player is claimed) and are required to option any player who made his debut on an MLB 25-man roster (MLB Active List) at least three or more years previous, or two or more years previous if the player spent one full season on Optional Assignment prior to making his debut on a 25-man roster, or one year or more previous if the player spent at least two full seasons on Optional Assignment to the minors prior to making his debut on an MLB 25-man roster. Sometimes you will see a club DFA a player during the MLB regular season and then option him to the minors a few days later. That's because Optional Assignment Waivers must be secured before he can be optioned, and it takes two days to get a player through waivers. Optional Assignment Waivers can be requested anytime February 16th through August 31st, and once secured, the waivers are generally good for the entire waiver period (but only through August 31st for the waiver period that starts on August 1st), so the club does not have to keep securing waivers if they want to move the player back & forth to the minors more than one time during the course of that waiver period. Normally a player who is Designated for Assignment (DFA) must be either traded, released, or outrighted, but DURING THE MLB REGULAR SEASON a player can be Designated for Assignment (which temporarily takes him off both the 25-man and 40-man roster) and then can be optioned to the minors as long as the assignment is made within 10 days, and as long as the player was not replaced on the club's 40-man roster by another player while on the Designated List (DFA). Then once the waivers are secured, the player can be optioned to the minors, and the player is returned to the club's MLB 40-man roster at that time. (And players do accrue MLB Service Time while on the Designated List). Optional Assignment Waivers (like Trade Assignment Waivers) are revocable the first time they are requested in a given waiver period, but they become irrevocable if the player is placed on Optional Assignment Waivers again during that waiver period.

Submitted by Rob G. on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 02:57 pm

allegedly 1 year deal with Nats, I believe it will push down Cubs pick for Pena and their 2nd round pick down 1. So #6, #43, #55, #65 at the moment with D. Lee and Ibanez still out there. I believe both rank higher than Pena but lower than Ramirez, so if they do sign they'd lose up to 2 more spots on the Pena's supplemental pick and the 2nd round pick.

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Submitted by Rob G. on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 02:53 pm

Actually, I would put a different spin on that article. Only one Cub, Stewart, is mentioned. still 3, no matter what voodoo magic you care to put on it. First base: Orioles – Chris Davis, Wilson Betemit Dishonorable mention: Indians, Pirates, Athletics, Brewers, Cubs Two of these teams are going to upgrade to Derrek Lee and Casey Kotchman, taking them off the list. I imagine the Indians will be one of them, leaving LaPorta out of a job. Second base: Mets - Daniel Murphy, Justin Turner, Ronny Cedeno Dishonorable mentions: Orioles, Tigers, Cardinals, Cubs Third base: Dodgers – Juan Uribe, Jerry Hairston Jr., Adam Kennedy Uribe kicked off a three-year, $21 million contract by hitting .204/.264/.293 in 270 at-bats for the Dodgers last season. He can’t be that bad again, but he still gets a worst offensive projection than Ian Stewart Dishonorable mention: Cubs, Pirates, Twins, Rockies, Mariners

Submitted by Rob G. on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 02:18 pm

Indians sign Kotchman for 1/3M Canzler will be a corner super-sub if he makes the team.

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Submitted by crunch on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 02:39 pm

it was overseas with US involvement. a lot of that going down lately. they had servers in the US, but a lot of their work and a chunk of other servers were in Australlia/Asia. for all the ron paul "sky is falling types" all over the place the US still has a lot of pull and influence. a lot of those types of sites aren't legit...megaupload was not legit...it invested heavily in making itself look legit, but it wasn't run legit. inner-office culture took down the organization more-so than a grand conspiracy, imo. the people supposed to delete stuff when they found it shouldn't have been sending emails back/forth about what stuff was where and downloading it, themselves. a bunch of other similar sites shuttered afterwards before any government spooks could get involved. this administration is really trying to crack down on protecting US intellectual property. imo, they should be more concerned with corporate espionage, especially via China and India. whatever, though...the US entertainment industry is a world-wide money maker. people all over the world love our entertainment culture.

Submitted by Rob G. on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 02:39 pm

http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/cubs/post/_/id/7753/cubs-invite-fans-to… There are four pricing tiers for the section: $125 a ticket (silver), $150 (gold), $190 (platinum) and $250 (marquee). But as of now, fans can’t buy solo tickets. This is aimed solely at large groups, from bachelor parties to corporate outings. Tickets can be purchased in blocks of 50, 100 or 150 and include food and drinks -- alcoholic and non-alcoholic. Each block of 50 contains 32 seats and 18 standing-room tickets. This is also where the Cubs are debuting a new 70-foot LED board that looks to some like a harbinger to a JumboTron.

Recent comments

  • 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.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    AZ Phil,
    Did you agree with the demotion of Luke Little? He'd been pretty good up until the AZ/wild pitch appearance. I know that can't jettison Smyly (just yet) so they didn't need another LHRP. Especially with Leiter effectively being a LHRP. I still thought he deserved to stay. It's not permanent. He'll be back. Lots of moves to come with Taillon, Steele and other guys coming and going.

    Also, do you see Hodge being able to "control/command" his stuff to get a chance this year?
    Is Arias better than Hodge?   Thanks

  • crunch (view)

    just waiting to hear patrick wisdom and masterboney are spotted at the airport going in opposite directions...

    aj puk going for the marlins (lefty)...gotta imagine we'll see wisdom in the lineup.

    someone has to make room for taillon, too.

  • crunch (view)

    he's a low-level cubs star in the modern history of the cubs (c.zambrano, k.wood, r.dempster, etc), but that star has dimmed...and has been dimming since 2021.

    2024 has been ugly the whole way and we're only in mid-april.  homers aside (even though there's been 7 in 17ip) he gave up 29 hits in 20 spring innings and 31 in 17 regular season innings.

    he's pretty much only got 2 pitches at this point in his career and the mix isn't fooling anyone.  he threw a noticable amount more curves in his last start to add to the mix and it didn't help his issues.  he don't have many moves left to break out.

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