Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full) 

28 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE, and twelve players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors. 

Last updated 3-26-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 15
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Jose Cuas
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Caleb Kilian
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Julian Merryweather
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele
Jameson Taillon
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

INFIELDERS: 7
* Michael Busch 
Nico Hoerner
Nick Madrigal
* Miles Mastrobuoni
Christopher Morel
Dansby Swanson
Patrick Wisdom

OUTFIELDERS: 4
* Cody Bellinger 
Alexander Canario
# Ian Happ
Seiya Suzuki
* Mike Tauchman 

OPTIONED: 12 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Ben Brown, P 
Alexander Canario, OF 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Keegan Thompson, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 
Hayden Wesneski, P 

 



 

Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Your 25-Man Roster Guess

The Cubs made two handfuls of expected cuts yesterday which included optioning Kris Bryant, Jorge Soler, Albert Almora, Arismendy Alcantara, Logan Watkins, Matt Szczur, Jeudy Valdez, Carlos Pimentel and Eric Jokisch...releasing Aaron Cunningham brings it up to 10. That leaves camp with 56, but only 25 get to travel and we know many still there are just getting their work in. So let's take a best guess at the 25-man Opening Day Roster.

C: Castillo, Kottaras with John Baker trying to bump Kottaras

INF: Rizzo, Barney, Castro, Valbuena, Murphy

OF: Schierholtz, Lake, Sweeney, Ruggiano

That leaves 2 spots open presuming they go with the standard 13 and it seems Mike Olt, Emilio Bonifacio, Ryan Roberts and Ryan Kalish are your 4 best bets to get those 2 spots. Of course, there's also the hot-hitting Javier Baez and if Castro's hamstring injury doesn't clear up soon, it wouldn't be implausible that he's your starting shortstop on Opening Day, but that would open up a spot with Castro on the disabled list so it shouldn't effect the bench much. It does seem that Mike Olt is working his way to a starting 3b gig and my guess that would mean the end of either Valbuena or Murphy. If I had to guess now, it would be Olt starting at 3b, Murphy getting cut with Bonifacio and Roberts getting the last 2 spots and Kalish accepting a minor league assignment, but a lot can change the last few weeks of spring training.

SP: Samardzija, Wood, Jackson, Hammel (1 spot open)

RP: Veras, Strop, Wright, Russell, Villanueva (2 spots open...3 if Villanueva starts)

Jake Arrieta should be the final starter, but it doesn't look like he'll be ready, leaving a spot open for Kyle Hendricks, James McDonald, Chris Rusin or Carlos Villanueva. If Villanueva takes the 5th starter job, which would be my guess at the moment,  that'll open up a spot in the pen where the candidate list is anything but short.

In some order of expectedness...

A. Cabrera, Grimm, Rondon, Parker, Rosscup, J. Sanchez, Rosscup, N. Ramirez and whomever I'm forgetting.

Cabrera might seem like a surprise, but seems to have pitched well enough and is out of options, giving him a boost.. The rest will be based off spring performance and Grimm seems to be the leader of that group. Ramirez has had a few good outings, but he hasn't had much success past AA yet, so I think it would have to be overwhelming for him to make th team out of Arizona. We'll see about the rest, Rondon and Parker seemed like favorites before spring training started, but haven't pitched well so far. And of course it's always important to note, that the pen you start out with is never the pen you end up with. The pieces will certainly shift accordingly.

LOCKED IN (MOST LIKELY) - 18

Castillo, Kottaras, Rizzo, Castro, Barney, Schierholtz, Ruggiano, Lake, Sweeney

Samardzija, Wood, E. Jackson, Hammel

Veras, Strop, Wright, Russell, Carlos Villanueva

DISABLED LIST - 2

Fukijawa, Arrieta

ON THE BUBBLE - 16

Valbuena, Murphy, Olt, Roberts(NRI), Bonifacio(NRI), Kalish (NRI), C. Rusin, Hendricks(NRI), J. McDonald (NRI), A. Cabrera, Grimm, Rondon, Parker, Rosscup, J. Sanchez (NRI), Ramirez

MOST LIKELY CUT OR OPTIONED - 22

J. Vitters, B. Jackson, Baez (NRI), Christian Villanueva, Beeler, A. Vizcaino, J. Baker (NRI), L. Flores (NRI), E. Whiteside (NRI), R. Lopez (NRI), W. Remillard (NRI), D. McDonald(NRI), M. Maier(NRI), Wells(NRI), Coughlan(NRI), M. Hatley (NRI), Hottovy (NRI), Yong-Lim (NRI), Rivero (NRI), Schlitter (NRI), Wada (NRI), Valaika (NRI)

ALREADY OPTIONED OR RELEASED - 10

Soler, Bryant, Almora, Alcantara, Szczur, Watkins, Valdez(NRI), Pimentel(NRI), Jokisch(NRI), A. Cunningham

For some reason, I'm getting 58 players left versus Muskat's assertion of 56. My guess is Arizona Phil can clear that up pretty quick, but if I were to hazard a guess, the original story on the non-roster invitees has L. Flores and W. Remillard as catchers that will assist at times, rather than actually invitees as Phil has listed on the sidebar.

Comments

[ ]

In reply to by Hagsag

speaking of Mateo, here's what Phil wrote the day it happened..

The Arizona Diamondbacks selected RHP Marcos Mateo from the Cubs AAA Iowa affiliate with the 15th overall selection in the first round of the Major League Phase iof the 2013 Rule 5 Draft. Because he has been outrighted previously in his career, Mateo can elect free-agency if he is later re-claimed by the Cubs. (If re-claimed, a player selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft MUST be sent outright to the minor league club from which he was drafted).

Assuming he is healthy enough to play 3B, do we think 3B is now Olt's to lose?

[ ]

In reply to by Rob Richardson

valbuena had a hot winter league, but has been disappointing this spring (so far). i think a lot will have to do with whether his shoulder is ready to play 3rd this spring and how he looks there when he gets back to the position...and/or pending a bat collapse. valbuena has the advantage of being able to play an average+ 2nd base, so he's not useless off the bench or as a part-time player. olt has the advantage of actually being a 3rd prospect who's well capable of playing 3rd without the question of position move that haunts many 3rd prospects (such as bryant).

sample size and all that...nonetheless... olt/baez/bryant = 8 HR (olt/baez 3, bryant 2) rest of cubs = 5 HR (rugs 2, barney 1, sureholds 1, kott 1) the pitching situation is horrid across the board. going all the way down to only count guys with 4ip or more there's only 1 guy with a positive looking slash line...and that's e.jokisch. it includes 9 guys with 5.00+ ERA out of 12...and 2 of the guys out of the 3 with sub-5.00 ERA have bad supporting stats matching the lower ERA...and those 2 guys are d.beeler + c.pimentel. jokisch is the only guy out of the 12 with a sub-1.40 WHIP. spring pitching is notorious for slow starts and "lies" but damn.

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

I'm sure I'm not thinking of a team, but seems like everyone except maybe the Yankees is set at 2b and Yanks have plenty of options there. And I know we all hate Barney, but his 3-year WAR at 2b is 4.9 which puts him 20th overall (go defense). Don't think the Cubs would sell him for nothing, otherwise they would have just avoided the whole offering arbitration mess. As for trading him to be a backup, well they'd get nothing back in return if that was the case and I don't think that's what they want to do here. And there's just not a lot of trades during spring training.

I think the leash will be short on Barney and if he gets injured or Castro, Baez will be up soon enough. Eventually another team will have a hole at short or second and maybe the Cubs will get something that might be slightly greater than useless.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob Richardson

Look at Gold Glove winners over the past few seasons and tell me if you don't see quite a bit of value there. Barney is worth more than he can bring in a trade right now. Punitive trading is not good business, although it can be very satisfying to a disappointed fan. As regards Castro, Barney, Rizzo and even Brett Jackson, I think the Cub front office might want to test the theory that having a manager who is also the acting hitting coach can be very destructive to a young player.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

Who said anything about a punitive trade. The Cubs have a number of players coming up who will likely be more valuable than Barney and they need a place play. As I doubt Barney gets an extension and as some other GM will value Barney's gold gloves a lot, it seems likely Barney will be traded before the end of the season. I agree with RobG that a trade will likely take place after openning day, but it wouldn't shock me if he is traded this spring.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

valbuena has played a little at 2nd this spring (i don't think he's started at 2nd, though), but he played a lot of 2nd during winter ball. boni is getting a lot of chances to show he's capable of producing and playing at 2nd...even if it's just off the bench. he's seeing almost all of his time there rather than CF/LF. he leads the team in spring PA/AB...though this is a very small sample size that could be trumped by more than a few guys in a single game with boni taking a day off at this point. he's been capable this spring (judging by the boxscore) and they seem to be willing to take a loot at his skills there even though it's historically been a bit meh. as far as barney goes...i don't see them getting rid of him until/if baez becomes an issue because barney is pretty much the backup SS if what we're seeing so far this spring is any indication.

I really liked seeing that Cub hitters hit lefties in the Seattle game. That's something I think the Cubs lineup really struggled with the past few years.

[ ]

In reply to by WISCGRAD

check out rizzo's split vs lefties. .194/.270 avg/ob% career (edited post to correct avg)... .189/.282 last year... if he can't at least get up to a respectable level it's going to be a concern. i'm not even hoping for a miracle out of him vs lefties...i would settle for a .250/.330-ish line out of him or something similar. as it is he's an automatic "get the lefty in" late inning manager decision and vs a lefty starter it's practically cruising unless the pitcher gives him something to put over the OF fence.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I bet it's not at all unusual for young left-handed sluggers to have trouble with MLB lefties for their first few years. Quality and crafty left-handed pitching is sparse in the minors. I would guess his performance against them may trend upward over the next few years, even if it never reaches that .250 average mark you're looking for.

Today's game will be on tape delay on the MLB Network this evening. WGN game on Saturday. Comcast Sports Net on Sunday.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob Richardson

well if the Opening Day lineup is now Barney at SS and Bonifacio or Valbuena at 2b, that would certainly be a buzzkill

if Baez ends up being starting shortstop, see if he does enough to never get sent down again. Be kind of neat.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

the problem is, can he shift to second when Castro gets back. They sure better start getting him some reps there. The more I read about him, the more interesting he gets. I read stuff by MLB coaches saying things like, "he doesn't just make adjustments after at bats, he makes adjustments during an at bat." Watching him the few times I've been able to, he seems pretty special. TheoCorp's alleged policy of a set number of at bats may need to get filed away. I don't think this kid is gonna get ruined by a few bad at bats in the majors. EDIT: I'm torn between seeing him play against Iowa here at a Round Rock game and seeing him play in the majors, but overall, I'd prefer the latter.

2 more moved down, Beeler and Hatley

LOCKED IN (MOST LIKELY) - 18

Castillo, Kottaras, Rizzo, Castro, Barney, Schierholtz, Ruggiano, Lake, Sweeney

Samardzija, Wood, E. Jackson, Hammel

Veras, Strop, Wright, Russell, Carlos Villanueva

DISABLED LIST - 2

Fukijawa, Arrieta

ON THE BUBBLE - 16

Valbuena, Murphy, Olt, Roberts(NRI), Bonifacio(NRI), Kalish (NRI), C. Rusin, Hendricks(NRI), J. McDonald (NRI), A. Cabrera, Grimm, Rondon, Parker, Rosscup, J. Sanchez (NRI), Ramirez

MOST LIKELY CUT OR OPTIONED - 20

J. Vitters, B. Jackson, Baez (NRI), Christian Villanueva, A. Vizcaino, J. Baker (NRI), L. Flores (NRI), E. Whiteside (NRI), R. Lopez (NRI), W. Remillard (NRI), D. McDonald(NRI), M. Maier(NRI), Wells(NRI), Coughlan(NRI), Hottovy (NRI), Yong-Lim (NRI), Rivero (NRI), Schlitter (NRI), Wada (NRI), Valaika (NRI)

ALREADY OPTIONED OR RELEASED - 12

Soler, Bryant, Almora, Alcantara, Szczur, Watkins, Valdez(NRI), Pimentel(NRI), Jokisch(NRI), A. Cunningham, M. Hatley (NRI), Beeler

Samardzija, Wood, Jackson in opening series vs. Pirates

Hammel likely to get home opener vs. Phillies

tough times for the braves. k.medlen expected to have TJ...b.beachy's status has been updated today saying he might need TJ... m.minor's shoulder is expected to keep him out til early/mid-April at the earliest, but that's a weird case. ATL's youth pitchers have been notoriously "babied"...not going 100+ pitches often and rarely going 110+ for a few years now as a standard practice. ATL has been king of the 3-inning bullpen load for a while no matter if the starter could go another inning or not. crazy "when it rains it pours" stuff.

Peanut. Signed for just under $3.5 for one year.
“Charles is one of the NFL’s great players and a true leader on and off the field and we’re happy he will be staying in Chicago,” general manager Phil Emery said in a statement. “He remains the best in our game at forcing turnovers and always has brought a tough, physical presence to our secondary.”
rehabbing a torn triceps...
“I’m very optimistic about my recovery,” Tillman said. “It gives you something to shoot for in terms of ­motivation.”
http://www.suntimes.com/sports/26212856-606/charles-tillman-signs-1-yea…

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

I hope he's got one more year in him. Melton is trying to get out from under the consequences of hanging out at the bars at 1am in redneck country, so he may still be available, but cap space is a problem. I don't think he's hit his ceiling, though, so I wouldn't mind it if he came back. Bears are making some progress on the defensive front. Last year, any team with the ball marched up and down the field. Kinda took the fun out of watching the offense.

Castro rehab slow. Update from sun-times...Castro said he’s running at about 40 percent effort. He took batting practice in the cage Thursday for the first time since suffering the injury March 2.
“I like to steal. That’s one of my goals, to steal a lot of bases. I think I can do it because I have a green light now. I don’t have to wait for the sign or nothing else, just when I want to run.”
http://www.suntimes.com/sports/26211659-573/starlin-castros-hamstring-i…

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

Or, Chicago, where Packers and Lions go to up their salary. Peppers will be missed more than most think. Even when he wasn't getting sacks the last couple years, he was a big problem for defenses and he often compensated for defensive tackles who weren't as good at their position as he was at his. I think they had to let him move - just way too much money for the return. It was odd, too, how consistently his opponents were able to commit pretty flagrant holding penalties and get away with it - easy enough that I could see it on TV during routine plays. It's almost like he had a bad rep with refs, but I've never heard of that. No matter, he didn't dominate the way his salary said he should have. For that kind of money, guys should have been on the ground on that side of the field a lot more than they were.

Kyle Hendricks to minor league camp. Roto says he needs more seasoning. Nice outing yesterday though. See him as the first call up for a starter injury?

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

CUBSTER: Kyle Hendricks is Rule 5 Draft eligible post-2014, so the Cubs won't hold back adding him to the 40 during the season if he's the guy they deem most-ready for an in-season call-up. Same goes for C. J. Edwards and Eric Jokisch. 

Other than the three pitchers (Hendricks, Edwards, and probably Jokisch), there are no Cubs minor league position players eligible for selection in the December 2014 Rule 5 Draft who would appear (at this time) to be likely candidates to get added to the 40-man roster in 2014. 

Javier Baez or Kris Bryant could get called up at some point during the season, but Baez is not Rule 5 Draft eligible until post-2015, and Bryant won't be Rule 5 Draft eligible until post-2016. 

b.jackson finally hit a homer (vs KC). rizzo hits 2 HR off b.colon (vs NYM), his first of the spring. m.olt goes 0-4...including a 12 pitch AB vs t.collins (KC) which he K'd on a 3-2 count. ninja didn't have a good day 3.2ip 7h 3bb 1k 4r/er rosscup has all but stamped his ticket back to AAA with another 'meh' outing giving up 3 runs. given that this is only his 3rd appearance of the spring, it seems like he was destined to be back in AAA anyway. another knock against grimm today, giving up 2r in 1ip...looks like he might be back in AAA to start the season unless he shows a little more (or there's need). in non-cubs spring news, the TEX/OAK game is f'n nuts...top 7th, no outs, 14-13 TEX/OAK (5 TEX runs in the top 7th so far). TEX was down 6-13 going into the 6th inning. TEX wins 16-15 after losing, then regaining, the lead. 34 hits (17 for each team) and 10 walks (5 for each team).

s.drew's weekend just got a little more bright and hopeful... "Jerry Crasnick of ESPN reports that Jose Iglesias (shins) will miss at least four months, and perhaps the entirety of the 2014 season." that's one hell of a shin(s) injury.

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

"Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski indicated Sunday that the Tigers will stick with "internal candidates" to replace Jose Iglesias." aka, who? s.lombardozzi at SS is a weak option at best...especially since he was rushed to the bigs only to flail and he hasn't played regular SS since college. h.perez is an even worse option, though he can probably play SS more predictably. e.suarez isn't MLB ready... they got nothing. they may not go after drew, but with all the loot sunk into DET i can't imagine them cruising with lombardozzi/perez as their only options rather than one of them being a backup option and snagging someone else to start who's more dependable. jimmy rollins and nick franklin are also in the "guys that can play SS and are thought to be available" mix...i imagine n.franklin won't be cheap, though.

The twitter box has the link to the article on the Cubs firing their psychologist. It's an odd story. Apparently the psychologist would dress up in uniform and hang out in the locker room. I'm not sure who permitted this to go on but it sounds fairly unprofessional to me. Supposedly he would hang out just to listen to the gossip and report back to someone (Crane Kenney?) I'd love to have someone write up the real scoop on the story from the beginning. http://cdn2.fashionablygeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/pink-freud.j… http://dilemmadergi.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/carl-jung.jpg
Not only was Strickland available for consultation with players, the specialist in sports psychology had his own locker at home and on the road, dressed in team workout gear and played catch and shagged balls before games during batting practice. Early in his first year in the majors, Strickland even stood in the dugout tunnel at Wrigley Field after victories, bumping fists with players as though he was part of the team.

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

the cleveland indians team psychologist is actually credited on the team as being a "psychology coach". he's also the cleveland cavilers team psychologist in a smaller role. and he wrote the book "The Complete Mental Game of Baseball: Taking Charge of the Process, On and Off the Field" woo...modern sports.

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

I saw Strickland a lot at Fitch Park. I never saw him wear an actual baseball uniform at Fitch, but he did dress in the same Cubs t-shirt & shorts the players wear on the field during work-outs, and he did occasionally shag flies with the pichers during BP or stand behind the batting cages with the hitting coaches and talk to the hitters between rounds.     

He worked with a lot of the rehab guys (post-TJS pitchers, hitters returning from major injuries, etc), and I believe he was the one who recommended to the Cubs to try Chris Huseby as an outfielder after Huseby was unable to throw strikes as a pitcher (Huseby had an EXTREME case of "Steve Blass Disease"). 

boni playing SS again in the cle/chc split squad game. it's looking more and more that he's going to break with the team as a super-sub unless his hitting goes further south...and he's not got much room for cushion given his .250/.269 avg/ob% spring showing so far. he's seen a lot of work at 2nd, and a few games at SS both starting and subbing in. r.sweeney finally got another hit. 2-23 on the spring. valbuena (playing 2nd vs cle) has 2 doubles today as his bat heats up a bit after a very cold start. d.murphy and vogelbomb hit homers in the chc/nym game. a.alcantara hit his 1st homer of the spring vs cle.

Kalish with two stolen bases. I sorta hope he makes the team. Guess they get a Schierholtz or Sweeney taker. They are all somewhat interchangeable to me.

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

they gave r.sweeney a 2/3.5m contract this offseason to be a bench/injury-sub guy. it's a cheap enough contract to not care much about it (especially since he plays a capable CF), but they're probably committed to him going into this season at the very least. kalish does look like a heck of a mid-season sureholds replacement and future bench guy, though. if he can find his power again (though he's never been thought of as a 25-30+ HR type) he could turn out to be a very interesting option for a lot of play in the OF. that said, it wouldn't shock me to see sureholds + barney going to DET with ruggs penciled into RF and boni added to the roster. DET has been linked to sureholds and though they've not been linked to barney they recently obtained a SS injury issue to address.

Cafardo's Sunday notes have this...
1. Jose Iglesias, SS, Tigers — He has gone through quite an ordeal dealing with painful shin splints since he was traded from the Red Sox. Iglesias played through it in Boston, but since going to Detroit, the pain has been unbearable. Iglesias will likely start the season on the disabled list and is seeing a specialist to see if there’s something to alleviate the pain.
I've been thinking about Iglesias. Shin splints is mostly a non-surgical problem, treated with extensive stretching and anti-inflammatory meds. When it gets chronic and persistent (sounds like he was dealing with it in Boston too) then there might be other diagnoses. A stress fracture is usually seen on MRI imaging. This is like having a hairline crack in a car windshield. Early on it's small but if it extends the symptoms can progress. It can take months to heal but usually does with rest. Jorge Solar dealt with something like this last year. Todd Hollandsworth had this problem too while he was a Cub. There is another fairly unusual condition (and harder to diagnose) that is called a chronic compartment syndrome which occurs when running activity makes the muscles swell up so much that the compartment in the leg gets so tight it cuts off the blood supply to the muscle. The symptoms go away with rest so it's only with vigorous activity. One way to diagnose this is by measuring the compartment pressure while the athlete is running on a treadmill. If that diagnosis is made it is treated with a surgical procedure called a fasciotomy, which is to split the fibrous layer that compartmentalizes the leg. There are 4 leg compartments but in this condition usually only one is responsible for the symptoms. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2941579/ and ho hum, Cafardo has another Shark for sale sign in his column:
9. Jeff Samardzija, RHP, Cubs — Theo Epstein received offers for him this offseason but didn’t pull the trigger. As pitching injuries begin to mount in Atlanta (Kris Medlen, Brandon Beachy), there’s been some buzz in the scouting community that the Braves might have an interest in the former Notre Dame wide receiver.

I wouldn't mind the Cubs picking up Javy Guerra. Another good reclamation project...

AZ Phil, I know the Cubs have historically brought in some Latin youngsters at the end of ST. I was hoping that Roney Alcala would be brought in. He had a big year in the VSL. I believe they were using him as a catcher/first baseman/ third baseman.

[ ]

In reply to by Hagsag

HAGSAG: Roney Alcala was converted to catcher last season and I would expect him to arrive in Mesa for Extended Spring Training if not sooner. 

Also, Gleyber Torres is back on the field and he played in the game versus the IPL (International Prospect League) showcase team yesterday morning at the Under Armour Performance Center at Riverview Park in Mesa. I saw most of the game but not all of it, so I won't post a box score.

The Cubs starting lineup was: 

1. Gleyber Torres, SS 
2. Charcer Burks, CF 
3. Eloy Jimenez, DH #1 
4. Rock Shoulders, RF 
5. Jesse Hodges, 3B 
6. Trevor Gretzky, LF 
7. Kelvin Freeman, 1B 
8. Mark Malave, C 
9. Alexander Sanchez, 2B 
10. Neftali Rosario, DH #2 

Antonio Valerio replaced Malave as catcher in the 6th.

I don't know who the Cubs SP was, but Rob Zastryzny pitched the middle three innings and Jen-Ho Tseng pitched the last three.

Baseball America posted a video of Tseng throwing in yesterday's game (Valerio is the catcher). 

http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/cubs-diligence-pays-off-on-jen-ho-tseng

Carrie Muskat‏@CarrieMuskat· #Cubs @mike_olt scratched because of fatigue in right shoulder. Renteria: "We're looking to keep him healthy." Not serious Mark Gonzales‏@MDGonzales Olt says right shoulder will undergo more treatment today, believes he could play 3b as soon as Tuesday night if all goes well

LAA batting former disappointing former Cubs infielders 4th, 5th, and 6th. Nice. And so far they are 1-2 with a BB and SO against E. Jackson. I'm also anticipating a big day for Rizzo after his success against Colon the other day. Blanton is a similar pitcher, I think, and the wind is supposed to be blowing out to RF.

wow...umpire brad myers (AAA ump) nailed by a ball in the infield coming off the bat of b.phillips in the cle/cin game...screaming line drive to the gut. he went down hard. took him 2-3 minutes to get up off the ground and he was taken off in the cart. cap tip and all that...he got rung hard, but he seems to be okay.

so long james mcdonald...it was a fun spring while it lasted. left after 2 pitches...the 2nd one went all the way to the back stop (for the 2nd game in a row)...arm injury.

[ ]

In reply to by billybucks

so...mid-season form? good for him. i know he's young and i know some hold out hope for him refining his plate approach, but there's not been a shred of evidence pointing to him not wanting to try to knock everything he sees out of the park whether it goes for a single, a home run, or a strikeout. stick him in the 4/5 slot (depending on his eventual power realized) and try to make it work. if he can pull a mark trumbo type performance at the plate at a "worst case" it would be far from a disaster considering the bats that have come up through the cubs minors since half-past-forever.

welly is showing off the arm in this LAA/CHC replay on MLB. he's made a few throws to 1st trying to nail runners. great throws...close plays...rizzo being left handed isn't helping the "throw to 1st" pickoff, though.

http://grantland.com/features/chicago-cubs-boston-red-sox-theo-epstein/

Having established that this is a much tougher job than the last one, let’s look at how it’s going. In short: It’s going well as long as you don’t focus on the Cubs’ win-loss record. That’s not a punch line. The new front office made the conscious decision not to worry about wins and losses until there’s a chance those wins might add up to a playoff spot. Focusing on a .500 record or “respectability” while rebuilding is like drinking an O’Doul’s: It’s a half-measure done for appearances’ sake that doesn’t please anyone.

and some BP love for Alcantara and Vogy from their 3/16 performances
Arismendy Alcantara, 2B, Cubs: 3-3, R, HR. The only thing better then Alcantara’s name may be his skill set, as a middle infielder with power and speed. There is talks of moving prospects such as Javier Baez over to second base because of a logjam in the infield, but don’t count on Alcantara to cooperate with that plan. Dan Vogelbach, 1B, Cubs: 2-4, R, HR. For a player whose value is entirely attached to his bat, Vogelbach sure is good at making people believe. And hitting baseballs.
http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=23050

Recent comments

  • Arizona Phil (view)

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

  • crunch (view)

    cards put j.young on waivers.

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

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Seconded!!!

  • crunch (view)

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

  • Arizona Phil (view)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  • crunch (view)

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

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

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

  • crunch (view)

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

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

  • crunch (view)

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

  • crunch (view)

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

  • videographer (view)

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