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

First in a Series of Soler Powered Headlines

 

Well, he passes the eyeball test with flying colors. Entering the ballpark in the top of the first you know something new has been added to the home team as soon as you fix on the leggy right fielder. Clear from the mezzanine behind home plate you can’t help but notice that pair of long, thick Cuban stogies as he lopes under the game’s first out.

The lineup now has some real heart to it, what with serial sluggers hitting third, fourth and fifth.

Baez fanned meekly to end the 1st. Bryant reached on an error leading off the 2nd and swiped a base (two in effect since the surprised, belated throw ended up in the outfield and advanced Bryant to 3rd) while all attentions were on the new kid in town hitting behind him. Soler had to be anxious but he never swung before walking on a pitch that nearly beaned him. Next time up, though, he followed Bryant’s single with one of his own, guided right back up the middle on the first pitch he saw. Then later he would accept another base on balls when he passed on a close 3-2 pitch. He appears to have what used to be known as “a good eye” before it was euphemized into “command of the zone.”

By their third turns Baez must have been chomping to reclaim some spotlight. So he launched an OMG moonshot over and out of the playing premises into the leftfield parking lot. There was some wind behind the blast but still it was something to behold. Maybe a better barometer of his prodigious power was the double he swatted on Wednesday afternoon when he took an outside pitch off the base of the wall in center, sans breeze. The crack of the bat registered somewhere between a literally cracked bat and the thunderous boom of last night’s homer. It was kind of a brittle sound like the taking of a small bite; the peep of a popup. And it went off the base of the wall in dead center.

Suddenly the club that’s been trailing the PCL in hitting most of the summer looks the most dangerous on paper. Don’t forget that Mike (all or nothing at all) Olt has also been stirred into the mix. Last night he laced a bases-loaded, bases-clearing double and got to soak up some cheers from a nice-sized crowd for the first time in what must have felt like a mighty long time. And in another at-bat he bounced a, wait for it…single (gasp)! He also botched a play defensively at first base but that hardly matters.

It was a good night at the ballpark quite apart from all of those goings-on. The breeze felt refreshing and carried an almost narcotic aroma mixed from grilling sausage and popping popcorn. If you listened close you could hear the pwoosh of beer vendors popping open their merchandise. By the middle innings when the sun was calling it a day the field and sky looked through naked eyes the way they do through sunglasses at midday. It was one of those nights when I fell into trances between innings. Except when the t-shirt bazooka fired a round straight at me. I caught it, banded up like a cowboy’s bedroll. I figured it was probably something from a realtor or insurance agent; probably in a medium or a large so I didn’t even bother to unroll it until I got home. It was fun just to be one of the few among nearly 10,000 to actually win something for free! The fact that it turned out to be a genuine I-Cub t-shirt, size XXL, made it almost hard to fall asleep, even way past regular lights-out; even sporting that brand new pajama top. But I managed, with visions of back-to-back-to-back soaring in my head.

 

Comments

Thanks, Cubster! Couple things I forgot to mention: The disabled ManRam spent much of the game hanging out in the I-Cub bullpen where he appeared to enjoy being one of the guys, making the rest of the gang laugh and even signing stuff for kids between innings despite the ushers' instructions that no autographs are allowed until the game ends. Also, I-Cubs now have 5 games in 3 days w/ the Memphis Redbirds while the parent clubs go at it over the weekend @ Wrigley.

Watched Vizcaino warm up @ close range last night & he seemed very loose (the ManRam effect). When he came in he was throwing 96 but the first 2 hitters he faced singled...dunno the problem but his arm appears strong & he doesn't appear worried...

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Definitely a first in my lifetime, this minor league thing. I remember reading the Sporting News long ago and every year looking to see how their ONE good prospect was doing. Then he'd come up to the majors, back in the day when there was no Internet, and you'd see a huge hitch in his swing, ala Pat Bourque. No warnings from forum posters, nothing. Just this awful hitch, and you knew, right then, that the guy you'd been watching in the minor league stats sheets was going to bomb badly. Today, the Cubs almost have too many prospects - not that there really can be such a thing. But it won't be long until we see the team competitive and then some prospects like Villanueva and Vogelbomb get traded for a veteran pitcher, and they'll go on to great things. It's probably inevitable that a lower level prospect or two gets traded and TheoCorp will take some heat for it, but it's also unavoidable because they will eventually have to package some for starting pitching. I see this as a good thing.

[ ]

In reply to by Old and Blue

Look at the list, http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/mlb/news/prospects/index.jsp?c_id=chc More talent in that group of 20 than all of the Hendry years combined. The really sad part is when Hendry left, Brett Jackson and Josh Vitters were the crown jewel of his farm system. I think we can finally see what it means to invest in scouts, have a GM that knows how to evaluate talent, and have the coaches in place to work with talent. All of that was missing under Hendry, and Theo has done a damn fine job so far into making it a real minor league system. Instead of just a couple jokes (Jackson and Vitters) and a whole lot of nothing behind it. Kind of the lost in the shuffle are guys like Schwarber, and McKinney who I think could be just as good as the names we all know.

[ ]

In reply to by MikeC

I agree with you about the unprecedented depth of the talent pool today, but let's not forget that Wilken also drafted Donaldson, Cashner, Samardzija, Baez and Vogelbach, while Fleita's side of the house signed Castro and Alcantara. It might be interesting to contrast Alcantara and Corey Patterson, smallish prospects with similar toolsets that included speed, power and defensive ability. I might give Alcantara a slight edge in toolsiness for his infield skills and for hitting from both sides of the plate. Patterson was a big deal when he was rising in the minors, where Alcantara was mostly under the radar until this year, and he is still excluded from groupings like the Core Four and the Fab Five. The bar has obviously been set much higher in the Epstein era. [Rob, I haven't been able to log in fully to TCR for several days, at least using Chrome. This morning I thwarted your attempt to silence me by switching to IE!]

[ ]

In reply to by Dusty Baylor

Patterson doesn't have Daytona on his resume, either. It's tough down there in the FSL--ask Almora and Schwarber. Trying to read Hendry's mind, here's what I get: Patterson is heading to the majors anyway, so why make him slow down at speed bumps? Well, maybe Schwarber stopped scuffling last night, we'll see, but that was the point of sending him to Daytona when he was barely out of Indiana U. Hoyer on Baez earlier this year:
He's in a big slump. He'll have to figure his way out of it. He'll be stronger for having gone through this.

[ ]

In reply to by JoePepitone

To compound that, they made a bunch of bad trades in the '70s. In some cases, they gave up young talent for older players. November 2, 1972: Billy North to A's for Bob Locker. North, 24 at the time of the trade, became the starting center fielder for the A's, who won the world series in each of the first two years after the trade. Locker, 34 at the time of the trade, had a good year for the Cubs in 1973, going 10-6, with 18 saves and a 2.54 ERA over 106 innings pitched, and was then involved in two subsequent Cubs-A's trades (i) November 3, 1973, traded by the Cubs to the A's for Horacio Pina and (ii) October 23, 1974, traded by the A's with Darold Knowles and Manny Trillo to the Cubs for Billy Williams. Locker did not pitch in 1974 and posted a 4.96 ERA for the Cubs in 1975 before getting released in June of that year. May 2, 1975: Burt Hooton to Dodgers for Geoff Zahn and Eddie Solomon. Solomon pitched 6-2/3 innings for the Cubs in 1975, and was traded prior to the start of the 1976 season to the Cardinals for Ken Crosby, who posted an ERA of 8.41 over parts of two seasons for the Cubs. Zahn pitched 62-2/3 innings over the rest of 1975 for the Cubs, with a record of 2-7 and an ERA of 4.45, then got hurt the following year. The Cubs released Zahn in January 1977. Hooton, 25 at the time of the trade, went 18-7 for the Dodgers over the rest of 1975, and was a mainstay of the Dodger rotation for the next 6 years, winning 70 games over such period, finishing second in NL Cy Young voting in 1978 and pitching in three world series. May 17, 1976: Andre Thornton to the Montreal Expos for Steve Renko and Larry Biittner. At the time of the trade, Thornton was 26, Renko 32 and Biitner 30. Biitner's career OPS+ was 88. Renko went 8-11 for the Cubs in 1976 with an ERA of 3.86. Renko was traded in August 1977 to the White Sox for Larry Anderson and cash. Thornton had a career OPS+ of 122 and hit over 200 home runs in the ten plus years he spent in the majors after leaving the Cubs. February 11, 1977: Bill Madlock and Rob Sperring to Giants for Bobby Murcer, Andy Muhlstock (minors) and Steve Ontiveros. At the time of the trade, Madlock was 25 and had just won his second consecutive batting title (in three full major league seasons), with OPS+ numbers of 123, 141 and 150 during his 3 years with the Cubs. Madlock played 11 more years, finishing with a career batting average of .305 and a career OPS+ of 123 and winning two additional batting titles in 1981 and 1983. Murcer was 30 at the time of the trade and his latest three seasons (at the time of the trade) in terms of OPS+ were 107, 127 and 123. Murcer played 2 full years for the Cubs, going 27HR 89RBI .265 in 1977 and 9HR 64RBI .281 in 1978. Murcer was traded to the Yankees in June 1979 for Paul Semall, a minor leaguer. Ontiveros, 25 at the time of the trade, became the Cubs' starting 3rd baseman and had a decent year in 1977, hitting 10HR 68RBI .299 with an OPS+ of 109. He fell off significantly after that and cut by the Cubs in 1980. His career OPS+ was 95 and he was below that number in each of his last three years with the Cubs. He may have been injured for the better part of 1978 and 1980.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

I believe the Madlock trade was related to salary demands and some discrimination on the part of PK Wrigley who died in April 1977 only 2 months after the Madlock trade. PK wasn't used to feisty players like Madlock (think Billy Williams and Ernie Banks). To add to the context, this was still fresh on the heels of the Curt Flood reserve clause challenges (1971) and the Seitz decision (Dec 1975). Finally, there was the new 1976 MLBPA agreement permitting free agency after 6 years of service. Personally, I was always dumbfounded by that trade, as Murcer was the embodiment of the failed hype as the next Mickey Mantle with warning track power (and the aggressiveness of a sea slug. Also known for his locker room rocking chair. and the Cubs, who had found their replacement for Ron Santo would once again continue that search until ARam (excluding a brief visit by Ron Cey). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seitz_decision and although I hate citing BCB, here is their writeup on Madlock:
Old Phil Wrigley stated his case succinctly in 1977, when the Cubs decided to trade Madlock to San Fransisco, saying, "When these players are impossible to deal with, I'd rather let somebody else have them."
http://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2006/12/24/52252/776

[ ]

In reply to by Old and Blue

I believe the Madlock trade was related to salary demands [And he was a black guy] and some discrimination on the part of PK Wrigley who died in April 1977 only 2 months after the Madlock [who was black] trade. PK wasn't used to feisty [and black] players like Madlock [who was also African American] (think Billy Williams and Ernie Banks). To add to the context, this was still fresh on the heels of the Curt Flood reserve clause challenges [also black] (1971) and the Seitz decision (Dec 1975). Finally, there was the new 1976 MLBPA agreement permitting free agency after 6 years of service.[but really, being feisty and black outweighed batting titles]

Addison Russell with 2 HR (4 rbi) in the first two innings vs former Cub farmhand Mitch Atkins (Miss. Braves). Smokies lead 6-0

Back online... Head scratcher, Neil Ramirez to Iowa for Blake Parker. Peavy to sf for prospects Pierzinski to cards, in today's lineup

Former GM,Salty Saltwell throwing out today's first pitch. Az Phil tells some good Saltwell stories. Sutcliffe throws a pitch too.

these past 2 days of games vs STL has been great...tie game in the 6th pinch hit HR by sureholds...first PH homer of the season for the cubs.

Dan Vogelbach is hitting 317/378/561 over his last ten games at Daytona, and he has gone 31 consecutive Plate Appearances without striking out and has struck out just once in his last 38 PA.

BP writeup on 3 of the Cub farmhands not in the core:
Marco Hernandez, SS, Cubs (High-A Daytona) There is no system in baseball with more shortstop depth than the Cubs', which is unfortunate for Marco Hernandez, who is as blocked as any minor leaguer in the game. Hernandez will never be Chicago's starting shortstop, but he probably won't be anyone else's starting shortstop either because he doesn't profile to have any impact with the bat. He's a slap hitter from the left side who makes no effort to drive the ball, understanding his role as a speed-based player. He puts the ball on the ground repeatedly but he will never have better than an average hit tool with no power. Where Hernandez makes his name is in the field. He's a plus-plus shortstop who can be a true asset both with his glove and his arm. Smooth and fluid on routine ground balls, he also features plus range to either side and natural creativity on tough plays, regularly flipping the ball behind his back or between his legs on double play turns when necessary. Hernandez won't hit enough to play regularly on a good team and is about the fifth best option for the Cubs at the position, but his glove should be enough to carry him to the majors and allow him to carve out a Freddy Galvis–like role. —Jeff Moore

Duane Underwood, RHP, Cubs (Low-A Kane County) Underwood works with a simple step-back delivery and a 3/4 arm slot. The arm whip is fast and crisp, though he does create an inverted W with his upper body. Underwood worked in the 92-95 mph range with his fastball. It had two-seam action lower in the velocity band, but he had trouble locating it all night. The curveball had some sharp bite beneath the strike zone but he was unable to locate it effectively for strikes. Underwood showed a few changeups, including a few backdoor changes that flashed plus fade, but overall it looked like a show-me pitch that will require work. The raw ingredients are there for Underwood to succeed but he’s going to have to work on fastball command first and foremost; everything else will play up if he can locate his fastball effectively. The curve command will have to come along as well, as he will have to learn how to throw the pitch for effective strikes. At present, it’s just a chase pitch and the higher levels will lay off. Underwood is intriguing, but he’ll need refinement. —Mauricio Rubio

Shawon Dunston, OF, Cubs (Low-A Kane County) An 11th-round pick in the 2011 draft, Dunston was clearly selected to be a slow burn. His first couple of seasons brought moderate success in short-season ball, but the jump to full-season wasn't so kind. He'd been playing sporadically and didn't look comfortable at the plate, finding it hard to get in a groove. After the All Star break, however, especially in the wake of Jacob Hannemann's promotion to Daytona, Dunston has found himself getting everyday reps and the results have followed. In July, he's hitting .410/.426/.525, and it hasn't just been BABIP luck: In the last two games, Dunston has stung the ball five or six times. As the son of a major leaguer, it's no surprise that Dunston is a good athlete, running times around 4.2 seconds to first. He doesn't feature his father's 80 arm; it's average or a tick below. Overall, Dunston does not have an impact profile, but he has put himself firmly on the prospect radar. Even though there isn't much power potential, as the hit tool manifests, there's the possibility he becomes a solid extra outfielder. —Jordan Gorosh

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

I went to see Kane County yesterday. For those of you in the Chicago area, I recommend the experience. The ballpark is a nice modern facility and it is a nice family atmosphere. Skulina started and was relieved by Concepcion. Each gave up a solo homer and the Cougars lost 2-1 to West Michigan, a Tigers affiliate. Skulina pitched decently, with 7K and 1 BB in 7 IP; his fastball seemed to top out at 91-92. Dunston hit 3 balls pretty hard and had two nice singles. The rest of the team only had 2 hits, a double by Candelario (which frankly should have been a single if the outfielder could throw) and a double by Penalver. The starting lineup: Dunston lf, Pelalver ss, Candelario 3b, Rogers 1b, Brockmeyer c, Brown dh, Young 2b, Baez rf, Martin cf. If Dunston is a corner outfielder, he will need to develop some power.

Boston Globe Nick Cafardo (praying he's not gone insane):
The Cubs would love to keep trading off and it wouldn’t be surprising to see the struggling Edwin Jackson depart.
TCR collective: "Oh, Yes it Would."

Also I'm willing to bet 10 bucks and my left nut, Barney does not make play off roster. /Hi Ryan!!

seeing boni lead off again (which it seems "speed leads" is in play at this point) had me wondering about this season's production out of the leadoff slot. .248/.294/.350 also...the 5/6/7/8/9/1 slots are all playing out sub-.300 ob% on the season. ouch.

mark appel (HOU) called up to AA a couple days ago. 9.74era/1.92whip in 12 outings (44.1 ip) in high-A. neat.

"CBS Sports' Jon Heyman reports that the Cubs have "rebuffed inquiries" from the Yankees and others for Justin Ruggiano. Heyman says the Cubs plan to hang on to both Ruggiano and Chris Coghlan, as they value their bats next year more than the second-tier prospect that they'd receive in return." rotoworld

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

I was just reading the same thing - and I actually agree with the cubs. If they are gonna start pushing forward next year those two guys are my choice to hang around because 1.) they are outfielders a which we'll need, and 2.) they've been through the ups and downs of success and failure personally - especially Caghlan which is a nice perspective to have with a lot of kids coming up. Obviously if it's a decent prospect you trade them, but they are good guys to have around and young enough too.

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).