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

Cubs Add Three to 40-man Roster

The Cubs have added three players to their MLB Reserve List (40-man roster), one day in advance of the November 20th deadline that requires MLB clubs to submit major league and minor league reserve lists to the MLB office. .

RHPs Mitch Atkins and Justin Berg were selected from Iowa, and RHP Marcos Mateo was selected from Daytona, and with the addition of the three, the Cubs now have 36 players on their MLB Reserve List.  

Notably absent from the list are LHP Donald Veal (the Cubs 2005 2nd round pick) and 2B Nate Spears (acquired along with two other prospects from the Baltimore Orioles in January 2006 for OF Corey Patterson), meaning both will be eligible for selection in next month's Rule 5 Draft. And I would say that it's very likely that Veal will get selected, and somewhat likely that Spears will be, too.    

A North Carolina native, Atkins checks in at 6'3/220, and he just turned 23 last month. He was the Cubs 7th round selection in the 2004 Rule 4 Draft (1st Year Player Draft) out of Northeast Guilford HS in McLeansville, NC (he was signed by legendary Cubs Area Scout Billy Swoope), and he had signed an NLI to attend Elon University before opting to sign with the Cubs. Atkins has progressed steadily through the Cubs system over the past five seasons, reaching AAA Iowa via a mid-season promotion in 2008. He went 17-7 with a combined  4.00 ERA and 1.25 WHIP, allowing 155 H, 87 R (73 ER), 50/132 BB/K, and 25 HR in 164.1 IP (28 GS) with AA Tennessee and AAA Iowa in 2008. Atkins doesn't throw particularly hard, but he really "knows how to pitch." He has a full array of pitches, including a very effective cutter. He probably projects as a "back-of-the-rotation" MLB starter at this point. 

The 24-year old Berg is a native of Antigo, WI,  and was acquired by the Cubs from the Yankees in August 2005 in exchange for veteran OF Matt Lawton. A 6'3 230-pound sinker-baller, Berg was originally drafted by the Yankees in the 43rd round of the 2003 Rule 4 Draft out of Indian Hills CC in Iowa, but was signed as a "Draft & Follow" in May 2004 (just days prior to the June Draft) after spending his sophomore year at Triton CC in River Grove, IL. He was set to transfer to the University of Iowa for his junior year before opting to turn pro. The fact that the Cubs acquired Berg in a trade just a year after he signed with the Yankees probably is an indication that the Cubs had planned to draft him back in 2004 if he hadn't signed as a "DNF" with the Yanks. Berg has similar stuff as Jeff Samardzija (power sinker and slider), but has struggled mightily with his command throughout most of his career. Like Atkins, Berg split the 2008 sesaon between AA and AAA, and he was supposed to pitch for the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League post-2008 (he pitched in the AFL last year, too), but plans were changed at the last minute, and he ended up in the Venezuelan Winter League instead. Basically a "two-pitch pitcher," Berg will probably be moved to the bullpen in the near future to take full advantage of his hard stuff. He really needs to work on his command, but if he can get that straightened out (as Samardzija appears to have done), he could possibly make it to the big leagues as a reliever.

Marcos Mateo is the cousin of ex-Cubs RHP Juan Mateo. A native of the Dominican Republic, the 6'1 ,160-pound Marcos Mateo was acquired from Cincinnati in September 2007 as the PTBNL in an earlier deal where the Cubs sent OF Buck Coats to the Reds, so 2008 was his first season in the Cubs organization (he did pitch in the AZ Instructional League with the Cubs post-2007, however). He will turn 25 next April. Like his older cousin, Marcos Mateo's best pitch is an outstanding slider, but he also has a fastball with some life on it, and he supposedly developed a change-up in 2008 when he was moved to the starting rotation after a promotion from Peoria to Daytona. But unless the change-up is of big league quality, his future is probably MLB middle-relief.     

Comments

I dont get why Veal was left off, I mean he is wild but so is Berg. I mean LHP who throw hard just dont grow on trees and Veal good as gone now as he will be a top pick and I am sure he could last as a 12th man on the staff of a lousy club anyway. Can Veal still be added tomorrow in case Jimbo and Company forgot he needed to be added or is this the final list?

Why would they leave 4 open spots? They certainly aren't going to sign 4 free agents. This doesn't make sense to me unless the are going to add a few tomorrow. I agree about Veal, they should add him.

Submitted by The Real Neal on Wed, 11/19/2008 - 3:55pm.

Have to agree here.

You would need a team that is really punting the season to have Veal drafted.

===============================

REAL NEAL: I won't say which team (although you can probably figure out which one it is because it's practically self-evident), but a scout from another organization told me not too long ago that he LOVES Donald Veal despite his struggles (because the scout thinks Veal has the best "pure stuff" in the Cubs organization), and so I fully expect Veal to get selected in the Rule 5 Draft.

Of course that doen't mean he will be able to stick in MLB for a full season, but I will predict that it's VERY likely that he will get selected in the Rule 5 Draft.

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

KC? I could see a club like that stashing Veal in the pen this year considering they trotted out Jimmy Gobble for 39 games with that sparkling 8.81 ERA and 1.96 WHIP. Plus they've now traded away 2 of their 2008 relievers in Leo Nunez and Ramon Ramirez so they'll have room. It sucks potentially seeing a great arm like that go but I mean even if he becomes the next Renyel Pinto, that's not going to kill the Cubs.

REAL NEAL: There are several scouts that have very low opinions of the Cubs player development system (although they do think the scouting department is OK), and believe(rightly or wrongly) that all some of the Cubs pitching prospects-turned-suspects need is a chance to get some decent coaching. We'll have to see how that works out with Veal.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

If these injuries are due to (1) overuse or (2) failure to correct mechanical flaws in pitching motions, then it's a player development failure. Steve Stone has argued that more pitchers develop injuries in the Cubs minor league system than in other systems. Whether that's really true or he's just speaking anecdotally, I don't know. But it sure seems like the Cubs lose a lot of promising pitchers to injury.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

I don't think Michael Wuertz has panned out, although I think that's mostly on Rothschild. Rich Hill came to the majors without any ability to hold a runner on a base. When people started running wild him, they (LR and I-don't-know-who-else) started mucking with his delivery, teaching him to slide-step, etc. The result is the Rich Hill we see today. Zambrano has been taking one step forward, one step back for eight years. And he's a big talent. Dempster, Lilly, Harden--they don't owe anything to Cub coaching. Marmol is a success story, so far. Similarly Samardzija and Marshall, to an extent.

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

You're right about a few of these guys. Also Blevins--he was in the Cubs' system when he seemed to figure it out in '07. Now he's in the majors. Pinto was the Cubs' minors pitcher of the year one year, so he must have made some progress under them. Looking at Nolasco with the Cubs, he was 14-3 in 2005, so he didn't need Fla. coaching to pitch well. Okay, my beef is with Rothschild, then. How did Ohman (and the guys I mentioned in #47) do under Rothschild?

has this guy checked to see where his team's postseason revenue has come from recently? http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8817470/Oakland-owner:-Make-1st-roun… "NEW YORK (AP) - Lew Wolff has a way to shorten baseball's postseason: Make the first round best-of-one. "I'd make it one-game-and-you're-out for the first series," the Oakland Athletics owner said Wednesday. "It would be exciting. It would be great.""

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

a third of the time for the Cubs to get swept...not bad.

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In reply to by Rob G.

i just hope he was handling that question as a "fan" and not a "business man." either way there's around a 0.000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001% chance of it happening.

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In reply to by Rob G.

without a Cy Young or 300 wins, I doubt it....surprised to see that last year was his first 20-win season. Did have 17 straight seasons with double digit wins.

anyone notice Maddux's 20-year streak ended last season?

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

start looking at stats and it opens up a whole can of worms...

Maddux hasn't received a Cy Young vote since 2000, somehow in 2002 with a 16-6 record and a 2.62 ERA, he didn't get one. His 159 ERA+ was 2nd best in the NL.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Tim Kurkjian thinks he is based on his career W%-.638, 117 games over .500, 2800 Ks, pitched his entire career with the DH in the AL EAST and in the steroid era. I think he noted that every SP who has 100 more wins than losses in his career is either in the HOF or hasn't become eligible yet. Clemens, Pedro, Glavine, Johnson. Personally if Blyleven isn't in than Moose shouldn't be either. He really should have pitched one more year. He'd likely pick up at least 15 wins taking him to 285 and he'd almost assuredly get in then. Not to mention one last shot at a ring. His postseason numbers were solid outside of the W-L, 7-9, but had a 3.42 ERA, 145 Ks in 139 IP.

[ ]

In reply to by dB

Mussina is a Yankee so that should help his case. Other than Munson (who should be in the hall) has there ever been a borderline HOF Yankee who hasnt gotten in? I guess Maris, but 2 great seasons in an other wise average at best career should not you into the hall. Had those 2 great years been for the Royals, I wonder if people would be making a HOF case for him. Hell Mussina is more worthy than Rizzuto. I doubt Mussina even cares about it because one more year would have made him a lock. He could have been at 9500Ks and and atleast 12 wins to his record and be atleast 120 games over .500 for his career.

[ ]

In reply to by Chifan

I'd argue he had 3 great seasons from 1960 -1962: Avg/HR/RBI for those seasons -- .283/39/112, .269/61/142 & .256/33/100. Otherwise, his three highest HR totals were 28, 26 & 23 (in '58, '63 & '64) and three highest RBI totals were 80, 72 & 71 (in '58, '59 & '64) in 12 seasons. Otherwise, he failed to top 16 HR and 55 RBI in his other six seasons. Not a HOF career, in my opinion. The only question left is whether 1961 qualified as a HOF season by itself. I think not.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

reads a little disjointed if you're not a regular or not used to it...very casual name dropping had me lost... "I talked to Mark on the day of the division clinch and asked him, as he was dripping head-to-toe with champagne, what fueled him for this season." ...for instance...that's the first line of the story. i guess we're supposed to assume we know they're on a first name basis with players rather than mark being their obsessed fan friend at home ruining his carpet. good stuff, though.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Mike Huang, for what it's worth. As far as the "Mark" thing Crunch talks about, my guess is that Huang left off "DeRosa" in haste. I don't think any other posts are as informal when talking about the players.

AZ Phil, The way I read Veal being left off the 40-man is the Cubs either (A) don't feel Veal will be good enough to make anyone's 25 man roster on Opening Day and/or (b) has no significant trade value by himself or as part of a package (e.g. Brian Roberts). Do you agree? Also, from your top 15 list is there anyone with significant trade value except Vitters? Aren't Cashner, Jackson, McDaniel ineligible to be traded until after this year's June draft?

[ ]

In reply to by George Altman

[edit: I intended this as a reply to Q-Ball, #28.] I don't know about you but I'm impressed by Jake Fox hitting .423 and slugging .676 while batting cleanup for Licey. That league is not chopped liver. Felix Pie goes there every winter and hits .220, just like in the majors. A couple of his teammates last year were Miguel Cabrera and Marmol. The Cubs have needed a righty hitter with some power off the bench. Why not Fox? He can play first and a little outfield and he's also a third-string catcher, which frees up the second-string catcher to pinch hit--so you get two pinch hitters for the price of one. Fuld has quietly raised his average to .304 (.398 OPB) while batting leadoff for Aragua, Rich Hill's team (maybe soon-to-be former team) in Venezuela. Fuld might actually be better in the number-two slot for the Cubs than Fukudome, who has been tried there. Also, Fuld is cheap talent. This may be me, but I don't think a GM can get away with paying big bucks to four outfielders, when there are only three positions. The accountants will catch that. Exposing Veal is a risk, but my guess would be that Fuld has a better chance of being drafted and actually sticking with another team.

AZ Phil, what does leaving off Veal say about Jake Fox and Sam Fuld? I think both of them are "fringy" at best, and very easily missed if someone took a Rule-5 flyer. Why wouldn't the Cubs just DFA one of those two, and add Veal to the 40-man? Is there something I am missing?

Perhaps Veal and Spears might be needed in a trade before the Rule 5 draft? If that's the case, leaving them off the list allows for a deal involving them to be done soon, rather than with Atkins, Berg, or Mateo. From AZ Phil's article a few days ago: Any player on a minor league reserve list on November 20th is considered "frozen" on that roster until the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft, meaning all players on minor league reserve lists as of 11/20 cannot be traded to another organization or moved to a different reserve list in the same organization during that period of time. Players on an MLB 40-man roster can be outrighted to the minors during this period, however.

According to WGN, final 4 bidders have until 12/1 to get in bids. Cuban, reportedly, is not one.

I respectfully disagree on Mussina, Rob. Saying without 300 wins or a Cy Young a pitcher doesn't deserve to get in is kinda like saying "Well...without 3000 hits or 500 HR's, player X doesn't get in." 270 wins, 2800 K's, an ERA+ of 123. He top comparisons from Baseball Reference include Juan Mariscal, David Wells, Curt Schilling, Jim Palmer, Carl Hubbell, and Jack Morris. Is it his fault he pitched in a league with Pedro Martinez, Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, etc?

[ ]

In reply to by Dr. aaron b

Here's the thing I can't remember any time thinking he was one of the top 5 pitchers in baseball in any given year. Same as Biggio for players. Barry Sanders was considered the top running back of his time, even when he was in the league with the eventual all time rushing leader. Bad comparsion. The thing that will help Mussina will be NY press, if they love him enough he will get in, although not winning a WS will not help.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

Barry Sanders, to any who watched him, is unquestionably one of the 3 best RB and probably 10 best football players in the entire history of the sport (fyi Jim Brown, Walter Payton). Mussina was very good for a very long time, but I don't think anyone's going to say he's one of the 3 best at his position anytime soon. Robert Smith would be a much, much better football comparison, if we're talking about going out on top (career wasn't nearly as long-lived). That being said, I'd probably lean towards yes for Mussina on the HOF. Completely off topic, anyone else ever hear this Barry Sanders story? His terrible defense somehow managed to get an interception, and Sanders wasn't expecting this, obviously, as he was asleep on the sidelines. Brett Perriman walks over and wakes him up, says hey dude we have the ball, Sanders gets up groggy, eyes red, puts his helmet on and runs on field. Sweep right, 60+ yard TD. Walks back to bench, goes back to sleep. I have no idea where I heard this except it was on TV at some point, so take it with a grain of salt maybe, but the fact that I'm not convinced it didn't happen shows how good that guy was.

[ ]

In reply to by gobuckeyes

Giving the ball to Barry Sanders was like throwing a bomb down field on every play. Most times it will go incomplete but the times that it works, scores 6 and looks great in the stats. Sanders was the opposite of what I would ever want in a running back. I want a guy that i can give the ball to that you know will give you 4 yards a pop. While Sanders stats may average out to that, it merely shows the flaw in averages. When you run 30 times for 150 yards and 2 TDs, it looks great. But when you take out the 75 yard run and you ran 29 times for 75 yards, not that great. Give me Emmitt Smith every time over Sanders.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

"Here Emmitt -- take the ball and run through that gaping hole that our All Pro offensive line opened up for you, while the linebackers and safeties worry about our All Pro QB throwing to Irvin and Harper. Enjoy your 5-yard gain." "Here Barry -- take the ball and don't worry about the fact that the entire defense is monitoring your every move, that there are already 2 defensive lineman in our backfield, and that they have at least 8 men in the box on every play." Sheesh.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

i hear the same BS every time. Except that is how Barry Sanders always ran his entire career. Even back in college. They guy is/was a phenomenal athlete. He had blazing speed, ridiculous quicks and fantastic vision. But he was undisciplined as hell and was always going for the home run kill shot. he was never happy with a 4 yard run. He was happier taking a run for a loss. If i had a way to look it up, i would. But he didn't make first downs. He didn't control the clock and forced more 3 and outs with his style of play.

[ ]

In reply to by Chad

You can find those stats for Sanders here: http://www.nfl.com/players/barrysanders/careerstats?id=SAN194381 Sanders gained a 1st down on 18.7% of his runs compared to Emmitt's 21.8%. Despite having 1,500 less rushing attempts, Sanders still had more 20+ yard runs (113-94) and 40+ yard runs (42-17!). It should also be noted that they didn't keep those stats for Sanders' first two years and Smith's first year in the league, so the difference is greater. Sanders also only fumbled 19 time compared to Smith's 38. Also, Sanders only had one 75-yard run in his career. Also, just doing some quick math estimates. If you were to subtract the long runs of Sanders (20+) from his overall stats, his average per carry would be a bit over 4 yards, just as Smiths. So the difference in the yards per carry between the two is Sanders' homeruns, but minus that, his average per rush is still as good as Emmitt's.

I totally disagree about Biggio, he was the top 2nd baseman in the game for a long period of time. You wanted a little power with your stolen bases at a notoriously weak position, he was your man. Him in Roberto Alomar were the best of the best. His overall stats easily make him one of the all-time greats at the position. I really don't understand why Cubs fans got to knock the accomplishments of rival teams great players. He was a great player and he is more than deserving to be a HOFer, 1st ballot even.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

The problem in my mind with Biggio and Bagwell is the same problem with Sosa and McGwire. A lot of it is going to come down to how many writers are confident they were juicing. I would say there were seasons when Mussina was considered one of the game's top 3 pitchers. Definetly one of the AL's top three pitchers. You can't punish these guys too much for having played in the same era as Maddux, Johnson and Martinez.

The New York Post is speculating that David Dejesus will be shopped, now that the Royals have Coco Crisp. I wonder what they will want for him....

Check out this article about a friend of mine who's son has optic nerve hypoplasia and is going to China for stem cell therapy. Ryan Dempster and his wife made an unsolicited and unexpected donation to help them make the trip. I don't know what his ERA+ will be in 2012, but the guy is definitely a class act. http://tinyurl.com/6x7kuc

Biggio has better overall numbers than Sandberg. So by your logic if you play for a shitty organization that doesn't develop or sign any good talent (ala the Cubs for much of its existence) your a more qualified HOFer than a player who played with an organization that had a clue? I am sorry that has always been one of the least defenseable arguements people try to use around this site and many others. The fact is it doesn't make Biggio less deserving if he had Bagwell and Berkman around him. He just had a better organiztion to play for, and it still doesn't erase his over-all stats at the position and how he ranks with the all-time greats. You go to baseball-reference.com and it shows the players with stats comparable to Biggio. Here is the list.... Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Joe Morgan, Cal Ripkin, Roberto Alomar, Brooks Robinson, George Brett, Lou Whitaker, Ivan Rodriguez, Ryne Sandberg. But hey when you got better over-all numbers than guys like Joe Morgan and Ryne Sandberg there really isn't a question about his HOF creds.

Biggio is a HOF'er, he was a great player for a long time. That's the definition of Hall of Famer. However, I see Mike C still can't have an adult discussion and instead turns to insults when someone disagrees with him. How old are you, Mike? Do you still want to tell me how great Fukudome is?

I believe that Steve Garvey had 10 or more all star games. You never hear his name mentioned as a potential HofF. I don't think he should be, but there is a bit more than 10 all star appearances. Someone once asked me how many home runs a player needed to get into the hall of fame and I told him one more than Fred McGriff.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

comparing lowe to maddux...now that's an interesting leap. i do like how sheehan goes about explaining his logic, though. i agree with most of it, but that which i don't he at least goes through the trouble of explaining why he believes what he believes.

white sox win the dayan viciedo sweepstakes (cuban defector superstar kid)...supposedly it's gonna cost them an 11m major league contract. via rotoworld who claims the chicago tribune as a source.

Submitted by VirginiaPhil on Thu, 11/20/2008 - 3:30pm.

AZ Phil can clarify this, but reading the italicized section in Andrew's post, I would say the "minor league reserve list" is the minor-league full roster, which would mean that Spears and Veal are frozen and can't be traded before the draft; and that Atkins, Berg and Mateo can be traded, like anyone else on the major-league 40-man (unless they have an NTC!).

======================================

VA PHIL: The November 20th roster deadline is more about minor leaguers being "frozen" than it is about a club's MLB reserve list (40-man roster).

Players on an MLB Reserve List (40-man roster) are NOT "frozen" during the period between November 20th and the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft (December 11th this year). Players on the 40-man roster can be traded, outrighted to the minors, or released, and free-agents can be signed, too, just like any other time of the year, so the Cubs can trade Atkins, Berg, and/or Mateo today or next week if they were so inclined.

But players who are on minor league reserve lists (Iowa 38-man roster, Tennessee 37-man roster, and Daytona, Peoria, Boise, Mesa, and DSL Cubs (split into DSL Cubs 1 and DSL Cubs 2 during the DSL season) 35-man rosters as of November 20th (like Veal and Spears) CAN'T be traded or added to a 40-man roster until the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft. That's what happened when Derrek Lee was acquired from the Florida Marlins for Hee Seop Choi and a PTBNL on 11-25-03. RHP Mike Nannini was the PTBNL, but he couldn't be immediately "named" because he was on a minor league reserve list when the trade was consummated, and the deal was made during the so-called "closed period" between November 20th and the Rule 5 Draft. Nannini was not selected in the Rule 5 Draft, so he was sent to the Marlins as the PTBNL very soon after the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft (in fact I believe it was later that same day).

By the way, if you count up the reserve list (roster) limits for the Cubs and their minor league affiliate, you might note that the Cubs have a maximum of 290 roster slots available in the organization. The time when the most players are signed to contracts with the Cubs is the start of Spring Training in February, and the Cubs had 260 players (major leaguers and minor leaguers) signed as of last February 1st. So while the MLB, AAA, and AA reserve lists are usually full or nearly-full, the reserve lists at the lower levels are never full.  

Submitted by Q-Ball on Wed, 11/19/2008 - 8:22pm.

AZ Phil, what does leaving off Veal say about Jake Fox and Sam Fuld? I think both of them are "fringy" at best, and very easily missed if someone took a Rule-5 flyer.

Why wouldn't the Cubs just DFA one of those two, and add Veal to the 40-man? Is there something I am missing?

====================================

Q-BALL: The Cubs had room on their 40-man roster if thy had really wanted to add Donald Veal. Apparently the Cubs did want to "reward" Veal's poor performance in the AFL with a promotion to the 40-man roster, except the same could be said for Justin Berg. He has pitched very poorly in the VWL, and has the same problem as Veal (stuggles with command & control), but he was added to the 40.

Submitted by George Altman on Wed, 11/19/2008 - 7:46pm.

AZ Phil,

The way I read Veal being left off the 40-man is the Cubs either (A) don't feel Veal will be good enough to make anyone's 25 man roster on Opening Day and/or (b) has no significant trade value by himself or as part of a package (e.g. Brian Roberts). Do you agree?

Also, from your top 15 list is there anyone with significant trade value except Vitters? Aren't Cashner, Jackson, McDaniel ineligible to be traded until after this year's June draft?

==========================================

GEORGE A: I would think Donald Veal has more trade value and more potential than Justin Berg or Marcos Mateo. If the Cubs had left Berg and Mateo off the 40-man roster, or if the 40-man roster was full (or nearly-full), leaving Veal off the 40 might have made more sense.

Besides Jeff Samardzija and Andrew Cashner (who can't be traded), Josh Vitters and Welington Castillo probably have the most trade value, but both are a ways a way from being ready for MLB (Vitters is at least three years away, and Castillo is probably one or two years away), and I would think a team like the Padres (for instance) would want MLB-ready type prospects back iin a deal for Jake Peavy.

Sean Gallagher would have been perfect, but he was already used in the trade for Rich Harden. Sean Marshall would ordinarly probably be OK, too, except he will be eligible for salary-arbitration after next season, and the Padres probaly want MLB-ready guys who are as far away from arbritration eligibility as possible. So when Padres GM  Kevin Towers talks about the Cubs needing to include a third team to make a Peavy deal work, I would think he's probably saying the Cubs need to exchange Marshall for a similar-type pitcher or Ronny Cedeno for an infield prospect, but ones who are further away from salary arbitration than Marshall and Cedeno.

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

Phil, I'm afraid if you say "Vitters is at least three years away" you play into the hands of people who say, Trade him--we can't wait that long. Some guys are fast-tracked. Maybe Vitters is one of those. Maybe he's a better prospect than the Cubs have had before. I just looked over Justin Upton's history. He did A ball in his first full season with Ariz. at age 18, while Vitters did short-season Boise at 18. But Upton hit .263 with a .413 SLG, while Vitters was .328, .498. At 19, Vitters will start out at Peoria, low A. At 19, Upton did A+ and AA and got a September call-up to the majors. At 20, Upton had 61 AAA at bats and 356 ABs in the majors. It's not pie-in-the-sky (vitters-in-the-sky?) to say that Vitters might get a September call-up in 2010 and then report for duty in early-to-mid 2011, a year ahead of your prediction.

[ ]

In reply to by VirginiaPhil

Justin Upton also has great speed, and a strong arm--so his 107 OPS+ was absolutely fine this year. Of course, since Vitters will likely be playing a below average 3B or he'll be at 1B or in the outfield, he will have to hit--he doesn't have speed or defense to fall back on. I personally think Justin Upton has been rushed and than a little more time in the minors could help him be a better player, but Arizona management apparently thinks he'll develop just fine while playing with the big league club. Other phenoms have been rushed to the majors too, often with little success. BJ Upton made it to the majors at 19, had some success, then didn't do much in the majors until his age 22 season in 2007. Corey Patterson also comes to mind. Prospects have value even if they aren't ready for the majors and won't be for two or three years. We all say we want to win now, but I'm sure we'll want to win in 2012, too.

Anyone know where to find the Cubs minor league reserve list? The Cubs site doesn't show accurate minor league rosters over the Winter (and half the time in the Summer).

According to Bruce Levine Cubs are in talks with Royals for Tehan. Also Mets trying to get Vazquez and Jenks from Sox.(very early)

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In reply to by jacos

Given that KC has dealt away some cheap relievers, I imagine one of Wuertz, Guzman, Ascanio will be in this deal. The only thing I can hang my hat on is that Jimbo has a nack for getting guys right before they blassom offensively (Aram, Barrett, Dlee).

The number of LH hitting RF's is actually pretty limited, and ones who are available and fit into the Cubs current budget constraints even further reduces the pool of candidates. Teahen, though no world beater, fits the profile and even adds some versatility with his ability to play 3B and 1B. So what is Teahen worth to the Cubs in trade? The Royals definitely need to replenish their bullpen, having traded off two young arms since the end of the season. They might also want a middle IF. Does Ascanio get us Teahen?

Looks like Pie walked home on ball 4 to Fox with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth. Good picture of Felix, who is photogenic, you have to admit. He must be a tiger cub. Pie's 2 for 2 lifted his average 65 points to .292. (Just 24 at bats.) Come on, Sport, it's later than you think.

http://blogs.dailyherald.com/node/983 The Cubs added three minor-league pitchers to their 40-man yesterday: Mitch Atkins, Justin Berg and Marcos Mateo. One surprising name left off the list was lefty Donnie Veal, who now is eligible to be taken in the Rule 5 draft. That may well happen, but it’s hard to see the erratic Veal sticking with a big-league club all year. I still remember the hue and cry a few years ago when the Cubs lost lefty Andy Sisco to the Royals in the Rule 5. As it turned out, that didn’t hurt the Cubs at all. Atkins was the minor-league pitcher of the year. Mateo passed Jose Ceda by, allowing the Cubs to trade Ceda for Gregg. Speaking again of trades, the Cubs almost have to trade righty Jason Marquis, especially with lefty Sean Marshall pushing for a full-time job and with the Peavy talks not dead yet. No doubt the Cubs will have to eat some of Marquis’ $9-plus million salary for 2009. not sure if Miles is guessing that or it's info from a source of his...

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In reply to by Rob G.

I asked Bruce about it and he said that part about Mateo was something that was relayed to him by someone within the Cubs organization.

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In reply to by Rob G.

Here's an idea that won't happen, but makes sense for both teams, an expanded Cubs-KC trade idea: Cubs get: Mark Teahan, Jose Guillen, and $3MM cash in 2009 Royals get: Jason Marquis, Mike Wuertz, Ronny Cedeno and Koyie Hill Explanation: The move would be salary neutral for both teams in 2009. Royals get a starting SS, allowing Aviles to move to 2B full-time; a much-needed 7th inning reliever with ML experience and success; a backup catcher (they are giving the starting job to Olivo and are ready to trade John Buck); and a 5th starter with ML experience, allowing Kyle Davies to move to the bullpen. Royals could use some combination of Maier, Butler and Jacobs at 1B, RF and DH as they see fit. Cubs would get their new RF w/o taking on salary, allowing them to make an all-out push for Rafael Furcal at SS. Lou could platoon Guillen and Teahan, or give the job to Guillen most of the time and allow Teahan to be his bench super-sub. Since Teahan can play 1B (and bats LH), Micah Hoffpauir becomes trade bait. The #5 starter job opens up for a March competition between Marshall, Atkins and perhaps Samardzija. Comments?

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In reply to by Jim Hickmans Bat

If the Royals want to give Hill an MLB job they could just sign him. Who are the royals going to play in right field? How does the trade make the Cubs any better? Who replaces Cedeno?

You raise a good issue regarding Marshall. If we give this guy a chance to lock down the #5 starter spot, he could well win 10-13 games a year for the next 5 years or more. One thing you almost NEVER do in baseball is trade good, young, cheap, lefthanded starting pitching. Certainly he should not be included as a throw in to any trade. If the Cubs add Teahan and Gullien, who makes the team as outfielders next year? Now you have Soriano, Johnson, Fukudome, Pie, who would take the place of Edmunds on the roster. Assuming Ward's uselessness in the field and PH duties are taken by Hoffpauir, what roster moves would be made to add Teahan and Gullien? Send Hoffpauir to the minors and trade Pie?

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).