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

Cardinals @ Cubs: Wacha vs. Arrieta (Game 166; NLDS Game 3)

The Cubs have the Cards right where they want them.

STL: RHP Michael Wacha
CHC: RHP Jake Arrieta

First pitch: 5:07pmCT

Arrieta continues his astounding year in the postseason, going 9 scoreless and striking out 11 in the Wild Card game in Pittsburgh. Against the Cardinals this year, he’s 1-0 with a 2.42 in 4 starts. They are hitting .229 against him. Overall, St. Louis is 28-151 (.250): Heyward is 6-18, Holliday is 1-15, and his old buddy Carpenter is 0-16.

Wacha last pitched on September 30, and he finished the month 2-3 with a 7.88, including two losses to the Cubs. In his 4 starts against the Cubs this year, he’s 1-2 with a 6.86 ERA, and they are hitting .301 against him. (His win came in St. Louis, when the Cubs sent Roach to the mound--ah, the Roach game.) For his career, the Cubs are 33-106 (.311) against Wacha: Castro and Rizzo are both 10-22 with 2 HR, and Bryant is 3-10 with a HR.

Go Cubs!

Comments

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

I say over. I think Arrieta is in uncharted territory and seemed a little shaky during the Pirates game. That, combined with Rizzo & Bryant who are a law of averages powder keg about ready to explode, and I think we have a surprisingly high scoring game.

My fear is that the bats take Arrieta for granted and get lazy. We need to come out and pummel this guy--or at least have some solid ABs.

By the way for anyone who didn't catch the Bears game, Cutler showed why I consider him the most underrated QB in football. Still hurting, missing his top 3 receivers and with a completely makeshift and poor offensive line in front of him he won us that game in a way very few other QBs could have done so. His entire time here he's dealt with bad offensive line play, changing offenses and receivers and bad scheming and he's made a ton of plays that don't show up great on stat sheets but are a product of good QB play. Past couple years it seems pretty commonly accepted Trestman was an atrocious coach who lost the locker room and had no ability to scheme using the actual skill sets of his players. Plus the offensive line play. I still think Cutler can be our QB of the future if we can put any sort of line and receiver talent on the field. It's absolutely ridiculous and depressing though how few draft picks we have on the field from quite a few drafts now and this year hasn't gone so well either. The 3rd round center who played had a horrible preseason and doesn't look capable of blocking anything. And now back to the regularly scheduled Cubs!.

[ ]

In reply to by johann

That's what so frustrating about him -- he'll avoid pressure and make great throws and win the game like yesterday, then will make an ill-advised and inaccurate pass that is returned for a TD the next week. Great talent but inconsistent. He plays better coming from behind, when it is OK to take chances and use his strong arm, than with the lead, when he makes too many foolish mistakes and accuracy is the key. The two Trestman years he had a lot of weapons on offense -- Marshall, Jeffrey, Bennett and Forte. Before last year, people were talking about Marshall & Jeffrey as one of the top WR tandems. But, yeah, he seems to be the QB for a while -- looks like the Bears won't get a top 2 picket this year, and it's not like they have a talented kid sitting on the bench.

[ ]

In reply to by billybucks

But again in 2014 under Emery you had a very poor pass blocking line that also committed a ton of penalties and suffered from a lot of injuries coupled with a dysfunctional team led by an obviously terrible coaching staff. Look at what Trestman is doing this year as only an offensive coach and its still pretty awful and couple that with actually having no idea how to run a whole team and I think the problems last year were far beyond Cutler. It's pretty obvious this year how little talent was left to Fox.

[ ]

In reply to by johann

I should be able to watch the game on the NFL replay app, whatever that thing is called. I've got it on my iPad. This is the first year I haven't forced myself to somehow watch every game - no I take that back, last year was - in quite some time. Last year was so unbearable, no pun intended. You make some good points about Cutler, and I was a holdout defender of Cutler for a long time. I gave up on him a bit after one too many dumb interceptions, but last year doesn't count. Trestman was the worst coach in Bears history. But if we really don't like Cutler, all we need to do is see another QB in there to see what we are missing, so points taken. And he's tough, so Bears fans should like him for that. Cutler is the least of my worries right now. If Fox can keep mending the defense, that's a start. Emery and Trestman really fouled things up.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

I hope they have someone warming up the 1st inning and have Hammel told that if he gets one ball up in the strike zone he is pulled. If he can get past the 1st inning he should be ok but ugh the elevation the strike zone thing he does is frustrating.

Astros 6 outs away, at home, leading 6-3 in the 8th. Lose 9-6. Series tied 2-2. Ouch. Edit: Even worse, they led 6-2. Five straight hits to start the 8th.

Holy cow... This is the worst, least intelligent, disorganized pre game crap I have ever seen. Anyone watching this crap on tbs right now???

The wind is blowing out something fierce at Wrigley, but you gotta hit it for the wind to help you. Arrieta looks like he picked up where he left off in Pittsburgh.

If Bryant gets a hold of one, it might never land.

Soler misruns the bases... and gets doubled off to end the 1st. The wind gets the better of Schwarber for a Heyward double...

Keep it together, fellas.

Well I hate the Cards and everything Molina has done to the Cubs over the years, but I gotta say it's really badass to play through an injury like he is.

[ ]

In reply to by Jace

If you think these announcers are bad ,the ones doing the Mets vs Dodgers (Ron Darling ,Cal Ripken and someone else) are worse they did the wildcard game I never knew Joe Jackson and Derrick Fowler played for the Cubs this year you would think there would be research by them.

What did we learn today? Defense is important. Now we know what Addison Russell brings to the team. The Cubs were very lucky to get this win considering the sloppiness.

2-1 series! 1st team hit hit 6HR in a game in the postseason. woo.

Theo: "So, let's see...should we put Soler on the post-season roster? Ummmm, yeah, I mean what the hell." Wow -- if he can bring that focus and plate discipline next year -- yowza! Seems like Manny has really helped him.

Lackey has been a beast against us. His stats on 3 days rest, however, not as nice. There is plenty of hope.

Wrigley was electric tonite Not many card fans Video board was great, they played "there goes my hero" by foos over ryno highlights before he came out. Spectacular Good times hopefully they win tomorrow but think Lester will beat poopy pants on Wednesday. Happy 4th anniversary of Theo's signing Go Cubs !

I was there too, with my grown son. This is my miracle year-- I rose to the top of the season ticket list after eight years, completely unexpectedly, and my wonderful wife agreed to put the ticket fee on the emergency credit card. The whole point of course was that the Cubs were going to be good this year, and then for a while, so to get season tickets with the guaranteed shot at the postseason was incredible timing. We got to the remote lot at 4:10 after stopping at Nhu Lan for our usual banh mi sandwiches, only to find the lot full, way earlier than normal. So we parked on the street in front of Audoubon Elementary School (go Eagles!), a mile and a half from the ballpark. I'm old like Old and Blue, but I work out every day, so we got to Wrigley in time for the first pitch. This was my first postseason game in 50 years of being a Cub fan, and I'm still on a high. The joint was rocking, and the crowd was fairly well-behaved except for the left field bleacher fans. If Holliday kills us tomorrow, it's their fault for taunting him. The home runs were, well, I write words for a living, but now they fail me. Schwarber- just made the basket, but we scored first! Castro- we were down for a minute or two, but that new front foot gave him the power! Bryant- the ball went up fast, leveled out, and carried and carried. Rizzo- a rocket. Soler- another rocket. Our right fielder for a while. Fowler- he had been "one biscuit for breakfast" short all evening, but that last run made it less traumatic in the ninth. What a night!

[ ]

In reply to by fullykräusened

Nice little reportage there!. I think you're older than me. Considerably older. Maybe several generations. Working out is so essential, especially as age kicks in, isn't it? I still lift weights, and so I'm confident that when I get to be at the hip breaking age, mine won't be a statistic. But I have a ways to go for that to be a concern.

I was there too. The crowd was absolutely electric. People were standing for every big and semi-big moment, from the first inning on. It felt incredibly strange and exhilarating to see the Cubs (the Chicago bleepin' Cubs!) score playoff insurance runs on the Cardinals. What a game. One to remember.

What was impressive to me is that the Cubs won despite poor base running, several defensive miscues, Russell leaving due to injury, Arrieta having an off game and getting knocked out early, and Rondon giving up 2 runs in the 9th. If they can win a game like that... 

Russell had a severe hamstring last year while with the A's system, forcing him to miss the first half of 2014. I've even wondered if his injury last year was a component of Billy Beane putting him on the trade market. He was quoted saying that last year's injury was a 10 out of 10 when it happened. Last night he said his hamstring soreness was a 1/1.5 out of 10. Hamstring injuries are tricky though, so I'd expect the medical team to be overly cautious here.

Pretty sure I already know the answer to this, but since I will be in NYC next week I want to confirm... If the Cubs were to advance to the NLCS, the winner of LAD/NYM would have home field based on being a division winner (as opposed to Cubs by virtue of better record), correct?

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).