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39 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (one slot is open), plus two players are on the 60-DAY IL and one player has been DESIGNATED FOR ASSIGNMENT (DFA)   

26 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE, and nine players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors, three players are on the 15-DAY IL, and one player is on the 10-DAY IL

Last updated 4-23-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Colten Brewer
Ben Brown
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Hector Neris 
Jameson Taillon 
Keegan Thompson
Hayden Wesneski 
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

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

OPTIONED: 9 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Jose Cuas, P 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Miles Mastrobuoni, INF
Daniel Palencia, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 

10-DAY IL: 1 
Seiya Suzuki, OF

15-DAY IL: 3
Kyle Hendricks, P 
* Drew Smyly, P 
* Justin Steele, P   

60-DAY IL: 2 
Caleb Kilian, P 
Julian Merryweather, P

DFA: 1 
Garrett Cooper, 1B 
 




Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Albertos Gives D'backs Plenty of Nothin' at Salt River Fields

Submitted by Arizona Phil on

RHSP Jose Albertos (2015 IFA - Mexico - $1.5M signing bonus) hurled four innings of one-hit shutout ball with seven strikeouts and Cubs 2016 7th round draft pick Michael Cruz (making his pro debut) belted an RBI double off the top of the right-centerfield fence (near HR) with two outs in the top of the 8th that drove-in the run that ultimately proved to be the difference in the game, as the AZL Cubs withstood a four-run 9th inning rally and edged the AZL Diamondbacks 5-4 in Arizona League action Wednesday night on Whirlwind Field at Salt River Fields at Talking Strick Resort east of Scottsdale, AZ. 

Besides the 8th inning RBI double, Cruz also was hit by a pitch (right shoulder) in his first pro AB, fouled a ball off his right instep in his second AB, and took a foul-tip off his right shoulder in the bottom of the 4th while working behind the plate (he caught all nine innings in 105+ degree heat). Welcome to pro ball. 

The 17-year old Albertos was masterful beyond his years in his four innings of work, staying ahead in the count (69% of his pitches were strikes) and mixing a 96-98 MPH fastball with a plus-change and an occasional curve to keep the opposing hitters off-balance. In fact, the Albertos change-up was so deceptive that one D'backs hitter injured his right knee (and had to leave the game) screwing himself into the ground on a swinging third strike trying in vain to hit one. The only hit off Albertos was a broken-bat line drive single over the third-baseman's head with two outs in the top of the 1st.

The AZL Diamondbacks were held to one hit (the first-inning broken-bat single) through the first eight innings of the game, but Kyle Smith (two-run double), Juan Araujo (RBI double), and Michael Branigan (RBI single) contributed run-scoring hits to the four-run 9th inning rally that fell a run short, as the potential tying and winning runs were left-stranded on the bases.

LHRP Jack Leathersich (ex-NYM) had another clean 1-2-3 inning (K, K, 6-3), as he continues to impress in his rehab from July 2015 TJS.    

Here is the abridged box score from the game (AZL Cubs players only): 

AZL CUBS LINEUP:
1. Luis Ayala, RF: 1-5 (L-7, L-5, 1B, 1-3, K)
2. Jose Gonzalez, CF: 0-4 (1-3, 4-3, 6-3, BB, K, R)
3. Jhonny Bethencourt, SS: 0-3 (4-3, L-4, BB, 6-3, R, SB)
4. Gustavo Polanco, 1B: 1-4 (3-U, L-8, F-9, 1B, R, RBI)
5. Kevin Zamudio, DH: 1-4 (2B, F-9, 5-3, F-8, R)
6. Michael Cruz, C: 1-3 (HBP, F-7, F-8, 2B, RBI)
7. Rafael Mejia, 3B: 2-4 (1B, 2B, 6-3, K, R)
8. Edgar Rondon, 2B: 1-3 (3-U, 5-3 SH, 1B, K, RBI)
9. Ruben Reyes, LF: 1-3 (4-3, F-7 SF, K, 1B, RBI)

AZL CUBS PITCHERS: 
1. Jose Albertos: 4.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K, 3/2 GO/AO, 54 pitches (37 strikes) 
2. Jack Leathersich: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 1/0 GO/AO, 14 pitches (8 strikes)
3. Eugenio Palma: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, 4/2 GO/AO, 19 pitches (12 strikes) 
4. Tanner Griggs: 1.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R (4 ER), 1 BB, 1 K, 1 WP, 2/2 GO/AO, 28 pitches (17 strikes) 
5. Luis Aquino: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, 1/0 GO/AO, 4 pitches (4 strikes)

AZL CUBS ERRORS: 1 
1B Gustavo Polanco: E-3 (missed catch allowed batter to reach base safely)

AZL CUBS CATCHERS DEFENSE:
Michael Cruz: 1 PB

ATTENDANCE: 16

WEATHER: Clear with temperatures 100+  

Tags
AZL Cubs
Jose Albertos
Michael Cruz
Jack Leathersich

Comments

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 06/23/2016 - 06:56 am

John Arguello (Cubs Den) also goes to the AZL Cubs games and he writes game reports, often has a photo gallery, and provides a link to the milb.com box score, so if you want info about the AZL Cubs and AZL Cubs games going forward, please visit Cubs Den.  

link 

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 06/23/2016 - 06:13 pm

One thing I have noticed about two of the Mexican pitchers (Camargo and  Albertos) who have come through Mesa Riverview over the past couple of years is that they have a plus-change-up but struggle a bit with their curve. This is almost exactly the opposite of what you see with most other young pitchers down here. Usually a young pitcher has a promising fastball and a decent if not plus-breaking ball (curve or slider) but struggles to learn the off-speed straight-change.  

Could it have something to do with the way young pitchers are coached in Mexico? Perhaps the change-up is taught instead of a breaking ball to help cut-down on elbow and shoulder injuries. 

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Thu, 06/23/2016 - 06:24 pm

BRADSBEARD: I haven't seen enough of Michael Cruz to say one way or the other, but he received the electric stuff Jose Albertos was throwing without any problems. (It was by far the best outing Albertos has had as a pro as far as command is concerned, going back to post-2015 Instructs, 2016 Minor League Camp, and EXST).

Cruz wasn't challenged by any D'backs base runners (because there were only three through the first eight innings, and none of them tried to steal), but FWIW, he did make some really lousy (Miguel Montero-like) throws to 2nd base after pre-inning pitcher warm-ups. 

Cruz will certainly get some intense instruction/evaluation at post-season Instructs, and his future as a catcher will be more-clear after that. I'm sure the Cubs very much want Cruz to remain a catcher if at all possible. 

As a hitter, just prior to the 8th inning RBI double off the right-centerfield fence, Cruz hit a long fly down the RF line that had home run distance but hooked foul at the last second. I've seen him take BP a few times, too, and he has legit raw HR power. A LH hitting catcher with HR power would be really nice to have. 

Submitted by The E-Man on Thu, 06/23/2016 - 06:24 pm

AZ PHIL: Albertos is only 17!!? Not 18 until November, apparently. Julio Urias will be 20 this summer. I can assume that - since he is from Reynosa, MX (Broncos de Reynosa is the Club - apparently Kyle Farnsworth has prev been on their roster), and Urias' Diablos Rojos del Mexico were in the same league - that they know one another. If Albertos pans out, it could be a huge coup for the Cubs, as Urias is for the Dodgers. The team certainly needs some impact arms in a big way, as I am not feeling so happy-face over Underwood and Pierce Johnson - or ANY Iowa Cubs starter except perhaps Ryan Williams.

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Wed, 06/29/2016 - 06:31 am

SHOW ME THE MONEY: Jose Albertos has signed with Mega-Agent Scott Boras.

Albertos has already received his signing bonus and won't see any additional significant money until he reaches the big leagues, so this is a long-term investment for the Boras Corporation.  

Other Cubs represented by Boras include Jake Arrieta, Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, and Albert Almora Jr. 

Submitted by cubbies.4ever on Wed, 06/29/2016 - 06:34 pm

Boras is 63, maybe he'll be retired or dead by the time Bryant, Russell, Almora, Albertos all hit free agency. Doubt he will be before Jake hits there though.

Recent comments

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Walker was a complimentary piece who was well past his prime. Edmonds, Holliday, Ozzie Smith and a few others were good trades. Notably, they have almost always been quiet in the free agent market. But the fundamental workings of the organization were always based primarily upon the constant output of a well oiled minor league organization. That organization has ground to a halt. And when did that hard stop start to happen? Right at the beginning of the Goldschmidt/Arenado era, perpetuated by the Contreras signing, followed by the rotation purchases during the last offseason. The timing is undeniable and, in my mind, not coincidental.

    Again, we are all saying that player development became deemphasized. I’m just linking it directly to the recent trades and involvement in the free agent market. I don’t see how the two concepts can be decoupled.

  • Charlie (view)

    The Cards also traded for both Jim Edmonds and Larry Walker. It's the developing part that has fallen off. Of course, it could also be the case that there are no more Matt Carpenters left to pull out of the hat. 

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Cubs sign 28 yr old RHRP Daniel Missaki. He was in MiLB from his 17yr old to 19yr old years and did pretty well.
    He's been in Mexico and Japan the last four years and has done well also.
    He's supposedly Japanese and Brazilian.
    Interesting sign. We obviously need to RP in the system
    Injuries are mounting everywhere!!

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Sure, they made generally short term trades for established players to enhance what they already had or traded for players early enough in their careers that they were essentially Cardinals from the start. What they never did was to try to use the more established players as foundational cornerstones.

    Essentially we’re saying the same thing. They have given up on player development to the point that even their prospects that make it to the bigs flop so that they have to do things like buy most of their rotation and hope for the best.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    I don’t buy that. They had been doing that for years.

    They did it with Matt Holliday. They did it with John Lackey. They did it with Mark Mulder. They did it with Jason Heyward, who had a great year for them. I’m sure there’s more but those come to mind immediately.

    I attribute it more to a breakdown in what they’re doing in terms of development than a culture thing.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    They won those trades and sacrificed their culture. That’s exactly their problem.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    The other part that’s kind of crazy is they made two very high profile trades, one for Goldschmidt and one for Arenado, and they very clearly won those trades. They just haven’t been able to develop players the last handful of years the way they usually do.

    I guess the moral there is it’s hard to stay on top of your game and be good at what you do in perpetuity.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Marmol was extended at the beginning of the year. Two years I believe.

  • crunch (view)

    Jesse Rogers @JesseRogersESPN
    Craig Counsell doesn’t have a timetable for Cody Bellinger who technically has two cracked ribs on his right side. CT scan showed it today.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Thought it might have been David Peralta given the open 40 man spot and how PCA has played so far. 

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