Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

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

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

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

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

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

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

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

 



 

Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Game 19 Thread / Mets @ Cubs (1 of 2)

Game Chat | Press Pass | BR Preview

SP John Maine
SP
Carlos Zambrano
  1-1, 3.78, 10 K, 12 BB
2-1, 3.04, 23 K, 3 BB
       
SS
#Jose Reyes
CF
Reed Johnson
2B
#Luis Castillo 2B
*Mike Fontenot
3B
David Wright 1B
Derrek Lee
CF
#Carlos Beltran
3B
Aramis Ramirez
1B
*Carlos Delgado
RF
*Kosuke Fukudome
RF
*Ryan Church LF
Mark DeRosa
C
#Raul Casanova
C Geovany Soto
LF
*Endy Chavez SS
Ronny Cedeno
P
John Maine
P #Carlos Zambrano

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first-place Chicago Cubs--has a nice ring to it, don't you think?--are coming off a weekend drubbing of the Pirates, two games in which they scored 26 runs, amassed 30 hits, and still required seven innings of duty from their busy bullpen.

Maybe Zambrano can provide a rest. As pointed out at mlb.com, four of the Mets' big bats--Reyes, Delgado, Beltran, and Wright--are a combined 8-for-47 lifetime against Carlos. Doesn't matter; they still scare the crap out of me.

The Mets (10-7) had a five-game winning streak snapped Sunday night at Philadelphia. (I wonder if Ron Santo will give "Beltran" the official Spanish flourish, the way Jon Miller did on the ESPN broadcast--"bel-TRON.")

Tonight's Met starter, Maine, has made two previous starts at Wrigley and been tagged for 6 runs in 3 2/3 IP.

And while we're at it...Rob G. is a guest poster at Mets Today, offering the enemy an inside look at the Cubs.


If you liked this article, consider supporting us during TCR's April Pledge Drive.

Comments

I thought Lou said he would get him in on Monday over the weekend. I guess he hasnt graduated from Lou's hitting school/doghouse.

So, why are Felix Pie and Matt Murton in the majors? Don't Sam Fuld and Jake Fox make more sense as 4th outfielder/defensive replacement/pinch runner and righty pinch hitter (for a couple more weeks)? Those are the guys who are looking at a future as bench players. Murton and Pie should be getting their ABs and improving their approaches, in the minor leagues if Lou isn't going to play them in the majors. Am I just completely lost, or is it Lou who is confused about how to handle the youngish guys?

Will Pie finally get to start a game now? That swing was sweet. Might as well sit Might Mike, whom I am a big fan of, if he's not going to hit. DeRo back to 2nd, Pie in center, and Murton or (more likely) Johnson in LF. How 'bout that Cedeno? Nice ABs from Fukie and Ronny. Ronny gets a fastball up and in, the pitch that dominated him in the second half of 2006, and he lines it right back up the middle, just like the book tells you to do.

I was a little worried that they might be a little too laid back from beating up the Pittsburgh Punching Bags this past weekend, but this was a good win!

Seriously, I mentioned this in a game thread a few days ago, but I think Cedeno is learning the game...he's young, and I want to see him continue to develop. I'm really glad we didn't give up on him last year. I'm not saying this just in light of his great AB in the 8th today. I said it a few days ago, he could really start to play like he is a real ML SS. Pie's swing was really sweet. I'd like to see him keep his swing that short. He'll rake if he does. Nice AB by both of them.

[ ]

In reply to by Charlie

More agreement here. I'm not going to get too hyped on Cedeno yet as it's still really early, but he does seem to get it more this year, showing discipline and fouling off pitches he would have missed last year. As for Pie, I can only hope that hitting a three-run dinger using the shorter swing that Piniella's apparently been advocating will give him some confidence to keep using it. Plus, it was a bit of a confidence show that Piniella ran Pie out there for that AB. I know he was the only lefty still on the bench, but getting the nod over the more accomplished Murton is a nice show of confidence.

Seeing the Cedeno and Pie at bats just felt good. Caveat: It's only one game, but this is the kind of stuff you get with pennant winning teams -- contributions from up and down the line-up and the bench. Happy afterglow right now.

Zambrano-Marmol-Wood. Beautiful. Very nice homestand. Let's see if Theodore can get his stuff together tomorrow and finish this thing off in style. I dunno -- maybe Lou knows what he's doing with Pie?

I'm sure others felt the same way that I did when we got the bases loaded with nobody out and DeRosa and Soto went down. In previous years that rally ends right there. 5 runs later the game was in the bag.

Watching Fuku foul off pitch after pitch and then finally single to the opposite field was one of my favorite ABs of the young season. Then came Ronny Cedeno's AB and might have surpassed it. I just don't get how Fuku doesn't whiff on every pitch on the outer half. It looks like he pulls so far off the ball, but he consistently manages to get a piece of almost every pitch. He must drive opposing pitchers fucking bonkers.

[ ]

In reply to by Doug Dascenzo

If you go back and watch the GameTrax thing on ESPN (and I know it ain't perfectly accurate), they called strike two on him on a pitch about three inches off the plate. Now Fukudome starts watching the outside corner a bit more closely. As the sequence continues, Heilman throws him three more pitches in nearly the same spot (plus some others), all outside according to GameTrax, and all fouled off. Heilman finally gets one back to the outside corner and Fukudome knocks it into left field. Very cool.

Here were the Cubs OPS going into tonight's game: Johnson, cf .835 Theriot, ss .893 Lee, 1b 1.133 Ramirez, 3b .915 Fukudome, rf .902 DeRosa, lf .975 Soto, c 1.006 Cedeno, 2b .885 Blanco, c .718 Ward, ph .686 Fontenot, 2b .613 Pie, cf .343 Murton, of .250 For all you Theriot-haters: his line - .338/.408/.485 Cubs pitchers Opponents BA: Zambrano .262 Lilly .309 Hill .204 Marquis .290 Dempster .169 Wood .147 Marmol .167 Hart .208 Wuertz .238 Obviously, it's only 18 games into the season and 6 wins against PGH, but it's not hard to see why they're 12-6 (now 13-6).

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Terribly boring questions, but it was interesting to hear how well Samardzija handled himself. He seemed to know what he needs to work on (control, secondary pitches) and articulated himself well. Seems to have a good head on his shoulders.

I was at the game tonight and really liked what I saw from nearly everyone in the lineup; great to see Pie's AB. Perhaps the best part about it was that he took the first two pitches; when have we ever seen Pie be that patient? The one exception for the Cubs right now is Mike Fontenot. I honestly don't think he has what it takes to be a big leaguer. Lou needs to realize that just because he hits left-handed doesn't mean he will help the Cubs win. I have not seen him hit a ball hard in the last week since Soriano went down and he has been playing. The Cubs are so much stronger (even without another left-handed bat) with DeRo at second and Murton in left (obviously until #12 comes back), or with Pie in Center, DeRo at second and Reed in left. At least if Pie isn't hitting (which hopefully he turns this thing around now) he is still a significant defensive upgrade in center, whereas Fontenot is not over DeRo. I see no reason why Fontenot should be playing other than his left-handed bat.

I know The Riot is working a kink out in his back, but if when he comes back and Cedeno continues to show maturity at the plate, am I the only one thinking that a Cedeno/The Riot DP combo would work out well?

In case you haven't caught this yet, I thought this was a nice reverse spin on the exact thing us Cub fans have been wondering on how our team stacks up against the "contenders" - or as some of you say - "the good teams". Today's New York Times headline: "Playing a Top Team, the Mets Fall Short" Pretty damn refreshing to read this from a NY sportswriter perspective - at least for one day, anyway - http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/22/sports/baseball/22mets.html?_r=2&ref=…

Z's quote in today's Trib makes me a little giddy as well: "Anytime I want to throw 95 or 96 (m.p.h.), I can throw it. But it's not how hard you throw in the big leagues. It's how you locate your pitches and learn to pitch the game." Holy Cats, is this the mature and professional hurler we all thought Z would become, but wondered if he'd ever make it? Not trying to blow everyone away, keeping runners off the bases, mixing up his pitches, etc. He also mentioned actually listening to Maddux previously -who knew he was paying attention? Please keep pounding those bananas, Carlos.

Oh Joe: "Zach (OKC): When Soriano comes back, do you think he will go directly to lead off or do you think the scrappy Reed Johnson should hold down that spot? Thanks! Joe Morgan: (10:34 AM ET ) Interesting question. I think he will end up leading off again. Johnson is playing well now, but can he do it all season? There are reasons why certain guys are extra men most of their careers. I think eventually Soriano will take back the lead off spot." While Johnson may not hit in the lead off the rest of the season, it will not be because he has been considered an extra man most of his career. Excluding 2007 (when he was injured) Johnson averaged 133 games played and 452 AB in Toronto.

I am not a fan of Pie's abilities to hit in the majors but I like that Lou Pinella is doing stuff behind the scenes to hopefully get Pie up to speed. Dusty had a famous quote where he said he doesn't have time to teach in the majors. Players need to come ready to play, take that in context with what Lou is trying to do... Before the game, Piniella was asked why the Cubs don't correct Pie's problems at Triple-A Iowa if he's not going to start. "Look, we understand that this is not an easy thing," Piniella said. "But you've got to do it somewhere, and he's here with us now and we're going to work with him and hope that it catches on. We're not getting too drastic with the changes. We're trying to stay as elementary as possible—to weight-shift a little more and get off his backside so he can have a better pass at the ball, stay in the strike zone a little longer and get to more pitches." Nice to have a real manager.

Pie's on something like his 4th hitting coach at this level, not counting Lou presently - maybe having the manager personally coach you will be the key for him. Some may not remember that Frey helped Sandberg become more of a power hitter after working with him a bit - although Ryno had already figured out to hit major league pitching at that point. The kid was so excited after his homer yesterday, how could anyone not be rooting for him?

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    yeah, for me this isn't about who's better at 3rd.  it's madrigal, period.  for me it's about who's not hitting in the lineup because madrigal is in the lineup.

    occasional play at 3rd for madrigal, okay.  going with the steele/ground-ball matchup...meh, but okay, whatever.

    seeing madrigal get significant starting time...no thanks.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Yeah I am very disappointed Madrigal is starting. He has no business as a starter. He is AAA insurance, a back up at best. Sure his defense looks fine because he plays far enough in that his noodle arm isn’t totally exposed. It comes at the cost of 3B range.

    He’s garbage, and a team serious about winning would NOT have him starting opening day.

  • crunch (view)

    in other news, it took 3 PA before a.rizzo got his 1st HBP of the season.

  • Eric S (view)

    With two home runs (so far) and 5 rbi today … clearly Nick Martini is the straw that stirs the Reds drink 😳

  • crunch (view)

    madrigal at 3rd...morel at DH.

    making room for madrigal or/and masterboney to get a significant amount of ABs is a misuse of the roster.  if it needed to get taken care of this offseason, they had tons of time to figure that out.

    morel played almost exclusively at 3rd in winter ball and they had him almost exclusively there all spring when he wasn't DH'ing.

    madrigal doing a good job with the glove for a bit over 2 chances per game...is that worth more than what he brings with the bat 4-5 PA a game?  it's 2024 and we got glenn beckert 2.0 manning 3rd base.

    this is a tauchman or cooper DH situation based on bat, alone.  cooper is 3/7 with a double off eovaldi if you want to play the most successful matchup.

    anyway, i hope this is a temporary thing, not business as usual for the rest of the season.  it will be telling if morel is not used at 3rd when an extreme fly ball pitcher like imanaga is on the mound.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    There are two clear "logjams" in the Cubs minor league pipeline at the present time, namely AA outfielders (K. Alcantara, C. Franklin, Roederer, Pagan, Pinango, Beesley, and Nwogu) and Hi-A infielders (J. Rojas, P. Ramirez, Howard, R. Morel, Pertuz, R. Garcia, and Spence, although Morel has been getting a lot of reps in the outfield in addition to infield). So it is possible that you might see a trade involving one of the extra outfielders at AA and/or one of the extra infielders at Hi-A in the next few days. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    18-year old SS Jefferson Rojas almost made the AA Tennessee Opening Day roster, and he is a legit shortstop, so I would expect him to be an MLB Top 100 prospect by mid-season. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Among the relievers in the system, I expect RHRP Hunter Bigge at AAA Iowa and RHRP Ty Johnson at South Bend to have breakout seasons on 2024, and among the starters I see LHP Drew Gray and RHP Will Sanders at South Bend and RHP Naz Mule at ACL Cubs as the guys who will make the biggest splash. Also, Jaxon Wiggins is throwing bullpen sides, so once he is ready for game action he could be making an impact at Myrtle Beach by June.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    I expect OF Christian Franklin to have a breakout season at AA Tennessee in 2024. In another organization that doesn't have PCA, Caissie, K. Alcantara, and Canario in their system, C. Franklin would be a Top 10 prospect. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    The Reds trading Joe Boyle for Sam Moll at last year's MLB Trade Deadline was like the Phillies trading Ben Brown to the Cubs for David Robertson at the MLB TD in 2022.