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

Gameday Open Thread / Cubs @ Athletics

The Cubs play the A's this afternoon at 2:05 Central Time in Phoenix. You can hear the game via the mlb.com Web cast.

Jason Marquis starts for the Cubs against former White Sox farmhand and non-roster invitee Gio Gonzalez. The lefty led all of minor league baseball in strikeouts last season and fanned three Giants over two scoreless innings in his Oakland debut last Saturday.

Marquis also threw last Saturday and, you may recall, pitched like hell.

Comments

I haven't posted since the change so I hope I'm doing it right and not breaking any new commandments. There's an interesting short piece on the state buying Wrigley Field in The Reader that came out today. Ben Joravsky, who has written a lot on Chicago's TIF (tax increment financing) says- "Under the plan the state would issue bonds to pay for rebuilding Wrigley... Here's the tricky part: sales taxes going to the city would be frozen and any increase in revenues spurred by the renovation (including extra seats) would go to the state to repay the loans. 'The city would have to give up their share of the sales tax increment for the next 30 years,' Jim Thompson said." A Joravsky correctly points out later in the article - money spent to refurbish Wrigley Field is money that can't be spent elsewhere. It's tied up in the park and will be slowly paid back from now until the year 2038. The needs of things like schools and parks will have to be payed for with money found elsewhere - probably through service cuts or tax hikes.

Just read a Neyer note about how the injury to Alou might actually help the Mets in that it would force them to address their weak OF. They now have Beltran, Church and ?, with one of the ? being Angel Pagan. Seems like Matt Murton would be nice trade bait but I don't know enough about the Mets (other than the fact that I have hated them since 1969) to know whether they have anything we value or need to make them good trade partners. Perhaps someone is rotting on the bench behind Jose Reyes? I really like Murton and the Cubs may want the OF depth, but just curious.

[ ]

In reply to by Ryno

i suck at expressing myself today, evidently. i was talking totally separate of the cubs/mets possible trade...just stating endy's one of the guys that could fill in for some of those mounting injuries. i do think endy is a good 4th OF'r...even has a decent enough arm for the corners and could do CF in a pinch. team already has that guy in fuld, though.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

it's a 4th OF'r...he has the arm to play multiple positions and the speed to play CF if needed. im not talking about a guy you give 400+ab's to. the guy ive seen the past couple year is not the same guy who "ignored" working on his patience while being groomed to start. he's got no power vs. lefties (what little he has anyway) but he can hit righties/lefties. he's not a strict "face righties only" type. yes, fuld has more upside, but what do people expect outta fuld except a few more walks/steals than the player described above. btw...if anyone wants to attack the above giving historical stats i'm gonna lose that fight, but im not fighting that fight...

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

ugg...now i follow. i miss the "thing youre quoting" followed by reply format...my brain is still trying to figure out who's talking to who 1/2 the time. TCR is the only msg board i use besides a horticulture board (which also follows a flat post format) so i'm not used to following the nesting boards with great scrutiny. i'll get used to it...blah blah etc. damn brain.

[ ]

In reply to by Ryno

yes...there's a nice one going on now about seed propagators and seed sellers re-naming and mislabeling seed and continuing to do so after being told its not cool by peers. stuff like calling a "potato leaf red brandywine" a brandywine at all when its not a true brandywine and other such crap i dont get involved with... OH THE HUMANITY!!!

[ ]

In reply to by Jumbo

yeah, the only problem is like what i did above...mistake who's talking to who cuz people dont quote what theyre responding to as much. like: "blah blah blah" re: blah blah. i blah blah etc. i'll get the hang of it...it just takes adjustment time cuz im not used to it.

[ ]

In reply to by CA-Phil

Yeah, on WFAN in NY they are all talking about how the have to go get a nice right handed bat for the OF. Murton might be a good fit for them, but I am not sure they have anything to give, and what they do have they aren't going to give up.

A's announcers tearing down paul "you gonna finish that drink" sullivan over him blasting mark ellis (in a private convo, lighthearted, i believe). "brain roberts or mark ellis...what you want? c'mon?" also of note...gary hughes is in the A's booth. he just had to get on the broadcast with them (mic'd up now) to lightheartedly defend the cubs. hehe...

That discussion of Fuld got me wondering. Does anyone know who holds the record for most major league ab's without ever getting a hit? I assume it's a pitcher, but I'd be curious what the positional record would be.

At least Marquis refrained from blowing again.

Lou's going to back the truck up here pretty soon and load it up with a few pitchers... I hope WGN will show a game this weekend. I did get to see the Mariners/Cubs on Fox sports Northwest earlier this week. My first post on the new site. Great job , Rob and anyone else who helped. Mike

[ ]

In reply to by WISCGRAD

That's a good point. Our young arms (Ceda, Ascanio, Cotts) are indeed struggling. I thought our starters have looked pretty good through a start for the most part. I was pleased that Marquis bounced back today. Z, Lilly, and Hill looked good. Dempster's been not too bad. Still about 10 more innings for each of those guys. Also, a lot of our guys are swinging it well through 15 ABs or so. The CF race and D-Lee aside, I've been pretty pleased with how everybody looks. But, that'll change as opposing pitchers start getting in the groove.

Submitted by crunch on Thu, 03/06/2008 - 5:51pm.

 i miss the "thing youre quoting" followed by reply format...my brain is still trying to figure out who's talking to who 1/2 the time.

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

CRUNCH: If you or anyone else wants the comments to look like they did at MVN, set your "COMMENTS VIEWING OPTIONS" (see above) to "FLAT LIST - EXPANDED" and "DATE - OLDEST FIRST" and then save the settings.

I guess it would probably help if a comment featured a quote from the relevant earlier comment (or at least quoting part of the earlier comment). I haven't been doing that here, but I will try to do so from now on.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

yeah, there's a "patch" that supposedly lets me put it on a timer. Tried to apply it but gave me an error message somewhere else on the site. The patch was a little dated for an older version of our software, so I'll have to sitdown and figure it out myself or find someone to help me figure it out. Since I know it's possible at least, I'm sure it's also fixable.

something i forgot to mention about the K-fuk interview the other day. they also interviewed the organist at hohokam! guy named George Kiefer (Keifer?). It was his idea to play "sukiyaki" whenever k-fuk comes to the plate, it being the only japanese language hit in the U.S. (#1 in like 1965 or something). anyway if anybody at the games was wondering why k-fuks tune sounds familiar, now you know.

Recent comments

  • 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. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Javier Assad started the Lo-A game (Myrtle Beach versus Stockton) on the Cubs backfields on Wednesday as his final Spring Training tune-up. He was supposed to throw five innings / 75 pitches. However, I was at the minor league road games at Fitch so I didn't see Assad pitch. 

  • crunch (view)

    cards put j.young on waivers.

    they really tried to make it happen this spring, but he put up a crazy bad slash of .081/.244/.108 in 45PA.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Seconded!!!

  • crunch (view)

    another awesome spring of pitching reports.  thanks a lot, appreciated.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Here are the Cubs pitchers reports from Tuesday afternoon's Cardinals - Cubs game art Sloan Park in Mesa:

    SHOTA IMANAGA
    FB: 90-92 
    CUT: 87-89 
    SL: 82-83 
    SPLIT: 81-84
    CV: 73-74 
    COMMENT: Worked three innings plus two batters in the fourth... allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits (six singles and two doubles) walked one, and struck out six (four swinging), with a 1/2 GO/AO... he threw 73 pitches (52 strikes - 10 swing & miss - 19 foul balls)... surrendered one run in the top of the 1st on a one-out double off Cody Bellinger's glove in deep straight-away CF followed one out later by two consecutive two-out bloop singles, allowed two runs (one earned) in the 2nd after retiring the first two hitters (first batter had a nine-pitch AB with four consecutive two-strike foul balls before being retired 3 -U) on a two-out infield single (weak throw on the run by Nico Hoerner), a hard-contact line drive RBI double down the RF line, and an E-1 (missed catch) by Imanaga on what should been an inning-ending 3-1 GO, gave up another run in the 3rd on a two-out walk on a 3-2 pitch and an RBI double to LF, and two consecutive singles leading off the top of the 4th before being relieved (runners were ultimately left stranded)... threw 18 pitches in the 1st inning (14 strikes - two swing & miss, one on FB and the other on a SL - four foul balls), 24 pitches in the 2nd inning (17 strikes - three swing & miss, one on FB, two SPLIT - six foul balls), 19 pitches in the 3rd inning (13 strikes - seven swing & miss, three on SL, two on SPLIT, one on FB - three foul balls), and 12 pitches without retiring a batter in the top of the 4th (8 strikes - no swing & miss - four foul balls)... Imanaga throws a lot of pitches per inning, but it's not because he doesn't throw strikes...  if anything, he throws too many strikes (he threw 70% strikes on Tuesday)... while he gets a ton of swing & miss (and strikeouts), he also induces a lot of foul balls because he doesn't try to make hitters chase his pitches by throwing them out of the strike zone... rather, he uses his very diverse pitch mix to get swing & miss (and lots of foul balls as well)... he also is a fly ball pitcher who will give up more than his share of HR during the course of the season...   
     
    JOE NAHAS
    FB: 90-92 
    SL: 83-85 
    CV: 80-81 
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day... relieved Imanaga with runners at first and second and no outs in the top of the 4th, and after an E-2 catcher's interference committed by Miguel Amaya loaded he bases, Nahas struck out the side (one swinging & two looking)... threw 16 pitches (11 strikes - two swinging)...   

    YENCY ALMONTE
    FB: 89-92 
    CH: 86 
    SL: 79 
    COMMENT: Threw an eight-pitch 5th (five strikes - no swing & miss), with a 5-3 GO for the first out and an inning-ending 4-6-3 DP after a one-out single... command was a bit off but he worked through it...   

    FRANKIE SCALZO JR
    FB: 94-95
    CH: 88 
    SL: 83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 6th inning... got the first outs easily (a P-5 and a 4-3 GO) on just three pitches, before allowing three consecutive two-out hard-contact hits (a double and two singles), with the third hit on pitch # 9 resulting in a runner being thrown out at the plate by RF Christian Franklin for the third out of the inning... 

    MICHAEL ARIAS
    FB: 94-96
    CH: 87-89
    SL: 82-83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and allowed a hard-contact double on the third pitch of the 7th inning (a 96 MPH FB), and the runner came around to score on a 4-3 GO and a WP... gave up two other loud contact outs (an L-7 and an F-9)... threw 18 pitches (only 10 strikes - only one swing & miss)... stuff is electric but still very raw and he continues to have difficulty commanding it, and while he has the repertoire of a SP, he throws too many pitches-per-inning to be a SP and not enough strikes to be a closer... he is most definitely still a work-in-progress...   

    ZAC LEIGH: 
    FB: 93-94 
    CH: 89 
    SL: 81-83 
    CV: 78
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and tossed a 1-2-3 8th (4-3 GO, K-swinging on a sweeper, K-looking on another sweeper)... threw 14 pitches (11 strikes - one swing & miss - eight foul balls)... kept pumping pitches into the strike zone but had difficulty putting hitters away (ergo a ton of foul balls)... FB velo is nowhere near the 96-98 MPH it was a couple of years ago when he was a Top 30 prospect, but his secondaries are better...   

    JOSE ROMERO:  
    FB: 93-95
    SL: 82-84
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 9th (14 pitches - only six strikes- no swing & miss) and allowed a solo HR after two near-HR fly outs to the warning track, before getting a 3-1 GO to end the inning... it was like batting practice when he wasn't throwing pitches out of the strike zone...

  • crunch (view)

    pablo sandoval played 3rd and got a couple ABs (strikeout, single!) in the OAK@SF "exhibition"

    mlb officially authenticated the ball of the single he hit.  nice.

    he's in surprisingly good shape considering his poor body condition in his last playing seasons.  he's not lean, but he looks healthier.  good for him.