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

Crazy Legs Campana Headed to the Desert

Last week, the Cubs outrighted Tony Campana off thier 40-man to make room for Scott Hairston. Today, the Diamondbacks agreed to give up two pitchers for the speedster...RHP Erick Leal and RHP Jesus Castillo. Judging by the quality going out, I wouldn't expect much on the quality coming in, but maybe the Cubs unearth one of those diamonds in the rough. Leal, a 6'3" righty out of Venezuela, will be playing his age 18 season and Castillo is a 6'2" righty also out of Venezuela and will be playing his age 17 season. In both cases, plenty of time for them to learn the "Cubs Way." Nick Piecoro had both of them in a write-up on some of the D'Backs international signings from back in late 2011 that you can view here and see some video. Here are the quotes from the D'Backs international scouting director Carlos Gomez at the time:

Re: Castillo ($250K signing bonus)

“He’s about 6-2, 165, 170 pounds. He’s long, lean and all kinds of projectable. He has a loose, cool rhythm about him, really free and easy. His fastball ranges from 82-89 mph, but he pitches 85-86 right now. I think he has a chance to throw a lot harder. His best secondary pitch is his changeup and the breaking ball isn’t bad. The spin is there, but it needs work and consistency. He gets really good extension, almost jumps off the mound. We think he can start; we see starter’s arm action and delivery from him.”

Re: Leal ($75K signing bonus)

“He’s 6-3, 180 pounds. He has a nice delivery, a nice arm action, and the highlight again is the breaking ball. He’s a kid who can spin it. It’s 74-76 mph already and his fastball is 86-88. He has the physical size, the delivery, a breaking ball and a present, useable fastball for his age. He’s one of those guys who looks like he might have slipped through the cracks. A lot of that same type of guy was going for more earlier in the year. His delivery is pretty balanced, but he drives pretty aggressively out front; he really gets over his front side well. You can tell the extra breaking ball spin he gets is a function of his finish.”

Something is better than nothing and Crazy Legs was always a lot closer to nothing in my in opinion.

Comments

Since both Erick Leal and Jesus Castillo are from Venezuela, both will likely pitch for the new VSL Cubs affiliate in 2013.  

BTW, the trade was made right at the 2 PM (Eastern) deadline when the Cubs would have had to place Tony Campana on Outright Assignment Waivers. He could not have been traded once he was placed on Outright Waivers, and it would have been necesssary for the Cubs to place him on waivers today (waiver requests must be submitted by 2 PM Eastern) so that he would either be claimed off waivers or outrighted on Wednesday (the 10th day of the DFA). 

The D'backs must really like Campana a lot. Obviously they would have claimed Campana if he had been placed on waivers, but they couldn't be sure that another MLB with a higher waiver priority (worse 2012 record) wouldn't also put in a claim and get him instead, so they made a "pre-emptive strike."  

Arizona placed RHP Daniel Hudson (TJS rehab) on the 60-day DL to make room for Campana on their 40-man roster.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Without knowing their options situations, it wouldn't surprise me if Eaton or Pollock were kept in AAA a bit longer (probably Pollock), giving them the ability to stash Campana as a 5th OF/pinch runner. As a total side note, I've tried to defend Towers at times, but they've really taken this "scrappy-tough guy" image ... too far. Hadn't really pondered the makeup of their OF until seeing it right now. It was only last year that they had Chris Young and Justin Upton ... and now, they have 3 guys with very little pop (4 if you include Campana) and two very mediocre OF's. As for the trade, eh, no big loss, IMO. Campana didn't have much long term value (and it's debatable how much overall value). Yeah, the arms don't look that exciting (although they are interesting enough), but for Campana, it seems like a very nice gamble.

Jed Hoyer phone interview on today/tonight's MLB Network's Clubhouse Confidential (MLB Network's SABR-oriented show), fwiw. -needed pitching this season, waiting for pitching that's already in the system to come up through the system -feels like they have 7 guys who could be in the rotation -e.jackson "young" and fits in with what they want to do with their timetable, great stuff, healthy -timetable is undetermined (run around answer), gave example of 2010 padres as a team that could surprise, "you don't know when it's going to click" -add more talent every year -likes what the bjays did this year...build-then-pounce/aggressive -soriano works hard, fantastic, mentor, etc...if opportunity arises they "would discuss" moving him

oh canada...u so crazy. "Russell Martin is expected to play shortstop for Canada in the World Baseball Classic."

"Alfonso Soriano has given the Cubs a list of "six or seven" teams that he would be willing to accept a trade to. Soriano doesn't want to be traded to the west coast, as he said the clubs are in the "east or center" of the country. "[The Cubs] know what teams," Soriano said. "We talked, my agent talked with those guys." The Cubs are reportedly willing to eat about $26 million of the $36 million remaining on Soriano's contract if they receive the right package in return."

per Rotoworld...
Matt Garza was diagnosed with a mild lat strain following an MRI.
Garza will rest for one week before trying to throw again. His first Cactus League start will be pushed back, but it's too soon to say whether it will affect his readiness for the start of the season. Still, all things considered, this is pretty good news for the Cubs.

So... the COL GM/front office is moving their operations to the player's clubhouse. along with the absolutely stupid pitching thing they got going on, they're moving into the "player's office" and seemingly undermining the manager's authority. now that they're busy scaring away any SP that might want to sign/play in COL, they're now going to disrupt all the player's space... at what point do these stupid "experiments" get a GM/front office fired? c.hurdle getting fired from COL was a blessing in disguise for him. btw, he got a 1 year extension with PIT today + 1 year club option for 2015.

AZ PHIL: Since "Rocket-Man" Tony is gone, who becomes the fastest Cub in the system? I know we have no Billy Hamiltons, but there must be a couple of speedy prospects? Szczur, Dunston Jr., Reyes, Lillibridge, Logan Watkins, Johnny Andreoli?

[ ]

In reply to by The E-Man

E-MAN: There is nobody to compare to Tony Campana in the organization, but the fastest runners would be (in order of furthest along in development and not including the DSL guys I haven't seen) Logan Watkins, Matt Szczur, Evan Crawford, Arismendy Alcantara, John Andreoli, Rubi Silva, Zeke DeVoss, Pin-Chieh Chen, Tim Saunders, Gioskar Amaya, Trey Martin, and Rashad Crawford, with Szczur probably #1.   

BTW, Szczur hammered LHP to the tune of 458/552/625 with 0 strikeouts and was tied for 7th in walks and tied for 5th in SB in the AFL post-2012 (and the AFL is approximately equivalent to AA), so he could be in Chicago as a RH platoon CF and lead-off hitter sooner rather than later. He really struggles to hit RHP, however. I'm not sure he will ever be anything more than platoon player or 4th OF (albeit a very useful one).

I'm curious as to how everyone thinks the final 25 man will shake out. Phil had something the other day about it, which seemed to be pretty logical to me. But that article noted that the last rotation spot (after Baker comes back) was going to be between Feldman and Wood, with Feldman moving to the bullpen being the most likely move. But in the last week or so, Sveum has been clear that Feldman will be a starter, and Hoyer said something about how he signed with the Cubs because they assured of him a roster spot. So, one would assume that Wood is going to go to the pen, since he can't be optioned. However, whose spot is he going to take? Not Marmol, Fujikawa, or Villanueva. Probably not Russell, although maybe. I doubt Rondon, after they selected him. Bowden's out of options too and Camp's too good. So maybe it's a bench bat? Valbuena or Sappelt? I know depth is good and all, but it seems like there are too many guys they like and want than can fit on the 25 man.

[ ]

In reply to by Andrew

Wood will definitely go to the pen when Baker's ready, unless Wood is pitching lights-out, in which case Baker may start in the pen after a tune-up in Iowa, assuming no one's hurt. I don't think any of the Cubs' 7 bullpen probables (Marmol, Fujikawa, Villanueva, Russell, Rondon, Bowden, Camp) can be sent down due to service time, rules, options, or Rule 5. Russell's the one I'm not sure about, maybe Phil can clear that up. It does create an interesting logjam if everyone including Baker is healthy.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

I'm hoping to see this improvement from Feldman before banishing Wood to the bullpen so quickly. Feldman has had an ERA over 5.00 4 of the last 6 seasons, his WHIP is 1.417 career, and he doesn't strike out a ton of batters. Yes, he pitched in Texas, but his career home ERA is 4.40, on the road is 5.24. Ugh. Wood pitched pretty darn decently from a crap team last year Ah I dunno....whatever I suppose...Lol....

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

bowden is a lot better than his history shows. his slider isn't very punchy, but his fastball/change combo is nice...having 3 decent pitches is neat. control will make/break him. seeing as he's not even arb eligable til 2015 he was a steal, imo. he's not got closer stuff, but i like him more than 88mph s.camp in a high leverage relief role going down the road.

"This is how you know Theo Epstein is a heartless, calculating bastard. Sure, Campana can’t “hit” or “get on base” or “play baseball” in a major-league sense, but he was so f’n cute."

and with that BP wins the Campana trade anaylsis!

"As the ultimate underdog, Campana connected with the Cubs’ fan base in a big way. During introductions at the team’s annual fan convention last month, Campana might have received a bigger ovation than Ernie Banks. It was really close. Yet, Epstein and his cronies apparently believe that actual organization building outweighs the fact that Campana is the kind of player grannies like to bake for. Cynical pricks"

Snark done right!

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=19644

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

i'm still blown away by how many people want to ignore wade davis as a starter as part of that mega-trade. yes, giving away myers and odorz was something big to give away, but people seem to think davis (and his long-term cheap value under contract) doesn't exist. some people also seem to not have noticed his curve or cutter in 2012. what he's done with both of those pitches is an eye-opener that's only apparent if you watched him throw them. his cutter is now more deadly than his curve or his scrapped changeup ever was...and he's got a good curve. i don't even want to hear a peep out of those that ignored him about how surprised they are about what he probably will do in 2013 as a starter. it's practically the most under-reported/under-analyzed part of that trade, and one of the most important parts of the trade given how long he's locked down for at such a cheap price.

"When I had Corey Patterson as a young guy, I asked him what his expectations were. It was 30 homers and 100 RBIs. I looked at him as a player like Oddibe McDowell, who played in Texas and hit 10 or 12 home runs. I wanted Corey to keep the ball out of the air, but he was one of those guys who wanted to pull everything. I think he learned, later on, that he wasn’t going to be that kind of player. You have to be patient with the young guys and try to convince them of the best approach. At times, they can end up getting really messed up with their swing." - Don Baylor http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/qa-don-baylor-d-backs-hitting-…

[ ]

In reply to by The E-Man

I remember feeling exactly the same way. He'd already hit 13 HRs, he'd been maintaining a decent average, and he was stealing bases. In hindsight, though, he was K'ing 22% of the time and walking 4.3% of the time, and his BABIP was .353 (career BABIP of .296 now). That was the highest HR/FB% he had in any single year (though the next wasn't drastically lower), and he never got close to that 24.9% line drive rate again (unless you count his 30 PA 2009). The other day I was actually thinking that Patterson's knee injury may have helped the Cubs make the playoffs that year. Kenny Lofton had a higher OPS with the Cubs that year than Patterson did, even with his elevated BABIP.

[ ]

In reply to by Charlie

I think it was just a matter of time before the league adjusted to Corey -- and he couldn't make the counter-adjustments to get beyond that. Once they had developed the book on how to pitch him, he could only get a hit if the pitcher made a mistake. Then, when he started to fail, he began spiraling down and became even worse. I was a big Corey fan -- and it was painful to watch, near the end.

Just walked past Tom Ricketts on my way back from lunch in the Loop. He was on the phone, so I am sure the Cubs will be announcing a big trade soon.

Wow...I knew they got snow in Tucson yesterday, but the pics/video of the fields in Phoenix area covered in snow is mind-blowing. It's rare enough for Tucson to get snow that actually sticks...for it to happen in Phoenix and actually stick is "woah." There's a lot of really unhappy/dead citrus in home gardens all over AZ after all of this.

Cubs win 7-3 (White beats blue). Starlin 3 hits plus flashing some leather. Soler hit's a moonshot off Nick Struck. Schierholtz, 2 run HR off foul pole. Bogusevic HR off Dolis. Stewart double, Lake triple. Plus a Carrie Muskat tweet about Stewart and Vitters both with sore left quadriceps but able to play. I'm hoping for an AZ Phil eyewitness report. One of the great things in life (those AZ Phil reports).

"Ian Stewart is day-to-day with a quadriceps strain." doh...supposedly a mild strain, fwiw.

Ian Stewart getting an MRI, Vitters not getting an MRI. Can we read into this how they value each player currently? Quad strains don't really need MRI imaging since it wouldn't have any affect on how it's treated but they are fun to read (at least that's what the radiologists tell me).

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).