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

Cubs Rumor Round-Up: Rafael Soriano, Mike Gonzalez, Cameron & More

- Assuming the package of Cubs prospects that Hendry is willing to offer isn't enough to pry Curtis Granderson from the Tigers, the Cubs may move on to signing Mike Cameron as their main focus. First, the Cubs will have to move Milton Bradley of course and then they could look to sign the 36, going on 37-year old center fielder. Lou raves about him and Cameron raves about Lou in the article, so chances are he won't end up in Lou's doghouse by April.

- He said, she said: Jon Heyman say the Cubs aren't close to dealing Bradley because they're only willing to eat up to $5M of his contract, but Will Carroll tweeted around 8pm CST last night that:

Cubs signing of Mike Cameron is waiting on deal of Milton Bradley, which has been "imminent" for about 72 hours.

- More on Cameron from the Tribune, and thoughts that Tampa Bay and Texas are the most likeliest landing spots for Bradley.

"For some guys it's a gift," Cameron, who played for Piniella in Seattle from 2000 to '02, told the Tribune in '07 of playing for Piniella. "And for some guys it's a curse. I've seen both sides of the fence. For me, it was a blessing. It made me the player I am today. He taught me a lot about the game, and he's one of the ultimate field generals, probably the best manager I've ever had."

I covered Cameron earlier in the offseason, and the Cubs would get a decent but aging bat that drove in 10.7% of the runners in front of him last year (Not good, basically Bradley territory). He did much better in past years driving in runs and still seems to have the defensive chops to cover center field with the best of them. At 37 though, it should be a one year deal with maybe a 2nd year option, but I guess he gets more if Hendry is involved.

- The Cubs popped up on a list of suitors for Rafael Soriano and Mike Gonzalez. Both were offered arbitration by the Braves and would cost the Cubs a 2nd round pick as the Cubs first round pick is protected this year. They'll have to move fast though as the deadline to accept or decline arbitration is Monday and at least in Soriano's case, they want to know what kind of offers are out there or they'll take up the Braves on arbitration.

- Bruce Miles has a Winter Meeting preview up, saying a right-handed outfielder compliment to Fukudome is on the agenda (assuming they move Bradley). That puts guys like David DeJesus and Rick Ankiel down on the Cubs wish list. Also mentions Texas and Tampa as the most likely spots for Bradley and if the Cubs do have to then move someone like Burrell, a three-team trade doesn't have to happen immediately. Also, expect a vet right-handed bullpen guy to be signed at some point.

- Lou doesn't rule out returning for 2011. Joy.

- Baseball Analysts covers "The Problematic Cubs Outfielder".

Thanks to everyone who discovered most of those links for me...

Comments

Buried at the bottom of the Lou might return for 2011 article is this line: "Piniella also said he has told Hendry he would like to add a middle-of-the-rotation starter, but that appears to be a long shot as the Cubs head to the meetings."

Some snips from Joe Sheehan's run down of NL Needs at the Winter Meetings. A pretty good piece, and I think Sheehan is probably BP's best writer. Cubs: they need to have a better offseason with respect to roster spots eight through 25 than Hendry has had the last few years Cards: had tremendous run prevention in 2009, numbers that are almost sure to regress, so they have got to put a better offense on the field than they did to prevent a massive step backwards Brewers: It may be that the only way for them to break out of the 78-84 win range is to trade Fielder Reds: The ideal Reds week would include trades of Francisco Cordero and Arroyo, not for financial reasons but to add a major-league shortstop and center fielder. Astros: We’re pretty close to what’s been coming for a while, which is a top-to-bottom rebuilding of the Astros that takes about four years. Pirates: Look for the Pirates to troll the low end of the market, major-league free agents at low cost, non-tenders, minor-league free agents Marlins: The Marlins remain a blight on the MLB landscape Hope that's not too much. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=9828

[ ]

In reply to by The Real Neal

fun fact...the ex-expos owner owns the marlins. revenue sharing doesn't work. they wanted (well, the yanks didn't want it at all for obvious reasons) unregulated use of the money and this kind of stuff tends to happen in that environment. the rich get richer because why do something you don't have to do unless you WANT to do it. the only incentive for putting money back into the field product right now would be if loria wanted a ring, and that's about it. both desires would be selfish, but one at least serves the fans (btw, thanks for the effort zell...140m, damn). the marlins are valued at over 100m bucks more than they were bought for. they use the "new stadium" thing as an excuse...it's getting a little thin when they're spending less or barely more than they get in revenue sharing.

Submitted by Dr. aaron b on Sun, 12/06/2009 - 12:19pm. Not sure how that works? Paging Az Phil ============================== DR AARON B: The 1st round draft picks of the 15 MLB clubs with the worst records from the previous season are protected. Rule 4 compensation draft picks clubs get for not signing 1st, 2nd, or 3rd round picks are special picks that don't count as far as MLB free-agent compensation is concerned. Also, a special Rule 4 compensation pick is only good for one year. If a club selects a player with a special Rule 4 compensation pick and doesn't sign that player either, the club doesn't get another compensation pick the next year as compensation for not signing that player.

speaking of troubled players... anyone know if matt "i'm matt f'n bush" bush (SD/TOR(kinda)) is done being a drunk loser and trying to play again? before his elbow fell off in 07 (and had to take 08 off) he was featuring a low 90s fastball. his hitting days are definitely done. i don't think he played organized baseball last year unless his rehab center had one.

mlbtraderumors.com has their second link of the weekend about Soriano possibly accepting arbitration from the Braves. I would think that would increase the pressure to trade one of their starters. Hopefully Hendry will be standing in the right place with some glowing scouting reports on Milton Bradley when that happens.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

Just like last year when the Bradley deal was held up by unloading part of Marquis's contract. Hopefully, now that someone is actually watching Hendry this will be a black mark on his record. Odds of it being cheap and short aren't too good, not this early in the season. He's going to see Figgins and Polanco's deals and that's not going to work out to a 1-year deal in Cameron and his agent's minds. Not a big fan of this one. I think a big part of his alleged defensive chops are a function of him taking catches from his corner outfielders. Not that that will be a huge problem in Wrigley, but if you can win 97 games with Edmonds/Johnson as your CF you'll probably be fine with Fukudome and some non-tendered pickup. Right handed pitchers with power stuff are going to cruise through our lineup setting season highs for K's on a weekly basis. It's just a signing that doesn't make us better, and spends a lot of money in a market where having money can get some nice depth.

Paul Sullivan has a nice bit about Tampa Bay's manager Joe Maddon. Maddon believes that he would get along with Milton, as evidenced by a lunch he had with him last winter. Milton was a free agent trying to find $'s. I think he would get along with anybody that was offering multi million dollar contracts. Now, it is interesting if Tampa Bay departs with Burrell, whom the Rays are dissappointed with. Binding the Cubs pick up most of the money owed to Bradley next year, the risk for the Rays is limited and less pressure is on Milton to perform. His contract my be big, but the financial obligation from Tampa Bay would be minimal similar to the fan base. All in all, it probably would be a good fit for Tampa Bay and we would probably see Milton Bradley return to Texas form. At least this way he will not have any fans in the stands to throw the ball to with 2 outs (granted he sees playing time in the outfield).

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.