Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full), plus two players are on the 60-DAY IL 

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

Last updated 4-21-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 14
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Colten Brewer
Ben Brown
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
Jameson Taillon 
Keegan Thompson
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

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

OPTIONED: 12 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Jose Cuas, P 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Luke Little, P
* Miles Mastrobuoni, INF
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 
Hayden Wesneski, P 

10-DAY IL: 1 
Seiya Suzuki, OF

15-DAY IL: 
* Justin Steele, P   

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




Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

AFL Set to Expand Schedule in 2019

Submitted by Arizona Phil on

With many MLB organizations curtailing or (as is the case with the Cubs) completely eliminating Fall Instructs, there are plans afoot to expand the Arizona Fall league (AFL) schedule in 2019 from the present six weeks (30 games) to eight weeks (40 games). If implemented, the 2019 AFL season would begin two weeks earlier than it does now (the last week of September instead of the second week in October),  

Because there is presently about a four-week gap between the end of the minor league season and the start of the AFL season, players assigned to the AFL have to spend a week to ten days at their parent MLB organization's minor league facility in Florida or Arizona getting back into playing shape before reporting to their AFL team. It is presumed that starting the AFL season two weeks earlier and closer to the end of the minor league season would eliminate the need for players to prepare for the AFL by attending Fall Instructs and playing in Instructs games. 

What is not (yet) on the table is expansion of the AFL from six to ten teams. At present only six of the ten Cactus League Spring Training stadiums (Camelback Ranch, Mesa Sloan, Peoria, Salt River at Talking Stick, Scottsdale, and Surprise) are used by the AFL, but three of the other four stadiums (Mesa HoHoKam, Phoenix Maryvale, and Tempe Diablo) have hosted AFL teams in the past, and the fourth (Goodyear) could easily host a team as well. Expanding from six to ten teams would mean that three (rather than five) MLB organizations would be affiliated with each of the AFL teams, with each club sending seven or eight pitchers and five or six position players to their AFL affiliate instead of four pitchers and three or four position players as is the case now. 

Prior to 2017 most of the clubs with a Spring Training base in Arizona participated in what was called "AZ Advanced Instructs" (AKA the "Junior AFL"), a league that was created for players who could not get a slot in the AFL because of roster limitations (the Cubs fielded an AZ Advanced Instructs "co-op" team with the Angels). But the league was disbanded in 2017 as clubs began to cut-back Fall Instructs operations, leaving players who are too advanced for "basic" instructs no place to get additional coaching and game experience. Expanding the AFL (and thus creating more AFL slots for each MLB organization) would help make-up for the loss of Advanced Instructs.

It should be noted that over the past two or three years the eligibilty rules for the AFL have been relaxed, allowing more international players and players with no experience above Lo-A (like Cubs 2018 1st round draft pick SS Nico Hoerner) to participate.

Tags
Arizona Fall League
AFL
AZ Instructional League

Comments

Submitted by bradsbeard on Fri, 11/16/2018 - 11:01 pm

Would startinng the AFL in September provide any rehab opportunities for MLB players who are ready to come off the DL but miss the end of the minor league season, or would the rules prevent that (I know Schwarber was able to somehow)?

[ ]

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Sat, 11/17/2018 - 11:21 am

BRADSBEARD:  A player cannot be assigned to the AFL on an Article XIX-C Minor League Injury Rehabilitation Assignment, but a player can be assigned to the AFL after he has been reinstated from the DL.

So even with the AFL moving up the start of the season two weeks (which would be one week prior to the conclusion of the MLB regular season), a player on an MLB DL will not be able to play in the AFL unless and until the player is reinstated from the DL. (Up until a couple or three years ago, a player was not eligible to play in the AFL if he was on an MLB or minor league DL as of August 1st or was placed on an MLB or minor league DL after August 1st, but that was one of several AFL eligiblity rules that have been relaxed or just plain eliminated).   

Here is how Kyle Schwarber was able to play (albeit very briefly) in the AFL in 2016:  

1. OCTOBER 22: Schwarber is reinstated from the Cubs MLB 60-day DL, LHP Giovanni Soto is Designated for Assignment to make room on the 40 for Schwarber, and Schwarber is assigned to the AFL Mesa Solar Sox "Taxi Squad"; 
2. OCTOBER 22 & 24: Schwarber serves as DH for the Mesa Solar Sox (two games); 
3. OCTOBER 25: After serving as a DH in two AFL games, Schwarber is flown from Scottsdale Airport in Arizona to Cleveland via private jet just in time to be placed on the Cubs World Series Active List (25-man roster) prior to the start of Game #1.  

In order for Schwarber to be eligible to play in the AFL and then in the World Series, he could not be replaced on the Cubs 2016 Post-Season Eligibility List by another player prior to the start of the NLDS or NLCS. Fortunately the Cubs kept their options open and did not replace Schwarber with another player, even though it was pretty much assumed that he was out for the year and would not be able to play in the post-season. 

Submitted by Hagsag on Sat, 11/17/2018 - 11:56 am

If there is an expansion of the league, will teams be able to have more players on their roster?

[ ]

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Sat, 11/17/2018 - 11:40 am

HAGSAG: Expanding from six to ten teams would mean that three (rather than five) MLB organizations would be affiliated with each of the AFL teams, with each club sending seven or eight pitchers and five or six position players to their AFL affiliate instead of four pitchers and three or four position players as is the case now. 

If it's just a schedule expansion (which at this point is all that is likely to happen in 2019), AFL rosters will probably have to be expanded so that each of the five MLB clubs that contribute players to a particular AFL team would send five pitchers instead of four. Attrition of pitching would be the biggest problem if the schedule is expanded from six weeks to eight weeks and from 30 games to 40. 

Submitted by crunch on Sat, 11/17/2018 - 11:28 pm

braves prospect braxton davidson hurt his foot jumping around on his way to home plate after a walkoff homer in the AFL championship game.  he had to be helped off the field, unable to put any weight on his foot.

doh.

also, this year's AFL all-star game and championship game were A+ stuff.

Submitted by crunch on Mon, 11/19/2018 - 11:35 pm

yanks pick up james paxton for the 1st big trade of the off-season.

yanks and rsox are gonna beat the crap out of each other on the way to the playoffs next year.

didn't come cheap...justus sheffield + more on the way to the M's.

Recent comments

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Maybe Brewer

    He'd be able to leave the Cubs. He's out of options. That would open up a 40man spot.

    I don't think Jed would do that.

  • crunch (view)

    brewer has done nothing to keep him on the big league roster...imagine that's 1 guy gone.

    yeah, it's only 2 appearances, but they were both unimpressive.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Yeah it is.....sorry......closers don't throw 89mph

    It would be unique for sure.

    But CP can't be HR susceptible

    That's what Alzolay has right now and that's what Kyle has no matter the situation.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Supposedly Happ said on a radio show he's good to go

    I hadn't read that anywhere from the usual accounts, so this could be off.

    If true, Canario goes down.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Hmmm. Maybe my idea of transitioning Hendricks into a closer role isn’t so crazy.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Mervis and Wesneski getting promoted aaccording to Tommy Birch from Des Moines Register.

    So Happ to the IL

    Maybe Hendricks to IL ????

    Mervis/Cooper are DH platoon

    Wisdom, Canario, Tauchman share LF/RF

    I wonder if Busch has ever played LF?

    I don't believe he has

  • crunch (view)

    “I respect his track record of what he’s accomplished,” Counsell said on Sunday morning. “And you go through these. He’s gone through -- maybe not this particular stretch -- but stretches where you’re not pitching the way you want to and struggling. And you figure it out.” -- Counsell on Hendricks

    fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...

    i respect his track record of no longer being in the rotation.  in 2016 he threw 2 innings out of the pen, his only work out of the pen.  the cubs won the world series that year.  let's repeat that magic.  the formula is obvious.  stats don't lie.  etc etc whatever...

    small sample size and all, but how about this craziness...

    "Entering Sunday, Hendricks had allowed an .843 OPS against hitters in their initial plate appearance, followed by a 1.056 OPS in a second meeting and a 2.449 OPS when seeing batters for a third time."

  • Finwe Noldaran (view)

    Phil: Great to see what Rosario is doing!

    Do you think having Rosario may have influenced/impacted the front office's decision on including Hope in the trade for Busch at all?

  • crunch (view)

    it's so crazy we got a new "barnstorming" harlem globetrotters-type baseball product that was introduced less than 5 years ago and is wildly popular all over the nation.

    a notion left long in the past, unearthed, polished for modern audiences and popular as ever.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    No question right now Alfonsin Rosario is one of the Cubs Top 20 prospects (probably Top 15). Rosario is to the Cubs what Zyhir Hope is to the Dodgers.

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