Archive

12/3 UPDATE: 

The Cubs have signed free-agent LHP Stephen Gonsalves to a 2022 minor league contract. If he were to be added to the MLB 40-man roster at some point in 2022, he has no minor league options left and he has Article XX-D rights (he can elect free-agency if outrighted). 

So 78 Cubs minor leaguers are now eligible for selection in the 2021 Rule 5 Draft. 

Also, the Cubs off-season minor league Domestic Reserve List now stands at 173 (17 slots are open). 

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12/2 UPDATE:

The Cubs have signed RHRP Jonathan Holder and C-INF P. J. Higgins to 2022 minor league contracts.

Both are Rule 5 Draft-eligible (see full list below).

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11/29 UPDATE:

The Cubs have signed free-agent LHRP Locke St. John (ex-TEX) to a 2022 minor league contract and he has been assigned to the AAA Iowa reserve list, so the Cubs now have 76 players eligible for selection in next month's Rule 5 Draft (see full list below), and they have 170 players on their minor league Domestic Reserve List (twenty slots are open).

St. John is the second post-2021 Rule 9 6YFA signed by the Cubs (they signed OF Narciso Crook ten days ago), and he will almost certainly get an NRI to 2022 MLB Spring Training.   

If he were to be added to the MLB 40-man roster at some point, St. John has two minor league options left, and he is an Article XX-D player (he was outrighted to the minors previously in his careeer, so he can elect free-agency if he were to be outrighted after being added to the 40).

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11/23 UPDATE:

The Cubs have released LHP Chris Allen, 1B Shendrik Apostel, INF Widimer Joaquin, RHP Garrett Kelly, RHP Jorge Remon, and OF Vance Vizcaino.  

All six of the released players were 2021 Rule 5 Draft-eligible and were left off the AAA Iowa Reserve List when off-season rosters were filed last Friday. 

So 75 Cubs minor leaguers are now available for selection in the 2021 Rule 5 Draft (see full list below). 

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11/19 UPDATE: 

The Cubs have selected the contract of RHRP Ethan Roberts from AAA Iowa and the contract of OF Nelson Velazquez from AA Tennessee and they have been added to the Cubs MLB Reserve List (40-man roster), so there are now three slots open on the 40 in preparation for the 2021 MLB Rule 5 Draft on December 9th. 

The Cubs have also officially signed minor league 6YFA OF Narciso Crook (ex-CIN) to a 2022 minor league contract (see updated list of Cubs Rule 5 Draft-eligibles below).  

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ORIGINAL POST 11/8

The MLB Rule 5 Draft is held on the 2nd Thursday in December and is presently the last order of business at the MLB WINTER MEETINGS.

It is scheduled to take place on Thursday, December 9th in 2021. 

11/12 UPDATE: 

The Cubs have officially signed four more 2021 IFA, bringing to 33 the number of IFA signed so far by the Cubs in the 2021 ISP (see full list below). 

Eligio Paredes, RHP  
Age 19 
R/R
6'1 190 
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 

Jensi Ramirez, RHP 
Age 17  
R/R 
5'11 170 
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 

Kevin Valdez, LHP 
Age 19  
R/L
6'4 185
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC  

Yafrerlyn Vasquez,  RHP 
Age 17
R/R
6'1 190 
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 

Like the two IFA signed by the Cubs last month, Paredes, J. Ramirez, K. Valdez, and Y. Vasquez were "Signed for Future Service" (they signed 2022 contracts), so they will not count against the Cubs 70-man International Reserve List until 2022 DSL Opening Day. 

The 2021 ISP concludes at 5 PM (Eastern) on December 15th, and the 2022 ISP begins on January 15th. No IFA may be signed between 5 PM (Eastern) on December 15th through January 14, 2022.  

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21 Cubs minor leaguers were declared post-2021 MLB Rule 9 (formerly MLB Rule 55) minor league free agents at 5 PM (Eastern) on Sunday 11/7.

UPDATED 11/7 

As things stand right now...

The best thing about non-tendering a player on December 2nd is that it's the one day each year when a club can remove a player from its MLB 40-man roster without having to risk losing the player off waivers.

An unsigned player under club control who has accrued at least three but less than six years of MLB Service Time is automatically eligible for salary arbitration.