Cubs 2007 Minor League Free-Agents Announced
The list of post-2007 minor league free-agents has been released by MLB, and ten of the 18 Cubs minor leaguers eligible to be free-agents after the 2007 season have filed:
Federico Baez, RHP
Cory Bailey, RHP
Gary Cates, INF
Jorge Cortes, OF
Ben Howard, RHP
John Nelson, INF
Mike Nannini, RHP
Mike Mahoney, C
Ryan O'Malley, LHP
John Webb, RHP
The eight eligible Cubs minor league FAs who did not file (and this means they almost certainly have signed 2008 minor league contracts with the Cubs) are:
Robinson Chirinos, INF
Adam Harben, RHP
Koyie Hill, C
Geoff Jones, LHP
Josh Kroeger, OF
Carlos Rojas, INF
Issmael Salas, INF
Les Walrond, LHP
All eight of the players who have (apparently) re-signed with the Cubs for 2008 will be eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft next month if not added to the Cubs 40-man roster by November 20th.
Normally, to get a player eligible to be a minor league FA to "re-up" (sign a minor league contract for the following season), a club needs to offer a salary equal to or greater than what a player would get on a "split contract" if assigned to the 40-man roster (at least $31,125 for players never on a 40-man roster previous, or at least $62,500 for players who have been on a 40-man roster previously in their career), plus (for veteran players) an NRI to Spring Training.
So I fully expect to see Adam Harben (who was rehabbing from TJ surgery this past season), Koyie Hill, Geoff Jones, Josh Kroeger, and Les Walrond on the list of non-roster players invited to ST with the Cubs in 2008, while Robinson Chirinos, Carlos Rojas, and Issmael Salas will likely report to minor league camp at Fitch Park on March 1st, albeit with a lot higher salaries than they had in 2007!
Ex-Cubs and ex-Cubs minor leaguers who have filed as minor league FAs from other organizations include:
Manny Alexander, INF (WAS)
Francis Beltran, RHP (BAL)
Bobby Brownlie, RHP (CLE)
Jon Connolly, LHP (DET)
Gookie Dawkins, INF (PHI)
Jason Dubois, OF (BAL)
Shawn Estes, LHP (SD)
Jason Fransz, OF (BAL)
Adam Greenberg, OF (KC)
Lindsay Gulin, LHP (MIL)
Chad Hermansen, OF (NYM)
Jose Hernandez, IF (PIT)
Nic Jackson, OF (PHI)
Mike Kinkade, IF-OF (NYY)
Richard Lewis, 2B (KC)
Jose Macias, IF-OF (MIL)
Pat Mahomes, RHP (TOR)
Sandy Martinez, C (FLA)
Luis Montanez, OF (BAL)
Miguel Negron, OF (NYM)
Carlos Perez, LHP (BAL)
Jose Reyes, C (NYM)
Aaron Sisk, INF (TB)
Jerome Williams, RHP (MIN)
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