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, ten players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors, two players are on the 15-DAY IL, and two players are on the 10-DAY IL

Last updated 4-17-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Colten Brewer
Ben Brown
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
Keegan Thompson
Hayden Wesneski 
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

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

OPTIONED: 10 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Jose Cuas, P 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Luke Little, P 
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 

10-DAY IL: 2 
Seiya Suzuki, OF
Patrick Wisdom, INF 

15-DAY IL: 2
* Justin Steele, P  
Jameson Taillon, P 

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




Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Cubs Pitchers Stretch Out at Fitch Park

Submitted by Arizona Phil on
Randy Wells, Travis Wood, Andy Sonnanstine, Trey McNutt, Lendy Castillo, Marcos Mateo, Trever Miller, and Rodrigo Lopez threw "live" BP at cool & blustery Fitch Park today, before a sparse crowd under partly cloudy skies.

Wells, T. Wood, Sonnanstine, McNutt, and Lopez threw 45 pitches each, while L. Castillo, Mateo, and Miller threw 30 pitches a piece.

This is somewhat of a change from past years, as the pitchers who are prepping as starters are throwing more pitches per outing earlier than before. I can't remember the last time I saw any pitcher throw 45 pitches in a pre-Cactus League "live" BP session at Fitch.

Lopez has (apparently) been tabbed to start the Cactus League opener versus the Oakland A's at HoHoKam Park on Sunday, and it appears he has a reasonable shot to win the 12th man slot (long reliever/spot starter/garbage man) on the pitching staff. Lopez isn't Cy Young, but he does have the proverbial "rubber" arm and doesn't really need a lot of extra side-work to stay stretched out enough to be able to give his team four passably-decent innings (five tops) when needed.

Best performance at the plate today in "live" BP was by Junior Lake, who hit a couple of balls off the outfield fence, and Josh Vitters peppered Rule 5 draft pick Lendy Castillo's offerings with line-drives back through the box. Otherwise, there were no dingers, as the pitchers appeared to be mostly ahead of the hitters.

1B Anthony Rizzo (acquired from the Padres during the off-season) took some extra ground balls at 1st base after BP. He is a hard worker and the coaches really seem to like him a lot.

Steve Clevenger, battling Welington Castillo and Jason Jaramillo for the back-up catcher job, had an extensive work-out at 3B with the "B" team on Field #2 prior to the "live" BP session. Clevenger played SS in college and was moved to 2B after signing with the Cubs in 2006, before being converted to catcher at Instructs post-2006. Clevenger still has work to do to make himself a major league backstop, but he has the knowledge and aptitude to play anywhere in the infield in a pinch. He's gotten a bit bottom-heavy over the years and he has little range, but having a left-hand hitting back-up catcher who can play other positions in an emergency is a definite plus.

Clevenger has a short stroke that allows him to hit "cold" off the bench without needing a lot of regular playing time to stay ready, and he also is an excellent bunter. He might not have been an Academic All-American (he transferred to Chipola JC after being declared academically ineligible at the U. of Texas), but he has a high "Baseball IQ" and probably will be a manager someday. He understands the fundamentals of the game very well. (The Cubs minor league coaches LOVE Clevenger).

With Geovany Soto unable to do much while rehabbing a groin injury, the Cubs have brought 2010 3rd round draft pick Micah Gibbs (LSU) down to Fitch Park from Minor League Mini-Camp at HoHoKam as a 6th catcher. (See kids? It pays to report early!). Gibbs is probably the best receiver in the organization (albeit with just an average arm), but he has struggled offensively over his first two seasons in pro ball. However, the switch-hitting Gibbs showed tremendous improvement (and an outstanding eye) at the plate at Instructs post-2011, and should be the #1 catcher at Daytona in 2012.

The new regime has demonstrated little patience with mistakes and poor play so far at Fitch Park. Several coaches have stopped work-outs mid-stream to provide a "teaching moment" when a player's performance is not up to par. The players all seem to be enthusiastic and loose, but there is zero tolerance for f*ck ups. And that's kind of refreshing.

Tags
Cubs Spring Training
Micah Gibbs
Rodrigo Lopez
Steve Clevenger

Comments

Submitted by crunch on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 02:42 pm

"Big Cubs press release. They signed Bryan Robinson as VP of Human Resources. " wow, they hired someone who didn't used to work for the RSox...wonder if he interned there =p

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Submitted by Rob G. on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 02:24 pm

have more starters than relievers and Myers was open to it. Maybe Astros think he's more valuable as a upper end reliever than fringe starter in the trade market. http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120228&content_id=… "From my standpoint, we have some depth in the rotation between Duke, Livan, Happ, Sosa and Harrell and all the young guys," Luhnow said. "We feel like we're in pretty good shape there and have some choices. We felt like we were a little exposed in the bullpen, and having a guy who's been successful in that role and who's got the mentality and stuff to do well takes pressure off Brandon Lyon coming off an injury and doesn't put pressure on young kids like David Carpenter and Wilton Lopez." it certainly wasn't forced upon him....

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Submitted by crunch on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 02:31 pm

i think he'll be a good closer...and hitting closer to 95 rather than 90mph should help things...but with his price tag (and 2013 option for 10m vs 3m buyout) i just think it's a bad allocation of their available resources.

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Submitted by Rob G. on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 02:41 pm

Software is a fancy database but can quickly get to information and every pitch is linked to video of that pitch which is neat. Mostly demo'd on Garza, showing his pitch sequences and so forth... Shiraz talking now. (paraphrase)"how can we get all the information we use to make a decision in one place and get to it fairly quickly" "all scouts enter their analysis into the app"

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Submitted by Rob G. on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 02:49 pm

old news, but Ipad "advance scouting" app they sell to players with video Garza can get all videos of him pitching to Brewers or just swing and misses and so on...

Submitted by Rob G. on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 02:27 pm

sadly I couldn't listen to all of it, the Q&A seemed the most interesting... Shiraz on free agents (paraphrase): "winner's curse, if you're system evaluates Pujols worth 8 years at a certain dollar amount, you have to pay 9-10 years to get him...then the question is how much are you willing to overpay?"

Submitted by Cubster on Wed, 02/29/2012 - 02:40 pm

updates on mlb.tv and mlb at-bat apps...
Last year, MLB.tv Premium users were required to pay the $124.99/season fee, as well as buying separate iPhone and iPad apps for $14.99 each. This year, subscribers with iOS devices will save $30 by having the apps unlock automatically with a login. Additionally, MLB.tv Premium users will get access to out-of-market game broadcasts on the Apple TV. MLB tells MacRumors that the Apple TV is receiving an updated interface for 2012 as well. http://www.macrumors.com/2012/02/29/mlb-at-bat-goes-live-for-2012-with-…
New for this year is an additional MLB.tv Premium purchase option: a $24.99/month in-app subscription that gives all the same access as buying through the MLB website, but with the convenience of charging the service to an iTunes account. Across the whole length of the season, the $24.99/month charge will be more expensive than the full season charge of $124.99, but it is nice to have the option.
...and something new:
MLB told us about a new "At The Ballpark" app coming on Opening Day 2012. The app will expand on the features offered in the At Bat app last year and will offer maps to concession stands, emergency exits and more at ballparks, as well as a geolocated check-in service. Individual clubs can offer seat upgrades, special offers and food discounts to app users. Some clubs even offer mobile food ordering from the app, and can deliver food right to your seat.

Submitted by Rob G. on Wed, 02/29/2012 - 02:18 pm

for this year, says Rosenthal, official announcement tomorrow. MLB - 33% make playoffs NFL - 37.5% make playoffs NBA - 53.3% make playoffs NHL - 53.3% make playoffs let's hope it stops there...

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Submitted by Arizona Phil on Wed, 02/29/2012 - 02:13 pm

The Orioles selected Flaherty, a first-round sandwich pick of the Chicago Cubs' in 2008, in December's annual Rule 5 draft, which allows teams to select certain players not protected on other teams' 40-man rosters. The club paid $50,000 for Flaherty's rights, but if the Orioles don't keep Flaherty on their 25-man roster for the entire season, the Cubs could buy him back for $25,000 — almost a certainty in Flaherty's case. ================================================================= Before any Rule 5 player can be offered back to his former team, he must first clear Outright Assignment Waivers, where any club can claim him (and assume the Rule 5 roster obligations) for $25,000. If he is not claimed, THEN his former club can buy him back for $25,000. This is the point when trades invloving Rule 5 players are sometimes made, with the player's former team receiving a different player and/or cash in return for allowing the drafting club to keep the player and send him to the minors, This will be true for RHP Lendy Castillo (selected by the Cubs from the Phillies AAA Lehigh Valley club in the Major League Phase of last December's Rule 5 Draft), too, if the Cubs choose not to keep him on their Opening Day MLB 25-man roster or DL.

Submitted by Rob G. on Wed, 02/29/2012 - 02:19 pm

and there were 24.... Coleman over Mateo, W. Castillo over B. Jackson, Clevenger over LaHair, Rusin over Rhee Sweet 16 so far (1) Beliveau vs. (12) McNutt (2) Coleman vs. (14) Rusin (4) Lalli vs. (9) Cardenas (3) W. Castillo vs. (10) Clevenger plus 8 more 2nd round matchups to go....

Submitted by crunch on Wed, 02/29/2012 - 02:48 pm

because i'm bored... we got 8.5 years of aram...1 season was a 1/2 season thanks to health...and 3 were semi-shortened seasons where he saw 500-550ish PAs (rather than 600+)...and 4.5 he pulled pretty much full-time work. all-in-all he averaged about 135 games a season (560 PA) and put up a .294/.356/.531/.887 line. neat.

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Submitted by Old and Blue on Thu, 03/01/2012 - 03:20 am

I liked Aram, all n all. Although, I didn't mind him being shown the door. Sometimes, you really need to just vacuum up a team. Plus, he was getting a bit slow at third - but at the beginning it was a lot of fun to watch him change at 3rd. I remember when he first started with the Cubs and he had this weird foot shuffle to his left when a ball was hit at him. Somebody worked with him because it went away after a few months. And there was that double clutch when he threw, which never completely disappeared but also got better. For a few years he even seemed like a pretty decent fielder, although some stats head will probably punch up a few numbers saying I'm wrong. And his hitting, well, that's a good reminder up there. One of Hendry's good moves, for sure. I bet he's gonna kill us when we play them. His thing, like all seasons for him, is, did he have a good workout regimen during the offseason so he can avoid those pesky injuries.

Recent comments

  • Bill (view)

    A good rule of thumb is that if you trade a near-ready high ceiling prospect, you should get at least two far-away high ceiling prospects in return.  Like all rules-of-thumb, it depends upon the specific circumstances, but certainly, we weren't going to get Busch for either prospect alone.

  • Sonicwind75 (view)

    Right on schedule, just read an article in Baseball America entitled "10 MLB Prospects Outside The Top 100 Who Have Our Attention".  Zyhir Hope was one of the prospects featured. It stated that he's "one of the biggest arrow-up sleeper prospects in the lower levels right now."

     

    Not sharing to be negative about the trade, getting a top 100 prospect who is MLB ready should carry a heavy prospect cost.  But man, Dodger sure are good at identifying and developing young talent. Andrew Friedman seems to have successfully merged Ray's development with Yankees financial might to create a juggernaut of an organization.  

  • Sonicwind75 (view)

    I suspect Brown will spend some time in the bullpen due to inning restrictions.  Pitched only 93 innings last year and career high is 104 innings in 2022.  I would expect them to be cautious with a young player with his injury history.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    I wanted Almonte gone last week, but that was before Merryweather went down and Little got demoted. Almonte in his last 5 appearances has gone 4.1 IP with no ER or Runs. NO hits, 3 BBs and 8 SO. He did hit 96 with his 2S FB in AZ on Tues.
    I don't see Jed waiving him when we have injuries all over and guys with options that can be sent down.
    I probably won't like the move Jed makes, but he can't play the "let's hope no one wants his 1.7mil remaining deal and we can hide him in Iowa" card.
    That's why I think the current Bullpen stays as is and Wicks goes to Iowa.
    I don't like that, but that's the fix I see.
    We'll find out soon enough!!!

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Teheran minor league deal is done, per MLB.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Based on Phil’s sound analysis it sounds like a no brainer for Almonte to be placed on waivers as today’s roster move. We shall see.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    I suspect Counsell/Hottovy will use the piggy-back extensively, with Taillon and Hendricks pitching as the "pig" (and with a very short leash) and some combo of Wicks, Brown, and Wesneski (whichever two do not start) as the "backers."  

    Keep in mind that Keegan Thompson has a minor league option available, and if Yency Almonte is not outrighted by 4/26 he cannot be sent to the minors without his consent after that date. Almonte is out of minor league options, so I am talking about him getting outrighted to the minors if he is not claimed off waivers, and if he is claimed off waivers, the Cubs save the pro-rated portion of his $1.9M salary, which helps lower the Cubs 2024 AAV.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Totally agree. The 26 man roster very rarely consists of the 13 best position players and 13 best pitchers.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Based on what Jed has done in the past, I’d say the plan is to

    -give Hendricks another few starts
    -give Taillon some runway ot get his season underway

    -Mix and match in the bullpen and see what sticks

    Jed usually doesn’t do a whole lot of waiver wire plays in-season, at least early in the season. He only reallly did that after he blew up the rosters in 21 and 22 because they needed bodies (guys like Schwindel, Fargas, etc).

    I think he’s a little handcuffed by a full 40 man in that he can’t really maneuver much with giving anyone showing ability at AAA (R Thompson/ Sanders/ Edwards etc). Brewer has the most tenuous grip there, and we will see what kind of chance he gets. Other than his spot, there isn’t a ton of 40 man wiggle room.

    I’m very curious to see what happens with Brown now that Taillon returns. Bullpen? Wicks to Iowa? 

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Pro teams have to play their "big money" guys if they are healthy and not "locker room" issues.
    The Cubs wanted to deal JHey off well before they bought him out. They just didn't want to pay him to play for someone else for that long. Jed did give him 20+mil to play for LAD last yr.
    Jed might also let Kyle walk at some point this year. Similar scenario to JHey, except Jed thought Kyle was going to be good/solid in '24!!
    You'd think Smyly is in the same book as well. Same with Neris (he's a 1yr vet RP, so he's not really in this convo too much).
    That's ~35mil between those three and those three are going to get opportunities until at least late June) over younger guys even if their performance is "iffy".
    But, Jed is going to play Taillon a lot. They have to try and justify that contract and hope a veteran works out.
    So, Taillon, Imanaga, and Hendricks are locks for the rest of April and probably May.
    Assad, Brown and Wicks handle the last spots until Steele is ready.
    Now, you're question has real merit when Steele comes back. That will interesting if Brown is still good and Hendricks is still bad. But Taillon is entirely safe as long as he's healthy.

    And the bullpen moves were "money" based as well. Smyly has actually been okay. But he hasn't been clearly better than Little. Little had one bad outing. But Smyly makes 9mil. If they needed another RHRP and one of Little and Smyly had to go, it was going to Little. But that doesn't mean Smyly is one of the best 13 arms for the team. 

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