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

Diamondbacks Take Advantage of Cub Miscues at Talking Stick

Taking advantage of four errors to score four unearned runs, the Diamondbacks defeated the Cubs 8-5 in Cactus League Extended Spring Training action this morning at Whirlwind Field at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, east of Scottsdale, AZ.

21-year old 6’5 RHP Jose Arias got the start for the Cubs and worked three innings, and although he did allow two runs on four hits and a walk, he also struck out seven. Arias was considered the Cubs #1 pitching prospect in the Dominican Summer League (DSL) last season, and will likely be a rotation starter at AZL Cubs this year. He was throwing gas today.

In EXST Cubs roster news, Cuban LHP Gerardo Concepcion and fellow Cuban catcher Yaniel Cabezas have been moved-up to Peoria.

The 20-year old Concepcion was signed by the Cubs last month, receiving a five-year $6M major league contract. In three EXST games prior to getting promoted, Concepcion threw 11.1 IP, allowing seven runs (six earned) on 14 hits and four walks, while striking out 11. He also threw three wild pitches and committed a balk.

In his last outing last Thursday at Indian School Park in Scottsdale versus the Giants, Concepcion threw five innings (88 pitches), allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits and a walk, with four strikeouts. So he is stretched-out and ready to be a starting pitcher for the Chiefs.

Concepcion signed with the Cubs after defecting last year at the World Port Tournament in the Netherlands while a member of Team Cuba. Prior to defecting he pitched for Industriales in Serie Nacional (the Cuban major league), and was named the league’s Rookie of Year for the 2010-11 season.

Cabezas signed with the Cubs in December 2010 for a reported $500K bonus. He played for Los Vaqueros de la Habana in Serie Nacional prior to defecting, and split the 2011 season between AZL Cubs (Mesa) and Boise, hitting a combined 202/284/260 between the two stops. Cabezas turned 23 last Thursday

Here is the abridged box score from today’s game (Cubs players only):

CUBS LINEUP:
1. Shawon Dunston Jr, CF: 2-4 (2B, F-7, L-4, 1B)
2. Gioskar Amaya, 2B-DH: 0-4 (K, F-8, F-9, K)
3. Anthony Giansanti, DH-C: 0-3 (4-3, K, BB, L-7, R)
4. Rock Shoulders, 1B: 1-3 (4-3, 1B, BB, K, R)
5. Neftali Rosario, C-DH: 1-4 (K, K, 1B, F-8, R, 2 RBI)
6. Brian Inoa, DH-2B: 0-4 (F-8, K, E-6, 4-3, R)
7. Danny Lockhart, 3B: 0-3 (K, K, BB, F-7)
8. Carlos Penalver, SS: 1-3 (5-3, BB, 1B, 6-3, RBI, SB)
9. Garrett Schlecht, LF-DH: 2-3 (1B, K, 1B)
10. Kevin Encarnacion, RF: 1-3 (F-8, 1B, 6-4-3 DP, R)
11a. SLOT WAS SKIPPED FIRST TWO TIMES THRU BATTING ORDER
11b. Jair Bogaerts, LF: 0-1 (E-5)

CUBS PITCHERS:
1. Jose Arias: 3.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R (2 ER), 1 BB, 7 K, 61 pitches (44 strikes), 1/1 GO/FO
2. Ethan Elias: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 3 R (2 ER), 1 BB, 1 K, 25 pitches (17 strikes), 0/2 GO/FO
3. Hunter Ackerman: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R (0 ER), 1 BB, 4 K, 40 pitches (24 strikes), 1/1 GO/FO
4. Sheldon McDonald: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R (0 ER), 1 BB, 1 K, 34 pitches (22 strikes), 2/3 GO/FO
5. Rafael Diplan: 1.0 IP, 1 H 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 16 pitches (8 strikes), 0/1 GO/FO

CUBS ERRORS: 4
1. P Ethan Elias - E-1 (errant pick-off attempt at 1st base allowed baserunner to advance to 3rd base – eventually scored unearned run)
2. C Neftali Rasario - E-2 (overthrow on stolen base attempt at 2nd base allowed baserunner to advance to 3rd base – eventually scored unearned run)
3. C Anthony Giansanti - E-2 (errant throw on stolen base attempt at 3rd base allowed baserunner to score unearned run)
4. 2B Brian Inoa - E-4 (fielding error allowed batter to reach base safely and baserunner to advance to 3rd base – eventually scored unearned run)

CUBS CATCHERS DEFENSE:
Neftali Rosario: 0-2 CS, 1 E (see above)
Anthony Giansanti: 0-1 CS, 1 E (see above)

ATTENDANCE: 12

WEATHER: Sunny and a bit breezy with temperatures in the 90’s

Comments

not gonna start a new post since we have 2 new ones today... Furcal SS, Schumaker 2B, Holliday LF, Beltran RF, Freese 3B, Molina C, Carpenter 1B, Robinson CF, Wainwright P vs. DeJesus RF, Campana CF, Castro SS, LaHair 1B, Soriano LF, Stewart 3B, Barney 2B, Soto C, Samardzija P here comes the winning streak....

Is it just me or did Mather just show a complete lack of sanity? Who the fuck almost falls over swinging for the fences three times with the winning run standing on 3rd? Really? Are you kidding me Mather? Read the fucking CUBS WAY. I am sure it says something like put the fucking ball in play and put pressure on the defense and pitcher when the (expletive) ;) win is on 3rd base. Hero = goat.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

I have gone on about this before, but the talent evaluator/scouting director/gm goal really is two-fold: - Graduate draftees to the Majors - Develop said draftees for use in trade. Once we strip everything away, this is their main job description. It is combination of luck, health, and finally, evaluation skills, that produces impact players like Pujols, for example.

Recent comments

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    There are two clear "logjams" in the Cubs minor league pipeline at the present time, namely AA outfielders (K. Alcantara, C. Franklin, Roederer, Pagan, Pinango, Beesley, and Nwogu) and Hi-A infielders (J. Rojas, P. Ramirez, Howard, R. Morel, Pertuz, R. Garcia, and Spence, although Morel has been getting a lot of reps in the outfield in addition to infield). So it is possible that you might see a trade involving one of the extra outfielders at AA and/or one of the extra infielders at Hi-A in the next few days. 

  • 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...