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

Jim Squared and Jed

Not trying to step on Rob's post so my apologies for the dueling TCR writeups.

I'm providing a hand made transcript of the XM Front Office Radio show, hosted by former GM's Jim Bowden, (Reds GM 1992-2003 and Expos/Nationals 2004-2009) and Jim Duquette (aka, "Duke", the Mets GM 2004). Their program airs every Sunday morning.  They interviewed Cubs GM Jed Hoyer (preceded by interviews of Mets Sandy Alderson and followed by Rangers Jon Daniels) and there was some post-interview Cubs chatter by the two hosts. Just some decent hot stove talk on a late January AM.

Enjoy.

Bowden: You had a very busy offseason here. Can you break down moves...Edwin Jackson, Scott Baker, Carlos Villaneuv-er, Scott Hairston, Kuji Fujikawa?

Meatballs, mashed potatoes and Lumpy Gravy after the jump...


Here's an audio link exerpt of a few of the questions from the XM Jed Hoyer interview.

Jed: 2012 was an unsuccessful season, we lost 101 games, a big part of that was a lack of pitching depth. Right away our focus was to improve pitching depth and we got Scott Feldman and Scott Baker. Right away our focus was to get two guys then build up other areas of depth, we think we did a good job of that. We still have a way to go as an organization and that will take a lot of drafts. At the big league level, we've added a lot of depth and that will help to get us through the season.

Duke: You were looking to upgrade the bullpen, Fujikawa's impact. Tell us about him.
Jed: Looking at his numbers he's been completely dominant in Japan both as a setup guy and a closer the last few years. We looked at the conversion of Japanese relievers to the big leagues, and that group has had best success of all the positions. He throws strikes, He has fastball that gets up to 94 and has good carry on it, and seems to miss barrels. He has a  good split and breaking ball. He can throw for strikes. A different look from the sinker, slider relievers. It's nice to have a guy with a 4-seam fastball and a split, a different look for hitters. Attacks the zone. We expect a transition phase but we were really impressed when we met him.

Bowden:  (he references recently concluded interview with Mets GM) We just interviewed Sandy Alderson...he's still in on Bourne, are you? or Lohse?
Jed: We're still in touch on a number of free agents, wouldn't say we are done. You never know when something is going to happen but it's pretty likely we go to spring training with what we have right now. Never say never but it's unlikely we do anything significant before spring training.

Duke: How about the trade front. Soriano? Is he likely to be with Cubs in spring training.
Jed: Yes, it's likely Soriano is in spring training with us. Since we got to Chicago, Sori brings 30/100, improved defense with coach Dave McKay, good clubhouse presence. We are looking to get younger as an organization and we did entertain some discussions but nothing ever really got all that close. We excited for him to play LF and to bat 4th for us.
Bowden: I love Soriano's work ethic and how hard he works in the weight room and how much he loves the game.

Bowden: 2-3 Twitter questions about... Junior Lake, Brett Jackson. Do you envision Cubs Infield over time to include Rizzo, Barney, Castro and Baez?
Jed: Junior Lake, had a very good winter ball performance. Great Athlete, really physical. Can play all CF and side-OF positions, plus 3B, SS. Has big power. Played for Dave Jauss this winter who I've known for a long time and gave us great reports from winter ball. Some work to do like plate discipline but he's going to be a really good player.

Brett Jackson is going to be a really good player. Only missing link is contact. Intangibles are there. He's worked hard on revamping his swing this winter. Excited to see him in Mesa.

That infield of the future, that sounds pretty good. Of that group, Baez obviously has some work (to do). Rizzo, Barney, Castro have established themselves. Baez has got a ways to go. Exciting talent, incredible bat speed. He can play SS, if he ends up playing 3B it's because we have two good shortstops.

Duke: Garza status, health? Do you expect him to be ready to go at the start of spring training?
Jed: He should be ready to go, he's excited about the way he feels and has gotten full clearance from doctors. Should be a full go, going into ST.
A couple of guys had Tommy John surgery. Baker and Arodys Vizcaino might be a little slower because of TJ surgery.

Bowden: Garza's a free agent after the season, how do you handle that?
Jed: Our focus is on Garza being in the rotation. When he's on the mound he can be dominant, can throw a shutout at any time. We still are focused on gathering assets for the future. We don't have him signed beyond this year. Matt's been really good for us. Excited to get him healthy and get him into the rotation. .

Duke: Starting rotation: Samardzija, EJax, Garza, Feldman, Villaneuva, Travis Wood, Baker. Who has the inside track?
Jed: We have 7 guys who could be in the rotation, it never ends up that way, we're happy to have that depth. Villaneueva has pitched out of the bullpen more than Wood in the past. We needed the depth last year. Need the depth to be strong.

Bowden: ...Cubs before your (Jed Hoyer's) arrival. Started with Starlin Castro as a piece. Now Barney, Rizzo, Samardjiza. Are you on track? What other pieces do you have to turn this organization into a contender?
Jed: That's how we look at it. We only had one piece (Castro) when we got here. Glad Samardjiza forced his way into that group. Jeff has something to prove. Barney has some work (to do) to get on base more. His hand eye coordination is so good, he almost puts the ball in play almost too much. Once he lays off some pitches he's going to be really good. We're hopeful that Soler, Almora, Baez can be there. Our goal is to add more pieces to the core each year. That's what the best organizations have, usually 6-10 really young "core" players in their system. That's what we hope to accomplish. Those best organizations (mentions the Braves and Cardinals) have those pieces.

Duke: What about the 2013 Draft?
Jed: There are some good college pitchers for sure, hard to assess high school players now. Some 18 year olds mature.  Teams drafting #2 have historically done well and gotten core pieces there. We need to hit on a core piece there. Whether it's a college pitcher, high school pitcher or position player we don't know that. Wrong to set choices this early or pick what subset to go after . Nice to draft #2 to work on the players we want to focus on. Don't want to ignore some really good players. Not one of the stronger draft classes but picking #2 won't make that matter much.

Bowden: World Baseball Classic impact.  Is it disruptive?
Jed: For better or worse, we don't have a lot of guys involved. Rizzo is on team Italy. Not many Cubs involved this year.  It is disruptive but it's a good thing for the game. Not unhappy starting pitchers (Garza, Shark) not involved. Not as much an issue when position players are involved. Spring training is about getting your pitchers ready to go. Position players can figure it out in 40-50 at bats.  Would be a lot more nervous if we had a lot of pitchers involved.

Bowden: Professional working relationship with you and Theo. How involved is Theo in day to day operations. How does it work? A lot of GM's do it differently (Cleveland and Atlanta front office mentioned).
Jed: It's always evolving depending upon where we are as an organization. We picked projects. He did one, I did the other. Was a lot of work to do initially. Sometimes it depends on relationship with agents as to who does a project. We divide up responsibilities which helps accomplish a lot more work, how that evolves into the future, I'm not sure. We are not territorial about it. The common thread is the trust that has been built over years. The trust allows us to work really well with one another without feeling like we're infringing over territories.

===============
Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette then discussed the Cubs, post interview.

Duke: Thanks to Jed Hoyer. A couple of things stood out, one of them is Soriano, very likely, he will stay with Cubs. You know him (to Bowden), you've traded for him, you know his work ethic and what a good clubhouse guy he is too. He's not prefect in the 4 hole spot for a contending club but it's a good spot for him with the Cubs. The fact that they haven't been able to move him, I'm not surprised. I still think there are some teams that will try to hit them up in the spring. Is the asking price too high from the Cubs right now?

Bowden: If they get the right prospect, they'd be willing to eat the right amount of money. When you perform as Soriano has there is value for the Cubs. People say he's not going to be there when they are ready to win. His value is in the clubhouse, his value is work ethic, I want young players, I want Starlin Castro to understand how hard Soriano works.  If you take the power out of that lineup, it's not the same lineup. That being said, if he (Hoyer) could have gotten the right deal...Soriano for Dominic Brown was talked about, yeah...you get a young player that might be something that makes sense. But Ruben Amaro got Delmon Young and decided to hold on the him (D Brown), which I think we both understand.  The other point is Soriano doesn't want to DH. So he doesn't want to go to the Orioles where your cousin is the GM. There is not a lot of contending teams that have a need for what Soriano brings to the table and if they do have a need they don't want to spend the money, like the Yankees because they are trying to stay at $189M (payroll tax limit). I believe Soriano's going to stay with the Cubs and Vernon Wells is going to stay with the Angels and both of them will be able to contribute.

Duke: One guy I don't think at the deadline is going to stay with the Cubs is Garza. You (to Bowden) asked the question and you have to wait because of his health issues early on, so he will pitch for the Cubs at least the first month or two to show that everything is OK with the elbow. I thought they were going to trade him last year. The price tag was high, probably not quite as high this year but if he's pitching as well as he normally does, they could get some pretty good pieces for him at the deadline. Do you think he's gone or do they try to sign him to a multi-year deal? They are trying to build around pitching and build up pieces and he's a pretty good piece to have.

Bowden: We've both been in that seat. You've got to look at it this way. One, get him healthy because if he's not healthy you don't have a choice to make and then get him on the mound and see what he is. If he's the Matt Garza that's a 15 game winner and he wants to stay in Chicago and you can sign him for a deal similar to what you game Edwin Jackson, I think you sign him.  Especially, if you can stay away from a no-trade clause. Then you sign him because it's too hard to get top of the rotation starters.  I say that on one hand, but on the other hand you have to do your due diligence. Talk to 29 other teams and see what kind of offers are out there. If you could have gotten a Will Meyers from the Royals like Tampa Bay got for Shields, based on where the Cubs are you just go make that deal and you have a conversation at another time because their job is to get as many young good players to build around as they can. That being said, Garza's young enough that he helps you in the rotation and you are going to have to trade for a package that's worth more than that...if he stays healthy. It's complicated and what Jed conveyed to us, which is what you and I would do, is lets leave all the options open. Healthy first, then start studying the options to make the best decisions for the Cubs.

Duke: I'm curious about the Cubs fan base and their patience level this year. They are going to struggle again this year but it's similar to what you hear about the Mets fan base. A high percentage of their fan base is accepting of where they are. There are some who cover the club that feel their fans are going to lose patience here if they are not looking like they are improved. I think they are better but I think they are still a 90 loss team.

Bowden: They are better but they are not ready to contend. I feel there is not a more faithful fan base in America, in any sport, than the Chicago Cubs fans. I went into Wrigley Field for years when they had terrible teams and the place was packed every night. They were having a great time, giving them standing ovations. They were down 8-0 and would score 3 and they were standing on their feet like they just won the World Series. I don't know about you Duke but when I went into Wrigley Field, I call it a love affair with the fans of Chicago. I loved staying in line getting a hot dog with them. I loved leaving the game with them on the streets. Chicago is one of those special parks, special fans and winning or losing, they just love baseball. That being said, the fans want to win. Fans are smart enough that when you see teams like the Mets and the Cubs that are rebuilding and they are doing it the right way, and they are transparent about the process...I think fans will give you more time and more patience because they get what you are doing.

Duke: I agree with you on that. In Chicago, I really do feel like they are going in the right direction. The question that you asked about their relationship (Jed/Theo) they've worked together for a long time, that trusting relationship. I think it's one of the smartest front offices there in the game. So, I have a high degree of confidence they will get this going in the right direction. I just don't think it's going to be in the middle of this season.

Bowden: I think there is a way to go before Jed becomes the full time GM in that structure because Theo is the one getting paid more money than any other GM in the history of baseball and this is his fingerprints, this is what he has got to do. So Jed and Theo are doing this together. Jed's the GM but Theo is involved. You look at some other scenario's...look at the Marlins. Larry Beinfest (President), Mike Hill (GM)...Beinfest is literally the GM and Hill is an assistant GM. Some would argue that owner Jeffrey Loria is actually the GM and Beinfest the assistant to the GM with Hill the assistant to the assistant.  Then you have Atlanta, where Frank Wren is legitimately the GM and John Schuerholz is the president and they go through normal chain of command processes. There is total separation there. Then you go to Cleveland with Mark Shapiro and Chris Antonetti and it's more of a collaborative situation like the Cubs are doing. In fact, the Terry Francona influence has been a really important part of what they have done this offseason. Every structure is different. The thing I love about the Cubs structure, and we didn't talk about Jason McLeod, he's going to be a GM someday. He's a real stud too. They have 3 GM's there in Theo, Jed and Jason McLeod. They are great baseball guys. They all get along and have great relationships and trust each other and they work together like Bosch, Wade and Lebron James (author comment: yuck, ugly analogy).

Duke: You are right about Jason McLeod, we didn't talk about him. He's one of the top evaluators in the game. His track record in the draft has been hard to match.

Comments

from Nick Cafardo's Sunday Baseball notes...interesting variation on the Jim squared discussion of Soriano. 8. Alfonso Soriano, LF, Cubs — Always on the trading block, Soriano could still be moved before spring training, as teams like the Orioles and Rangers look to make last-minute moves to improve. Soriano belted 32 homers and knocked in 108 runs for the 101-loss Cubs, who continue to be willing to assume the bulk of the contract for a fair return. http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2013/01/26/braves-acquisition-upton-b…

Eight's wild?. Jonathan Mayo at mlb.com has his top 10 first base prospects and Vogelbomb is #8
8. Dan Vogelbach, Cubs: When Vogelbach was an amateur, he created a good amount of buzz with his left-handed power bat. Vogelbach has not disappointed as a pro after the Cubs took him in the second round in 2011. He has as much raw pop as anyone in the Minors at this position and can hit the ball out to all fields. Vogelbach has an advanced approach that has allowed him to get on base and hit for average. He was very out of shape in high school, but has worked hard to slim down since signing, something he will have to continue to do as his bat propels him up the organizational ladder.
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130126&content_id=41183398&vk…

Nice job CUBSTER! Burning the midnight oil a bit here? I didn't realize your typing skills were that stellar. But with your pro hands, I should have known.

Very nice, thanks tons for this. For some reason, I'm much more into transcripts than the actual audio - it's almost like I forget about the pause button or something and I do tend to read things over time and not in one shot.

[ ]

In reply to by QuietMan

oscar tavarez over wil meyers...gutsy, but i agree. wil meyers has unreal power, but not many seem to want to talk about how fastball dependent he is on his production (not like that has slowed josh hamilton down, though). i like billy hamilton, but #3 is a bit optimistic even if he projects well for CF...and that speed.

"CBS Sports' Jon Heyman writes that free agent Ronny Cedeno "appears headed to" the Cardinals." lulz.

so yeah, Jed pretty much hung the for sale sign on Garza there...not that it's surprising. Presuming Garza wants more than 5/70 or so people were hoping he'd sign for...understandable on his part. He'll be coveted in the offseason if he makes it there.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

if he's anything like he's been in the past...and lincecum can't learn how to be a top pitcher again...he's probably the #1 SP talent available next season. phil hughes and josh johnson are the only other relatively young arms with upside that jump to mind. ...adam wainwright, too, if you want to count a 32 year old.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

...complete with a comments section that is more proof that people who comment on news sites are generally the lowest dregs of society. Reuters is embarrassing themselves with their comments section...especially since Fox News shut theirs down and a lot of their "voices that must be heard" migrated there.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

Thank you Beasley. Very compelling - sad and uplifting at the same time. I hope to go to Cuba myself someday - was invited once and turned it down. But of course as a tourist, not a returning defector.

[ ]

In reply to by JoePepitone

Leave it to a guy with a screen name of JoePepitone to have an appreciation for Zappa. Of course, I was a big fan of both, myself. In fact, Zappa was not just fun -- in between yellow snow and pajama people, there were lots of good instrumentals people generally don't hear much about these days.

MLB teams with high revenues are required to share 34% of their local TV rights with low-revenue teams... In the revenue-sharing agreement among the 30 teams, if teams assume the risk of ownership in their own TV network, they are permitted to keep their revenue. Still, MLB has the right to establish a fair-market broadcasting rights fee to those teams, and require teams to contribute 34% to revenue sharing, such as the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, with the YES Network and NESN, respectively... http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2013/01/28/dodgers-time-warner…

Levine chat...

http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/chicago/chat/_/id/46895

In reverse order, Marmol should be gone before opening day. He's been a tremendously durable reliever and someone will give the Cubs what they want in return. Garza would have to pitch probably into May or June before the Cubs would consider trading him, in order to get optimum value back. With Garza it could still go either way. They could trade him by the deadline or sign him to an extension. At this point, some team will have to lose one of their RBI producers before the Cubs are able to deal Soriano in a mutually satisfying trade. As far as the trades go, Marmol has 5 teams he can veto and Soriano can veto any deal because of his 10 & 5 rights.

looking for SP's and 3b probably if they move Marmol

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

Kaleb Cowart #67...i still don't get why he was projected to go so low by so many observers (as low as 2nd round)...or how he lasted to the 18th pick, really. i wish he was on the cubs radar rather than future superstar *scoff* hayden simpson...meh.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

HJ Lee #56...he's gotta be skating on speed + D at this point...he hasn't hit more than 20 doubles in 2 seasons (17, 15, the past 2 seasons)...he racks up a strange amount of triples, though (15, 10, the past 2 seasons). if he can make more consistent contact or take more walks while retaining the speed he should be interesting even without the power.

this new PED stuff has led to horrible unintended consequences...such as will carroll surfacing to the mainstream again to be an "expert" on sports medicine.

[ ]

In reply to by JoePepitone

i wish i could have seen him, too...mostly because there isn't a lot of video of his play and his stats are kinda pedestrian (though very good, please don't get hung up on the word "pedestrian") for a high-end player. i really would like to have a better understanding of the hype and praise of his quality of play. don't get me wrong, i'm not calling him average/pedestrian (he was obviously a good player with the bat, in the field, and on the bases)...but given how highly his game play is/was praised, i'd like to see more of it so i could experience it, myself. i'd also like to see a lot more of pee wee reese playing SS (especially in the 1940s) while I'm wishing for video of players i haven't seen a lot of...

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

Then again, it might be a scenario where his off-the-field character and personal makeup and intangibles so far outweigh his actual numbers that his reputation begins to take on a life of his own. (As a modern example, see Jeter, an obvious Hall of Famer whose acclaim extends beyond even that label). Sometimes it's hard to put old numbers in perspective. Was Grover Alexander really that dominant? Was hitting .400 really that difficult? It's like comparing apples and applesauce.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

You might be right..a combination of his intangibles, and on-field ability. For instance, in 1951 Robinson finishes 6th in the MVP voting. e led the league in WAR..he finished 3rd in batting average, on-base, 6th in slugging, 5th in hits, 3rd in doubles, 10th in triples, and 3rd in stolen bases. He walked 79 times, and struck out..27 times....WOW! He did it all.

[ ]

In reply to by Dusty Baylor

I remember reading in one of his more recent biographies about an example of how he never gave an inch, how he looked for every advantage he could take in any situation -- after Bobby Thomson hit his famous walk-off home run at the end of the season in 1951, the rest of the Dodgers started walking off the field, dejected. Robinson stood at his position at 2nd base, watching carefully as Thomson rounded the bases. He didn't walk off the field until after he had seen Thomson touch each base and land on home plate. That was a competitor. You read stuff like that -- you read descriptions of games where what he did wasn't noticeable in the box score -- the times when his presence on first base rattled a pitcher who had been in control into walking the next batter or grooving a fastball or throwing away a pick-off throw at first base, or scoring from 2nd base on an infield hit or an infield out, for pete's sake. The number of times he stole home was clearly recorded but the number of times he caused a wild pitch or a passed ball because of his fakes from third or caused the third baseman to hold him close to the bag, opening up the hole between 3rd and short. I'm currently reading the 2010 biography of Henry Aaron and it details several games against the Braves where Robinson did something extraordinary to change the complexion of the game that wouldn't necessarily be apparent in the box score. It's that quality of Robinson that I find so compelling. He stands up well when you look at WAR and the other more tradition averaging and counting stats. He rises well above that when you start to take into account the eyewitness testimony. That's why I wish I could have seen him play.

from the Tom Tango interview by Jon Greenberg. This was my favorite answer.
A Wrigley myth type question: Do you buy the day games affects performances one way or another? TT: People are human, and that means that every variable you introduce has some effect, to one degree or other. The answer is never yes/no, but always "to what degree" is the effect, and if there's a certain player or groups of players more affected or not. And that's really what my job is all about.
http://m.espn.go.com/general/blogs/blogpost?blogname=chicagocubs&id=146…

[ ]

In reply to by Cubster

one of the reasons i liked the garza trade (and garza as a cub) is that he thrives on day games. he's one of those guys that wakes up when the sun is barely out (or even up at all) and prefers it that way...it probably helps when you've had a baby/toddler in your house to care for since you were still in highschool. either way, he's in his prime of being awake at noon-4pm. plus, that kind of lifestyle generally doesn't lead to all-night bar hopping and partying.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

i'm gonna miss him in the booth in ARZ. when it came to late-night west coast games, i was all over any game he was calling. yeah, he's not great, but if you're into his humor/spaz he's fun. it's quite doubtful he'll be in the booth for anyone but Fox national games any time soon...and given his probation he might not be in another team's booth for years as a regular. he earned his jail time. he earned his firing (though technically he stepped down before getting fired). still...i'm gonna miss my late night in-season grace.

holy crap...just saw VEN winter league footage of Panda...he's gotten HUGE again...and he just won MVP. ...so whatever.

Because he was Designated for Assignment on Tuesday 1/22, today (Friday 2/1) is the deadline for the Red Sox to either trade, release, or outright Chris Carpenter. However, because he wasn't traded by the 8th day of the DFA, Carpenter had to be placed on Outright Waivers at 2 PM (Eastern) on Wednedsday, which means his waiver ride will end at 1 PM (Eastern) today, and then we will find out if the Cubs put in a claim.

The Cubs have #2 waiver claim priority through the 30th day of the 2013 MLB regular season (the Astros are #1), so if Houston does not claim Carpenter, the Cubs can have him (if they wish) for the $20,000 waiver price.  

However, if the Cubs do put in a claim on Carpenter and are awarded the claim, they would have to immediately remove a player from the 40-man roster to make room for Carpenter (they can't string it out for three weeks like they can with Scott Hairston), even if they intend to place Carpenter back on waivers and try to outright him themselves (as the White Sox did with Zach Stewart a few days ago). In other words, if a club's 40-man roster is full and the club claims a player off waivers, the player who is claimed cannot be Designated for Assignment to get the roster back to 40, even if the claiming club intends to immediately place the player back on waivers themselves.

So the Cubs will have to decide if reacquiring Carpenter is worth the removal of another player from the 40-man roster.

As I have mentioned here before, the Cubs could claim Carpenter and DFA Ian Stewart, and then place Stewart on Outright Waivers (just as they did with Manny Corpas and Blake DeWitt prior to Spring Training this time last year), figuring he will not be claimed becauae if any other MLB club was interested in Stewart, he could have signed with them when he was a free-agent after being non-tendered on 11/30. And if he were to be outrighted, he would not elect to be a free-agent (which he would have the right to do, because he has three-plus years of MLB Service Time) because it would be VERY unlikely that he could get a better deal from another club, since if another club wanted him for what he got from the Cubs (non-guaranteed contract with $2M salary plus $500 in potential performance bonuses), the other club would have just claimed him off waivers.

BTW, the Cubs have until next Tuesday to either trade, release or outright Lendy Castillo, but they have to place him on Outright Waivers no later 2 PM (Eastern) today (Friday) if he is not traded by that time, because today is the 6th day of his DFA (the 8th day is Sunday, but Saturday and Sunday are not MLB "business days" during the off-season).  

OMG, I missed celebrating Ernie Banks 82nd birthday yesterday. Happy BD Mr. Cub, may there be many more.

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    madrigal at 3rd...morel at DH.

    making room for madrigal or/and masterboney to get a significant amount of ABs is a misuse of the roster.  if it needed to get taken care of this offseason, they had tons of time to figure that out.

    morel played almost exclusively at 3rd in winter ball and they had him almost exclusively there all spring when he wasn't DH'ing.

    madrigal doing a good job with the glove for a bit over 2 chances per game...is that worth more than what he brings with the bat 4-5 PA a game?  it's 2024 and we got glenn beckert 2.0 manning 3rd base.

    this is a tauchman or cooper DH situation based on bat, alone.  cooper is 3/7 with a double off eovaldi if you want to play the most successful matchup.

    anyway, i hope this is a temporary thing, not business as usual for the rest of the season.

  • 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.