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

Brewers Rally Late to Edge Cubs at Fitch Park

Tyler Roberts blasted a solo HR over the LF fence and onto 8th Street to ignite a two-run 9th inning, as the Brewers scored two in the 8th and two in the 9th to overcome a 3-0 deficit and edge the Cubs 4-3 in Arizona Instructional League action this afternoon at Fitch Park Field #4 in Mesa. 
The game was scoreless through the first 4-1/2 innings, before the Cubs plated two runs in the bottom of the 5th to take a 2-0  lead. Jeimer Candelario ripped a lead-off triple down the RF line and scored the Cubs first run on a Yasiel Balaguert RBI GO, and then after Shawon Dunston Jr and Kelvin Freeman reached base on one-out singles (super drag bunt hit by Dunston), Wilfredo Petit drove-in Dunston with a two-out RBI single. 

The Cubs scored again in the bottom of the 7th. Balaguert led-off the inning with a line-drive double into the LF corner, and after moving up to 3rd base on a Trey Martin line single to left, scored the Cubs third and final run of the day on a Ben Carhart RBI GO.

The Cubs did threaten to score again in the bottom of the 8th, as Mark Malave and Danny Lockhart singled with no outs and moved-up to 2nd & 3rd on a sacrifice bunt, but Malave was thrown-out at the plate (2-1) while trying to score from 3rd on a WP, and Jesse Hodges flied out to deep right to end the inning.  

Four Cubs pitchers combined to throw a one-hit shutout with nine strikeouts through the first seven innings (the one hit being a broken bat single), but then the Brewer offense woke up as the Cub bullpen imploded. Trey Lang surrendered two runs on three walks and a single in a 32-pitch 8th (Lang had major control issues, throwing just 12 strikes), and lefty reliever Sam Wilson gave up the game-tying Roberts HR on an 0-1 pitch leading off the 9th and then allowed the go-ahead run to score when he threw a two-out WP (and forgot to cover home) after the Brew Crew loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. 

This was the first 2013 AZIL game for the Cubs, but it was the 8th game for the Brewers. (The Cubs started Instructs later than usual this year).  

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

CUBS LINEUP:
1a. Gioskar Amaya, 2B: 0-1 (BB, K)
1b. Danny Lockhart, 2B: 1-2 (K, 1B)
2a. Kevin Encarnacion, CF: 0-2 (3-6-3 DP, 3-1)
2b. Rashad Crawford, CF: 0-1 (K, 3-U SH)
3a. Jeimer Candelario, 3B: 1-2 (K, 3B, R)
3b. Jesse Hodges, 3B: 0-2 (6-3, F-9)
4a. Yasiel Balaguert, RF: 1-3 (L-9, 5-3, 2B, R, RBI)
4b. Jose Dore, RF: 0-1 (K)
5a. Shawon Dunston Jr, LF: 2-2 (1B, 1B, R)
5b. Trey Martin, LF: 1-2 (1B, K)
6a. Kelvin Freeman, 1B: 1-2 (6-4-3 DP, 1B)
6b. Ben Carhart, 1B: 1-2 (6-3, 1B, RBI)
7a. Carlos Penalver, SS: 0-2 (5-3, F-8)
7b. Frandy de la Rosa, SS: 0-2 (K, K)
8a. Wilfredo Petit, C: 1-2 (6-3, 1B, RBI)
8b. Erick Castillo, C: 0-0 (BB)
9. Charcer Burks, DH #1: 1-3 (1B, K, 3-U, CS)
10. Mark Malave, DH #2: 1-2 (3-1, BB, 1B)

CUBS PITCHERS:
1. Jose Arias: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 0/4 GO/FO, 25 pitches (18 strikes)
2. Trevor Clifton: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K, 1/1 GO/FO, 33 pitches (18 strikes)
3. Dillon Maples: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, 3/0 GO/FO, 19 pitches (15 strikes)
4. Johermyn Chavez: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 1/1 GO/FO, 20 pitches (9 strikes)
5. Trey Lang: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 R (2 ER), 3 BB, 0 K, 1 WP, 2/1 GO/FO, 32 pitches (12 strikes)
6. Sam Wilson: 0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R (2 ER), 2 BB, 2 K, 1 HR, 1 WP, 28 pitches (17 strikes)
NOTE: Top of the 9th inning was stopped with two outs when Wilson reached his pre-planned max pitch limit

CUBS ERRORS: 1
SS Carlos Penalver - E-6 (fielding error allowed batter to reach base safely)

CUBS CATCHERS DEFENSE:
1. Wilfredo Petit: 0-1 CS, 1 PO
2. Erick Castillo: 0-5 CS

ATTENDANCE: 24 (mostly scouts)

WEATHER: Sunny & breezy with temperatures in the 80's  

 

Comments

Az Phil: Obviously Arias, Clifton and Maples pitched well. Any comments on how they actually looked? P.S. ...and I'm sure I'm speaking for many, it's really great to read your AZ Instructs writeups once again!

Twins lose, Cubs lose...2 left and still tied.

rays, Indians now tied for AL wild card...rangers one back.

Wait, Crunch thinks managers are unimportant and overpaid? And just when you think you have seen everything...

Bruce Levine bombshell. He ends his "Talking Baseball" show saying it's his last show on ESPN1000. The show started 22 years ago and has run weekly for all that time. He says it's not a retirement, so apparently he's leaving the station. Gives thanks to the litany of co-hosts, producers and friends. Sorry to see the weekly show go away. Leaves XM radio as the only other off-season radio baseball outlet. He will remain in the twitterverse for now but didn't announce future plans beyond that. new twitter address... Bruce Levine@MLBBruceLevine

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

if pence is worth that much loot, i can't imagine what choo is going to get. also, why pay the extra millions for a guy that part of his price-package includes a great RF'r arm when 1/2 his games are going to be played in a short RF? ...sabean...18m for pence...unreal. if i had to guess how much he would be worth on the open market i would have been surprised to see him snag more than 14-15m over 3-5 years at most...5/90...wow.

rays lost...tex won...cle won 91-70 cle 90-71 tb/tex ...evidently CLE is in (according to STL announcers) no matter what, so TB/TEX games matter tomorrow.

Barney with the amazing double play at bat to end the game. Woo! Unexpected! Why did he bat in that situation . . . Musta been no one on the bench?

"Edwin Jackson left Saturday's start against the Cardinals with mild lat discomfort." ...to add injury to the insult of his 2.2ip of 6er ball. 4.98 era 1.46 whip to finish up the year.

another day, another Twins and Cubs loss...one game to go and they remained tie. Cubs loss or Twins loss gives Cubs 4th spot in draft.

your rooting interests for tomorrow are Twins, Rays and Rangers...would give us a 3-way tie for the AL Wild Card.

i like deadspin, but i wish they'd quit doing shit like this... "Terry Pendleton Roughed Up Chris Johnson For Sliding Into First Base" too often they declare something based on assumption and pass it off as 100% defacto truth. nevermind the fact he threw his helmet and had it bounce around in the dugout hitting pendleton with it...it's gotta be the slide. yeah, that's it.

i think I was saying something about the Bears defense not being able to stop anyone...ugh.

also Jay Cutler...ugh.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

I don't think this loss tells any more of a story than the wins, but it certainly highlights the problems this team had even in the wins. I think the offensive line got too much credit because of the emphasis on short passing. Cutler is stil getting a ton of pressure and there still isn't great blocking in the run game. The defense certainly can't stop the passing game without tons of blitzes, which is a big problem in the end. I'm not sure why there wasn't more of the passing to Forte in this game because that has been one of the best things I've seen different on offense so far this season. All this said, it's a completely new system that has been described as very complicated with two new o-linemen in a very loud, hostile environment so I think some struggles are acceptable. Defense though is going to be a problem for us though.

[ ]

In reply to by johann

I couldn't see the game out here but I'm it looked again like the other team was moving the ball pretty much at will? Looking at the gamecast on espn I kept seeing this: Detroit: ------------------>--->TD! Bears: ---->TURNOVER Detroit: ------------------>--->TD! in the first half. Dejected was I. Good to see Alshon Jeffery have a game and it sounds like he was open on an interception. Guess we had the bad Jay yesterday.

Twins are losing 5-1 to the Tribe, top 9th. So the Cubs should get the 4th draft pick via their tie-breaker edge Michael Bourne pulls up lame trying to steal 2nd in the 9th. Hamstring (or maybe just a cramp).

Soto with a big 2 out double to drive in a run for the Rangers in the bottom of the 6th to take a 3-2 lead over the Angels. Both Rays and Indians already won today. Rangers trying to hang . . .

Geo Soto doubles in the bottom 6th to give the Rangers a 3-2 lead over the Angels. Tribe win 5-1. Rays won 7-6 Rangers win leads to this: If, Tribe, Texas and Rays all win. --Cleveland is the first Wild Card and would host the Wild Card Game on Wednesday --Texas and Tampa Bay would play a one-game tiebreaker on Monday in Arlington at 7:07 p.m. CT with the winner being the second Wild Card. Ranger loss means the Indians host the Rays on Wednesday in the Wildcard game.

I'm sure this has been explained . . . If so sorry . . . But what is determining factor in tiebreaker between Cubs and Twins? Thanks.

StL gets the top seed and play the winner of the Pirates/Reds wild card game. All in the division, hmmm. Dodgers vs Braves should be fun.

Way to get no-hit heading into the postseason, Detroit. I think they're 1-and-done.

m.rivera didn't pitch today...14 innings @HOU...yanks took a 4 run lead in the top 14th. d.robertson closed out the non-save game. he finishes his career @home (9/26). 2.21/1.00 era/whip - 652 saves ...not counting his 1st season (where he was used as a starter for 10 of 19 games) he only had an ERA over 3.00 once (3.15, 2007, 37 years old). hell, he only had an ERA of 2.35+ three times in his non-starting career over 18 years. his highest WHIP in any of those seasons was 1.19 (1997) and he only had a 1.10+ WHIP in 2 of his 18 non-starting years. crazy good. about the only thing to ask at this point is...can craig kimbrel or kenley jansen stay healthy and effective for the next 15-ish years?

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...