Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full), plus one player is on the 60-DAY IL 

26 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE, twelve players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors, one player is on the 15-DAY IL, and one player is on the 10-DAY IL

Last updated 3-28-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Jose Cuas
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Julian Merryweather
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele
* 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: 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 

10-DAY IL: 1 
Patrick Wisdom, INF 

15-DAY IL: 1 
Jameson Taillon, P 

60-DAY IL: 1 
Caleb Kilian, P 

 



 

Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

The Night the Lights Went on In Bushville

Like an obedient child emulating a revered parent the Iowa Cubs are at work on the installation of a new state-of-the-art HD video board in time for their home opener on April 17th.

At 24x64 or 1,536 square feet the magic screen will pale in comparison to the 42x95, 3990 sq. ft. colossus that’s being erected to tower above Wrigley Field’s left field bleachers and Waveland Avenue. It will be less than half the size but is certainly imposing enough to be viewed, let us say, as a Triple A scale model.

It’s high time for an upgrade. Depending on the vantage point and the mood of the sun the new board’s predecessor could be effectively invisible and in recent years has displayed more marketing and promo filler than, for instance, player stats. Not that that trend’s likely to change.

Speaking of trends at America’s ballparks, you know of course that all of this modern malarkey traces directly back to an event that happened right here in Des Moines, long a baseball hotbed, on May 2, 1930, right?

On that date the first professional baseball game ever played under permanent lights was won by the Class B Western League Des Moines Demons by a score of 13-6 over the Wichita Aviators. Were it not for the novelty of the nocturnal experiment the last eight innings would have been anticlimactic after the Demons hung an 11-spot in the bottom of the first. That’s right, 11. And no, it wasn’t at all because the visitors had no visibility. They played an errorless game and everyone agreed at game’s end that the lights were more than bright enough, thanks to a design by GE engineer Fred Ralston. Depending on where you look, Ralston is variously referred to as the father and the inventor of nighttime ballgames.

Lee Keyser was the Demons’ owner and the man who actually flipped the switch by deciding to take the considerable chance on primetime game times. What did he and his counterparts across the country have to lose by then? Not much. As the Great Depression was kicking into gear the minor leagues seemed doomed. But after that game in Des Moines, which drew a crowd in excess of 12,000 to watch a team that typically attracted no more than several hundred, light standards quickly went up at bush league parks across America. Eventually, the Opening Night game came to be called The Game That Saved Baseball in some quarters..

It also marked the night when Shorty Irslund was born, according to the opening pages of a book entitled Versus the Demons. But that’s another story.

 

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Comments

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

I can only think of 2-3 teams (Phils, Tigers, DBacks) with any need and DBacks aren't going to raise their offer. Unless O's get nervous about Wieters, but they survived last season with what they have. Phils aren't in a position to give a lot right now. And Tigers seem content with Avila and whatever. I'm sure he'd get scooped up on a waiver claim, but still don't think anyone is going to give up much. He's still a short side platoon hitter with questionable defense.

[ ]

In reply to by jacos

Assuming we're stuck with Ross, which we are, I still believe the best 13-man hitting group out of camp is going to be: Rizzo, Castro, Alcantara, LaStella, Olt, Fowler, Soler, Coghlan, Denorfia, Lake, Montero, Castillo, and Ross. And if you make the argument that Baez needs to make the team, I still think the best guy to drop down (again, assuming we have to have Ross, which we do) is Lake. So I don't really see this as a problem. That provides versatility both with handedness and defense. This only becomes a problem in my view once you need to make room for both Baez and Bryant. Having a Swiss army knife like Alcantara gives you flexibility at an awful lot of positions.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

Well, the big problem with that initial set of 13 is that Alcantara is your back-up for 2B, SS, and 3B. La Stella can play 3B but then Alcantara would HAVE to play 2B those innings. That makes pinch hitting and giving guys days off nearly impossible. Adding Baez for Lake makes that much easier and the roster far more flexible, but he may need reps in AAA to continue his development. So you may see Jonathan Herrera, who can play 2B and SS, begin the season in the majors (for Lake), with Baez in AAA to get reps.

Then in a few weeks Bryant will be called up. If Olt is struggling that will be a 1 to 1 swap, with Olt going to AAA. Herrera will stay until Baez does well enough in AAA to be called up to replace him. If Olt is doing well, then Bryant will come up to play LF. That's a bit more tricky. If he replaces Herrera that again makes Alcantara the only back-up for SS or 2B, though at least it allows for Bryant to play 3B in place of Olt, which is slighly more flexible. Otherwise Bryant would have to replace an outfielder, but all four are veterans. And even if that happens, Baez would then have to replace an outfielder when he is eventually called up. So I don't see a huge issue starting the season with 3 catchers, but if Olt and Bryant and especially Olt, Bryant, and Baez all are playing well at some point, there is likely to be a roster crunch and they may have to find a way to drop to two catchers. Of course, at that point someone is likely to be injured anyway and so this will all be a moot point.  

[ ]

In reply to by WISCGRAD

one thing they can try to open up a roster spot is option Kyle Hendricks to start season and bring him up before he's needed on April 15th vs the Reds. Technically that makes him the 5th starter, but it doesn't mean much in the grand scheme of things. Or if Maddon is really feeling frisky, start season with Lester, Arrieta, Hammel, Wood and Jackson as the top 5 (Jackson or Wood not needed until the 15th for just one start), and then call up Hendricks for the April 21st start vs. Pirates (presuming they don't want to miss anymore starts with him). It would certainly buy some decision time.

[ ]

In reply to by WISCGRAD

Swapping Lake for Herrera makes sense as well, and perhaps is even a better alignment. Alcantara essentially becomes your fifth outfielder at that point. You gain infield depth with only a minimal hit to outfield depth. If one player or another is tender and needs a few days, they are essentially interchangeable on the 25-man. The reason I prefer Lake to Herrera is the offensive upside. I still think offense is the single biggest reason why the Cubs will miss the playoffs this year. As for the defensive backup, selecting Lake definitely limits Maddon's ability to use the fourth non-Rizzo infielder (Castro, Olt, LaStella, and Alcantara) as a pinch-hitter, but there would be plenty of bench options for bats otherwise (Ross, Lake, and your choice of Denorfia/Castillo v. righties, Coghlan/Montero v. lefties). Between Lake and Herrera, I don't see a wrong answer. But I concede that the choice is essentially Lake v. Herrera and that Maddon may have his reasons to prefer the extra infielder.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

I guess we're just presuming R. Sweeney is getting cut at this point?

If it isn't Sweeney, I'm going Herrera or Szczur. Lake hasn't shown anything interesting and the team defense is already a problem imo. While you think offense is there biggest problem, I'm guessing up-the-middle defense/run prevention is their weakness. Fowler, Castro, LaStella/Alcantara, Montero is pretty weak imo, passable, but average at best and not gonna help the pitching staff much. Arguably the 2 best defenders on this team are Soler and Rizzo.

C: Montero, Ross, Castillo

INF: Rizzo, Alcantara, LaStella, Castro, Olt, Herrera

OF: Coglhan, Denorfia, Fowler, Soler

If they go 3-headed catcher monster, then I suppose last spot is between Herrera, Lake, Szczur or Sweeney. And in about 2 weeks, it'll be different.

[ ]

In reply to by Rob G.

ROB: Because he has accrued at least five years (5+000) of MLB Service Time, Ryan Sweeney must give his permission in advance before he can be sent to the minors, either by Outrright or Optional assignment (he has two minor league options left). In order to convince him to give his permission to be optioned, the Cubs would probably have to guarantee his 2016 contract (which right now is a $2.5M club option with a $500K buy-out). So he MIGHT agree to an Optional Assignment to the minors under those circumstances. But I doubt very much that he would accept an Outright Assignment, because he's not going to give his permission to be outrighted just so he can elect to be a free-agent (and forfeit his 2015 salary AND 2016 buy-out), and he wouldn't agree to an Outright Assignment and have free-agency deferred until after the season because then he would lose his 2016 contract (and potential $500K buy-out).  

If Sweeney does not give his permission to be sent to the minors (and again, he might agree to an Optional Assignment if the Cubs give him something back like guaranteeing his 2016 club option), then the only choices the Cubs would have are keep him on the 25-man roster, trade him, or release him. If the Cubs release him, they would be on the hook for his 2015 salary ($1.5M) minus whatever salary he might receive if he were to subsequently sign with another club (usually for the prorated MLB minimum salary, with the Cubs paying the balance), plus his 2016 buy-out ($500K). 

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

BTW, the Cubs have a similar situation with Tsyuyoshi Wada, who as a vested international player cannot be sent to the minors without his permission. Wada (like Sweeney) does have minor league options left, and in fact he gave his permission to be optioned to AAA Norfolk when he was with Baltimore in 2013, and then he did again last year with the Cubs when he was optioned to Iowa after he was added to the Cubs MLB 40-man roster prior to his minor league opt-out date. There probably was some unwritten agreement in place both times, and this time he might agree to be optioned if the Cubs guarantee some or all of his performance bonus (he has a $4M base salary in 2015 plus another $2M in performance bonuses). 

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

Something to keep in mind about Matt Szczur is that he gets a 4th minor league option in 2015, but he will NOT be eligible for a 4th minor league option in 2016 even if he spends the entire 2015 season in the big leagues. So if the Cubs want to option Szczur to the minors, they need to do it this season (2015), because he will be out of minor league options in 2016 even if he doesn't use one this year. (Same thing happened with Hector Rondon.... he was eligible for a 4th minor league option last season, but it wasn't used. and now he is no longer eligible for a 4th minor option). 

On the other hand, Jorge Soler is eligible for a 4th minor league option, and it can be used in either 2015, 2016, or 2017. 

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

A player who has accrued at least five years of MLB Service Time and an international player exempt from ISBP restrictions cannot be optioned to the minors without his consent. The player can waive this right, but the waiver cannot be signed more than ten days prior to MLB Opening Day, the player has the right to designate in advance which minor league team to which he can be assigned, and the waiver automatically expires if the player is not optioned to the minors within 45 days or by the 45th day of the MLB regular season (whichever is later).

 

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

Also, because he was a post-2014 Article XX-B MLB free-agent who signed a minor league contract at least ten days prior to MLB Opening Day, Phil Coke will receive an automatic $100K retention bonus and an automatic 6/1 opt-out if he is not either released by the Monday prior to MLB Opening Day or added to the Cubs MLB 40-man roster by MLB Opening Day.

While the Cubs could send Coke to Iowa (with the 6/1 opt-out) and pay him the retention bonus, in actual practice clubs almost always either release the player or add him to their MLB 40-man roster. Last year, the Cubs released Tsuyoshi Wada on the Monday prior to Opening Dsy, and then re-signed him to a new contract the next day (a contract that was signed less than ten days prior to MLB Opening Day, so that the Cubs did not have to pay Wada the $100K retention bounus). Also, the opt-out date was changed from 6/1 to 7/1.

The Cubs did subsequently add Wada to their MLB 40-man roster on June 22 (about ten days prior to the new opt out date), and then immediately optioned him to Iowa (and Wada would have had to give his consent for that to happen), and then the Cubs recalled him on 7/23. All of this was very likely pre-arranged (albeit not in writing), and the process probably had something to do with the Cubs ultimately re-signing Wada for 2015.  

Since there is no game today, what do you think the Cubs could get in return for a package of Wellington, Wood and Coghlan?

[ ]

In reply to by Rob Richardson

considering the roster crunch, it would all be minor leaguers with options. I'm guessing of the pitching type and probably not a lot of upside. They're pretty good with the scouting so maybe they luck into a Kyle Hendricks. In the "you can't have enough pitching", they could use a few AAA filler arms that can do the Iowa Express. Otherwise the usual A-ball relievers with nice K rates.

on a related note, noticed this today

Coghlan 280/412/440 (6 BB's in 25 AB's)

Olt (7 BB' sin 30 AB's)

Fowler (5 BB's in 27 AB's)

Recent comments

  • hellfrozeover (view)

    I would say also in the bright side column is Busch looked pretty good overall at the plate. Alzolay…man, that hurts but most of the time he’s not giving up a homer to that guy. To me the worst was almonte hanging that pitch to Garcia. He hung another one to the next hitter too and got away with it on an 0-1. 

  • crunch (view)

    amaya blocked like 6-8 of smyly's pitches in the dirt very cleanly...not even an exaggeration, smyly threw a ton of pitches bouncing in tonight.

    neris looking like his old self was a relief (no pun), too.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    In looking for bright spots the defense was outstanding tonight. The “stars” are going to need to shine quite a bit brighter than they did tonight offensively though for this to be a successful season.

  • Eric S (view)

    Good baseball game. Hopefully Steele is pitching again in April (but I’m not counting on it). 

  • crunch (view)

    boo.

  • crunch (view)

    smyly to face the 2/3/4 hitters with a man on 2nd in extras.

    this doesn't seem like a 8 million dollar managerial decision.

  • crunch (view)

    i 100% agree with you, but i dunno how jed wants to run things.  the default is delay.  i would choose brown.

    like hellfrozeover says, could be smyly since he's technically fresh and stretched.

    anyway, on a pure talent basis....brown is the best option.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Use pitchers when you believe they're good. Don't plan their clock.

    I'm sorry. I'm simply anti-clock/contract management. Play guys when they show real MLB potential talent.

    If Brown hadn't been hurt with the Lat Strain he would've gotten the call, and not Wick.

    Give him a chance. 

    But Wesneski probably gets it

  • crunch (view)

    alzolay...bro...

  • crunch (view)

    wow.  what a blown call.  go cubs, i guess.