Cubs MLB Roster

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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, 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 4-18-2024
 
* 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
Jameson Taillon 
Keegan Thompson
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

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

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

OPTIONED: 12 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Jose Cuas, P 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Luke Little, P 
* Miles Mastrobuoni, INF
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 
Hayden Wesneski, P 

10-DAY IL: 1 
Seiya Suzuki, OF

15-DAY IL: 
* Justin Steele, P   

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




Minor League Rosters
Rule 5 Draft 
Minor League Free-Agents

Do the Cardinals Really Know How to Draft Pitchers Better?

Submitted by CTSteve on

by CubsfaninCA

Much has been made over the Cardinals “voodoo” that suddenly takes no-name pitchers and makes them stars. They seem to do the same with some hitters on occasion, but it’s mostly the pitchers that seem to come out of nowhere.

I wondered if it’s luck or voodoo, or do they really just know how to draft and/or develop pitchers better than other teams.  So I went through the last 10 drafts and pulled out the pitchers drafted by 4 teams—the Cards, our Cubs, the Braves (who also seem to have an abundance of young pitching) and the Phillies (who lately as an organization don’t seem to be doing anything well). I listed the pitchers who got to the majors and to eliminate the cup of coffee guys, used 20 Ks as a minimum threshold.   

There were a few interesting anomalies: the Cards drafted Michael Stutes but he didn’t sign and later signed with the Phillies, the Cubs originally signed Sonny Gray but he also didn’t sign, and it was fun seeing our own Brian Schlitter’s name in another team’s column.

Here are the results:

 

  WLSVKWAR
Lynn, LanceSt. Louis Cardinals523216669.1
Miller, ShelbySt. Louis Cardinals312003618.3
Gregerson, LukeSt. Louis Cardinals2427324315.8
Wacha, MichaelSt. Louis Cardinals16701945.0
Garcia, JaimeSt. Louis Cardinals432704844.8
Ottavino, AdamSt. Louis Cardinals81042544.6
Rosenthal, TrevorSt. Louis Cardinals512612453.9
Kelly, JoeSt. Louis Cardinals222002633.2
Carpenter, DavidSt. Louis Cardinals111142121.8
Siegrist, KevinSt. Louis Cardinals6511111.2
Boggs, MitchellSt. Louis Cardinals131562330.8
McCutchen, DanielSt. Louis Cardinals81101040.4
Blazek, MichaelSt. Louis Cardinals420390.4
Freeman, SamSt. Louis Cardinals320640.3
Gonzales, MarcoSt. Louis Cardinals420310.1
Mortensen, ClaytonSt. Louis Cardinals6110112-0.2
Lambert, ChrisSt. Louis Cardinals13026-0.8
Lyons, TylerSt. Louis Cardinals28096-0.8
Walters, P.J.St. Louis Cardinals6100104-2.4
 20265235109403045.5
       
  WLSVKWAR
Samardzija, JeffChicago Cubs405017927.9
Cashner, AndrewChicago Cubs223303914.9
Blevins, JerryChicago Cubs16923093.4
Russell, JamesChicago Cubs101732241.9
Owings, MicahChicago Cubs323313470.7
Rusin, ChrisChicago Cubs490700.5
Beliveau, JeffChicago Cubs101470.4
Parker, BlakeChicago Cubs231850.3
Veal, DonnieChicago Cubs331730.2
Coleman, CaseyChicago Cubs8130123-0.9
Raley, BrooksChicago Cubs12030-0.9
Gallagher, SeanChicago Cubs10101165-1.5
 1214918211265616.9
       
  WLSVKWAR
Kimbrel, CraigAtlanta Braves151119850211.9
Medlen, KrisAtlanta Braves342014349.6
Hanson, TommyAtlanta Braves493506486.6
Wood, AlexAtlanta Braves171602855.6
Minor, MikeAtlanta Braves383605663.8
Oberholtzer, BrettAtlanta Braves91801423.4
Doolittle, SeanAtlanta Braves910252113.3
Coleman, LouisAtlanta Braves5421852.8
Devine, JoeyAtlanta Braves831892.0
Hoover, J.J.Atlanta Braves91541881.6
Hale, DavidAtlanta Braves650601.5
Rasmus, CoryAtlanta Braves430770.9
Shreve, ChasenAtlanta Braves110340.9
Locke, JeffAtlanta Braves212102950.6
Fields, JoshAtlanta Braves7991300.3
Simmons, ShaeAtlanta Braves121230.3
Martin, CodyAtlanta Braves220230.0
Gearrin, CoryAtlanta Braves33168-0.1
Parr, JamesAtlanta Braves10026-0.2
Clemens, PaulAtlanta Braves48065-1.1
 20243222242405153.7
       
  WLSVKWAR
Cosart, JarredPhiladelphia Phillies151501725.5
Worley, VancePhiladelphia Phillies292503665.2
Griffin, A.J.Philadelphia Phillies211102354.3
Gibson, KylePhiladelphia Phillies191901633.1
Outman, JoshPhiladelphia Phillies161102262.7
Giles, KenPhiladelphia Phillies421842.0
De Fratus, JustinPhiladelphia Phillies7501241.2
Pettibone, JonathanPhiladelphia Phillies550721.1
Buchanan, DavidPhiladelphia Phillies6130830.6
Zagurski, MikePhiladelphia Phillies100750.4
Stutes, MichaelPhiladelphia Phillies930720.4
Savery, JoePhiladelphia Phillies320320.0
Hollands, MarioPhiladelphia Phillies220350.0
Drabek, KylePhiladelphia Phillies8150121-0.1
Schwimer, MichaelPhiladelphia Phillies32052-0.1
Maloney, MattPhiladelphia Phillies59059-0.4
Zeid, JoshPhiladelphia Phillies01142-0.4
Diekman, JakePhiladelphia Phillies7110200-0.5
Rosenberg, B.J.Philadelphia Phillies42152-0.7
Carpenter, DrewPhiladelphia Phillies11033-0.8
Cloyd, TylerPhiladelphia Phillies49071-0.8
Schlitter, BrianPhiladelphia Phillies26042-0.9
May, TrevorPhiladelphia Phillies69080-0.9
Huff, DavidPhiladelphia Phillies25280229-1.2
Workman, BrandonPhiladelphia Phillies7130117-1.2
 252092193283718.5

 

 

Based on WAR, the Braves actually have fared the best, Cards 2nd and the Phillies and Cubs are quite a ways behind. The Cardinal names that jump out are Lynn, Miller, Gregerson, Wacha, Garcia, Rosenthal, Kelly and now Marco Gonzales. The Braves have Kimbrel, Medlen, Doolittle, Hanson, Jeff Locke, Alex Wood and Minor—definitely have gotten lucky with closers. The Cubs can at least point to Shark and Cashner, but the best the Phillies can do is Jarred Cosart and Vance Worley. Interesting that they had the most pitchers overall, but few of them amounted to much--i.e. “throw it against the wall and see what sticks.”  Another way of looking at Cards vs. Cubs is this: The Cards have drafted 116 more wins over 10 years than the Cubs, which could explain 12 games of why we’re usually behind them.

 

And if you’re thinking “That will probably change soon because of the new regime!,” from the 2011 draft they already have Seth Maness in the bigs and our hopes lie with Dillon Maples and the suspended Andrew McKirahan. And while Michael Wacha (picked #19 in 2012) is tearing it up this year, the best we can hope for from 2012 is Pierce Johnson, Paul Blackburn, and Duane Underwood.    

 

It’s a good thing we’ve been good at drafting hitters.

 

Tags
Cubs Pitching
Cardinals
Braves
Phillies
Guest Column

Comments

Submitted by Old and Blue on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:15 am

I think you're second choice, development, is probably the key. For the most part I imagine that teams pretty much have the same general scouting reports on guys, except for that occasional scout that goes all gaga for a guy he just knows is the next Whoever. I have a hunch that if you gave the Cardinals the same set of draft picks the Cubs have made over that time period, you'd end up with about the same number of successes. Time to poach their system and offer them Ricketts money?

Submitted by John Beasley on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:19 am

Very interesting comp, thanks. Especially with pitchers, I imagine development is more important than scouting, but what do I know.

Submitted by Jackstraw on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:41 am

I just searched the entire history of the Internets, that's the first time Schlitter and fun have appeared in the same sentence. Over time I have come to believe whatever is being evaluated, it's never ever ever just one thing. It occurs to me that some scouts might have a better eye for pitchers rather than hitters. St Louis probably has some of those. Long-term success suggests organizational thinking to me....something the current Cubs regime seems to have instituted with "The Cubs Way" rather than 5 separate levels of stream-of-consciousness coaching and development we were treated to previously. I think there also has to be a potential confounding effect--recent Cards pitchers have pitched in front of the Cards hitters and defense, recent Cubs pitchers have been overly-dependent on the Barney's and Sweeney's and Sappelt's of the world for W's.

Submitted by Old and Blue on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:05 pm

This isn't an endorsement for Tribune reporting, but note the difference between one reporter's discussion with Theo and another's. http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-trade-opportuniti… That's the Tribune. Next is Willemeyer with the Suntimes. I'm not going to even link to that. Somehow, he got "Cubs going after Zobrist" out of that same discussion. Since a bunch of other quotes are the same, you can tell that Theo was holding court with beat reporters. I don't see the article on the Suntimes sports page but it showed up on my Flipboard. Maybe they took it down, but holy crap that guy needs an editor.

[ ]

Submitted by crunch on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:19 pm

seriously, though...what would the cubs do with zobrist? turn him from a nice 2nd/SS/LF multi-tool into a boring LF guy? if he doesn't play 2nd/SS as a majority of his playing time he would be rather boring, and the cubs dont have a need there so he's rather boring in that respect. hell, he's not much of a SS anymore...he wasn't sharp there in 2014 and hasn't been healthy enough to snag play there in 2015.

[ ]

Submitted by Old and Blue on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:48 pm

Not that I'm eager for a trade like that, but I think the reasoning is he'd be a bench guy to spell others - gosh I don't really know. But in a long season it would be good to have a guy come in for the infielders once in awhile, even if he's not top grade anymore. I just hope that Cubs fans don't pressure TheoCorp to rush things. We've got three rookies starting every day, and suddenly no bullpen. It's gonna be rough sailing. I don't want them selling the farm to fix this. That's not a wait til next year call, it's just that I'm happy seeing these guys work through their inconsistencies, and see what happens. Eventually Soler is going to be ready for the 4 spot, and that will knock Starlin down to where he needs to be, lower in the lineup. They have no bench, either. So these are pretty big holes. I thought going in that it would be a 6 and out team, meaning you get to the sixth inning with the Cubs and you better be winning, but it hasn't worked out that way so in my mind this is a .500 team, and that's if things don't get any worse. The rookies will keep getting better, good enough, along with Rizzo, to keep things interesting. Unless there's some killer trade on the horizon I'm hoping they just hold fast, although maybe Vogelbomb could bring something nice from an AL team.

[ ]

Submitted by crunch on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:14 pm

his cost vs already having castro/russell/baez in house makes it sketchy to me. OAK didn't give up the farm, but they gave up a cheap C (who got badly injured 1st game he played), an interesting SS prospect, and a utility OF "prospect" in the deal to get zobrist. i'm sure they'd want a fringe prospect at the very least (such as vogelbomb) as a starting point to move him. if the cubs needed a 2nd, i'd be stoked to have that link being made (even though a weak link, as pointed out in the original media critique post). it's nice that the cubs pretty much only have a need in the pen + LF...and one could argue that LF is being adequately covered anyway (especially when deno gets back to support cog). aside from the pen, the biggest holdup is the normal curve of youth development in the bigs...not a bad place to be.

[ ]

Submitted by CubsfaninCA on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:59 pm

Not sure I'd call Vogelbach a "fringe" prospect just yet, limited to 1B and DH for sure, but he could have a special bat and OBP that would make him very attractive to an AL team. He's one of our best chips and no way I'm trading him for a rental of a 34-yr old utility player. Maybe as part of a package for a rental (Price?) starter but Zobrist isn't that important of an upgrade for us.

[ ]

Submitted by crunch on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:34 pm

the prospect game always has it's outliers. i view him as a fringe guy, others are excited about him to the point of calling him a legit prospect. he's done very little so far in his career to argue with someone who views him as a legit prospect. the holes in his game seem to mostly revolve around his defense now that his weight issue seems to be on the backburner. it's worth mentioning that p.goldschmidt didn't make hardly anyone's top prospect list, though some people saw greatness in him. we know where that stands now. i also agree that zobrist is unneeded on this club given it's excess of talent up the middle, or at the very least a luxury piece. they have needs elsewhere as of now.

Submitted by The E-Man on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:13 pm

Re: Weinermeyer, #SunTimes, a close friend of mine was the Union Steward recently, and fortunately found a job after being offered severance (which he took), after having been a writer there for 14 years. The whole "ship" is going down unless a miracle happens and its not a surprise that this guy will say anything to sell a few more papers or get a few more eyeballs. There has been a rumor during the ThoJed regime that the guy purposely is told to be negative by his Editor, but I have never corroborated that.

Submitted by cubbies.4ever on Sat, 05/30/2015 - 05:27 pm

Interesting article on pitchers, but remember this -Samardzija/Hammel was flipped for Addison Russell/Billy McKinney/Dan Strailey. -Strailey with Valbuena was traded for Dexter Fowler -Cashner was traded for Anthony Rizzo -James Russell was traded for minor league prospect Victor Cartini So it's not as bad as people may think

Recent comments

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Indeed they do TJW!

    For the record I’m not in favor of solely building a team through paying big to free agents. But I’m also of the mind that when you develop really good players, get them signed to extensions that buy out a couple years of free agency, including with team options. And supplement the home grown players with free agent splashes or using excess prospects to trade for stars under team control for a few years. Sort of what Atlanta does, basically. Everyone talks about the dodgers but I feel that Atlanta is the peak organization at the current moment.

    That said, the constant roster churn is very Rays- ish. What they do is incredible, but it’s extremely hard to do which is why they’re the only ones frequently successful that employ that strategy. I definitely do not want to see a large market team like ours follow that model closely. But I don’t think free agent frenzies is always the answer. It’s really only the Dodgers that play in that realm. I could see an argument for the Mets too. The Yankees don’t really operate like that anymore since the elder Steinbrenner passed. Though I would say the reigning champions built a good deal of that team through free agent spending.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    The issue is the Cubs are 11-7 and have been on the road for 12 of those 18.  We should be at least 13-5, maybe 14-4. Jed isn't feeling any pressure to play anyone he doesn't see fit.
    But Canario on the bench, Morel not at 3B for Madrigal and Wisdom in RF wasn't what I thought would happen in this series.
    I was hoping for Morel at 3B, Canario in RF, Wisdom at DH and Madrigal as a pinch hitter or late replacement.
    Maybe Madrigal starts 1 game against the three LHSP for Miami.
    I'm thinking Canario goes back to Iowa on Sunday night for Mastrobuoni after the Miami LHers are gone.
    Canario needs ABs in Iowa and not bench time in MLB.
    With Seiya out for a while Wisdom is safe unless his SOs are just overwhelmingly bad.

    My real issue with the lineup isn't Madrigal. I'm not a fan, but I've given up on that one.
    It's Tauchman getting a large number of ABs as the de factor DH and everyday player.
    I didn't realize that was going to be the case.
    We need a better LH DH. PCA or ONKC need to force the issue in about a month.
    But, even if they do so, Jed doesn't have to change anything if the Cubs stay a few over .500!!!

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Totally depends on the team and the player involved. If your team’s philosophy is to pay huge dollars to bet on the future performance of past stars in order to win championships then, yes, all of the factors you mentioned are important.

    If on the other hand, if the team’s primary focus is to identify and develop future stars in an effort to win a championship, and you’re a young player looking to establish yourself as a star, that’s a fit too. Otherwise your buried within your own organization.

    Your comment about bringing up Canario for the purposes of sitting him illustrates perfectly the dangers of rewarding a non-performing, highly paid player over a hungry young prospect, like Canario, who is perpetually without a roster spot except as an insurance call up, but too good to trade. Totally disincentivizing the performance of the prospect and likely diminishing it.

    Sticking it to your prospects and providing lousy baseball to your fans, the consumers and source of revenue for your sport, solely so that the next free agent gamble finds your team to be a comfortable landing spot even if he sucks? I suppose  that makes sense to some teams but it’s definitely not the way I want to see my team run.

    Once again, DJL, our differences in philosophy emerge!

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    That’s just kinda how it works though, for every team. No team plays their best guys all the time. No team is comprising of their best 26 even removing injuries.

    When baseball became a business, like REALLY a business, it became important to keep some of the vets happy, which in turn keeps agents happy and keeps the team with a good reputation among players and agents. No one wants to play for a team that has a bad reputation in the same way no one wants to work for a company that has a bad rep.

    Don’t get me wrong, I hate it too. But there’s nothing anyone can do about it.

    On that topic, I find it silly the Cubs brought up Canario to sit as much as he has. He’s going to get Velazquez’d, and it’s a shame.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Of course, McKinstry runs circles around $25 million man Javier Baez on that Tigers team. Guess who gets more playing time?

    But I digress…

  • Sonicwind75 (view)

    Seems like Jed was trying to corner the market on mediocre infielders with last names starting with "M" in acquiring Madrigal, Mastroboney and Zach McKinstry.  

     

    At least he hasn't given any of them a Bote-esque extension.  

  • Childersb3 (view)

    AZ Phil:
    Rookie ball (ACL) starts on May 4th. Do yo think Ramon and Rosario (maybe Delgado) stay in Mesa for the month of May, then go to MB if all goes "solid"?
     

  • crunch (view)

    masterboney is a luxury on a team that has multiple, capable options for 2nd, SS, and 3rd without him around.  i don't hate the guy, but if madrigal is sticking around then masterboney is expendable.

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    I THINK I agree with that decision. They committed to Wicks as a starter and, while he hasn’t been stellar I don’t think he’s been bad enough to undo that commitment.

    That said, Wesneski’s performance last night dictates he be the next righty up.

    Quite the dilemma. They have many good options, particularly in relief, but not many great ones. And complicating the situation is that the pitchers being paid the most are by and large performing the worst - or in Taillon’s case, at least to this point, not at all.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Wesneski and Mastrobuoni to Iowa

    Taillon and Wisdom up

    Wesneski can't pitch for a couple of days after the 4 IP from last night. But Jed picked Wicks over Wesneski.

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