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

2015 Winter Meetings (Day Four) - Rule 5 Draft

12/10 UPDATE:

SELECTED BY CUBS IN MAJOR LEAGUE PHASE OF 2015 RULE 5 DRAFT
NONE

SELECTED BY CUBS IN A MINOR LEAGUE PHASE OF 2015 RULE 5 DRAFT
1. David Freitas, C (by Cubs AAA Iowa affiliate from Baltimore Orioles AA Bowie affiliate in AAA Phase)
2. Mike O'Neill, OF (by Cubs AAA Iowa affiliate from St Louis Cardinals AA Springfield affiliate in AAA Phase)
3. Jesus Loya, OF (by Cubs AAA Iowa affiliate from Boston Red Sox AA Portland affiliate in AAA Phase)

SELECTED FROM CUBS IN MAJOR LEAGUE PHASE OF 2015 RULE 5 DRAFT
NONE

SELECTED FROM CUBS IN A MINOR LEAGUE PHASE OF 2015 RULE 5 DRAFT
1. Pin-Chieh Chen, OF (by Cincinnati Reds AAA Louiisville affiliate from Cubs AA Tennessee affiliate in AAA Phase)
2. Ariel Ovando, LHP (by Los Angeles Angels AAA Salt Lake affiliate from Cubs AA Tennessee affiliate in AAA Phase)
3. Julian Aybar, RHP (by New York Yankees AAA Scranton affiliate from Cubs AA Tennessee affiliate in AAA Phase)
4. Michael Heesch, LHP (by St Louis Cardinals AAA Memphis affiliate from Cubs AA Tennessee affiliate in AAA Phase)

>======================================================================

The Rule 5 Draft is a mechanism that allows MLB clubs to select (draft) players off minor league reserve lists. There is a "Major League Phase" where an MLB club can select Rule 5 Draft eligible players off the reserve lists of minor league clubs for $50,000, a "AAA Phase" where a club's AAA minor league affiliate can select Rule 5 Draft eligible players off the reserve lists of minor league clubs of a lower classification for $12,000, and finally a "AA Phase" where a club's AA minor league affiliate can select Rule 5 Draft eligible players off the reserve lists of Class "A" clubs for $4,000.

The 2015 MLB Rule 5 Draft (technically known as the "Rule 5 Selection Meeting") will be the last order of business at the Winter Meetings. 

Free-agent RHP Trevor Cahill reportedly agreed to a one-year major league contract with the Cubs a few days ago and veteran INF Brendan Ryan is supposedly the "Player to Be Named Later" (PTBNL) in Tuesday's trade that sent Starlin Castro to the Yankees for RHP Adam Warren and a PTBNL, but neither Cahill nor Ryan have been added to the Cubs MLB Reserve List (AKA "40-man roster") yet. Therefore, the Cubs presently have 39 players on the 40 (one slot is open), so they could select one player in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft. (A club can only select as many players in the Major League Phase of the Rule Draft as the number of open slots on the club's MLB reserve list). If the Cubs do select a player, it could either be for themselves, or for the purpose of trading or selling the rights to the drafted player to another club in a pre-arranged deal (a not uncommon practice). Or another club could select a player in the Rule 5 Draft for the Cubs and then trade or sell rights to the drafted player to the Cubs. Since the Cubs have the 28trh pick in the draft, it's more likely that they would have another club with a more-favorable draft slot make a selection for them and then acquire rights to the drafted player from that club for cash or player(s), than the other-way around.

While no more than 40 players can be assigned to an MLB Reserve List, there is a 38-man reserve list limit for AAA clubs (the reserve list limit is 37 for AA affiliates, and 35 for all affiliates below AA). Typically, most MLB clubs will leave four or five slots open on their AAA affiliate's reserve list when reserve lists are filed in November, for free-agents who might be signed to minor league contracts and for players on the MLB 40-man roster who might get outrighted to the minors prior to the Rule 5 Draft, and for players the club might want to select from other organizations in the AAA Phase of the draft. (A club can only select as many players in the AAA Phase of the Rule 5 Draft as the number of slots that were open on the AAA affiliate's reserve list prior to the start of the Rule 5 Draft).

So figure about 33 or 34 of the Cubs minor leaguers eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft post-2015 were placed on the AAA Iowa reserve list on 11/20 (making them eligible for selection in the Major League Phase only), with maybe 19 or 20 of the Rule 5 Draft-eligible minor leaguers placed on AA or Class-A reserve lists, making those 19 or 20 eligible for selection in the AAA Phase (AA or Class-A players, $12,000 draft price, with no right to re-claim) or in the AA Phase (Class-A players only, $4,000 draft price, with no right to re-claim).

In the 2-1/2 weeks since minor league reserve lists were filed, the Cubs have signed three free-agents--LHP Jeffry Antigua, LHP Luis Parra, and RHP Drew Rucinski--to minor league contracts, making them eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft. Parra and Rucinskli were likely assigned to the AAA Iowa reserve list, and Antigua was likely placed on the AA Tennessee reserve list. So going into today's Rule 5 Draft, there are probably 35 or 36 players on the AAA Iowa reserve list, with maybe two or three slots available (open) in case the Cubs opt to make a selection or two in the AAA Phase of the draft.

Listed below are the 56 Cubs minor leaguers eligible for selection in today's Rule 5 Draft. I have highlighted in bold & underlined the 35 players I suspect are probably on the AAA Iowa reserve list (making them eligible for selection in the Major League Phase of the draft only): The other 21 players are likely available for selection in the AAA Phase (and a couple may even be available for selection in the AA Phase). NOTE: Probably the most-significant Cubs minor leaguer lost in the Rule 5 Draft in recent years was 1B Justin Bour, and he was selected off the AA Tennessee reserve list by the Miami Marlins (for their AAA New Orleans affiliate) in the AAA Phase of the 2013 Rule 5 Draft.


CUBS MINOR LEAGUERS ELIGIBLE FOR SELECTION IN DECEMBER 2015 RULE 5 DRAFT 
:
Gioskar Amaya, INF-C
Jeffry Antigua, LHP
John Andreoli, OF
Julian Aybar, RHP  
Pedro Araujo, RHP
Jeffrey Baez, OF
Frank Batista, RHP 
Corey Black, RHP
David Bote, INF
Matt Brazis, RHP
Stephen Bruno, INF 
Ben Carhart, INF
Erick Castillo, C
Pin-Chieh Chen, OF 
Gerardo Concepcion, LHP (Article XX-D player - can elect free-agency if drafted & then later re-claimed by Cubs)
Josh Conway, RHP
Blake Cooper, RHP
Taylor Davis, C
Ryan Dent, INF 
Andin Diaz, LHP
Shawon Dunston Jr, OF
Kevin Encarnacion, OF
P. J. Francescon, RHP
Anthony Giansanti, OF
Michael Heesch, LHP
Michael Jensen, RHP
Danny Lockhart, INF
Mark Malave, RHP (ex-C)
Dillon Maples, RHP
Ricardo Marcano, OF
Trey Martin, OF
Jonathan Martinez, RHP
Alberto Mineo, C
Yomar Morel, RHP
Yoanner Negrin, RHP
Ariel Ovando, LHP (ex-OF)
Juan Carlos Paniagua, RHP 
Luis Parra, LHP
Jose Paulino, LHP 
Felix Pena, RHP 
Carlos Penalver, INF
Steve Perakslis, RHP
Starling Peralta, RHP (Article XX-D player - can elect free-agency if drafted & then later re-claimed by Cubs)
Chris Pieters, OF (ex-LHP)
James Pugliese, RHP 
Bijan Rademacher, OF
Jasvir Rakkar, RHP
Austin Reed, RHP
Jacob Rogers, 1B
Jose Rosario, RHP 
Drew Rucinski, RHP (Article XX-D player - can elect free-agency if drafted & then later re-claimed by Cubs)
Alexander Santana, RHP 
Tayler Scott, RHP
DauryTorrez, RHP
Roberto Vahlis, C 
Logan Watkins, INF (Article XX-D player - can elect free-agency if drafted & then later re-claimed by Cubs)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

RULE 5 DRAFT ELIGIBILITY:

1. A minor league player who was 18 or younger on the June 5th immediately prior to signing his first contract is eligible for selection starting with the 5th Rule 5 Draft after he signs, and a minor league player who was 19 years or older on the June 5th immediately prior to signing his first contract becomes eligible for selection starting with the 4th Rule 5 Draft that followed his signing.

2. If a player signs his first contract after the conclusion of the season of the MLB or minor league club to which he is first assigned, the next season is considered to be the player's "first season" for Rule 5 eligibility purposes.

3. A player eligible to be an MLB Rule 55 minor league free-agent who signs a minor league successor contract prior to being declared a free-agent and a free-agent with prior MLB and/or minor league service who signs a minor league contract prior to the Rule 5 Draft is eligible for selection if the player was 18 or younger on the June 5th immediately prior to signing his first contract and it is at least the 5th Rule 5 Draft since he signed his first contract, or the player was 19 years or older on the June 5th immediately prior to signing his first contract and it is at least the 4th Rule 5 Draft since he signed his first contract. 

4. Any player on a minor league reserve list who has either been released or had his contract voided and then re-signs with the same MLB organization within one year is eligible for selection. 

5. Any player on a minor league reserve list who has been outrighted to the minors previously in his career is eligible for selection. 

6. A player on the Voluntary Retired List, Disqualified List, or Ineligible List is not eligible for selection. 

7. An MLB club can designate any player on a minor league reserve list "eligible for selection" in the Rule 5 Draft even if the player would not normally be eligible, but once a player is designated eligible for selection, he remains eligible for selection in all subsequent Rule 5 drafts. 

8. A minor league player-manager who would be eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft if he was only a player can be selected, but if he is selected, the player-manager can reject the selection and retire. He has 30 days to decide. If he rejects the selection and opts to retire as a player, the player-manager is ineligible to be reinstated as a player for a minimum of one year.  

RULE 5 DRAFT RESTRICTIONS:

1. A minor league player eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft cannot be added to an MLB Reserve List (40-man roster), traded to another organization, or transferred from one minor league reserve list to another within the same organization, starting with the filing of MLB & minor league reserve lists on November 20th up through the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft.

2. A player cannot be sent outright to the minors on the two days prior to the Rule 5 Draft and on the day of the Rule 5 Draft (through the conclusion of the draft).

3. A club must have as many slots open on its MLB Reserve List (40-man roster) prior to the Rule 5 Draft as the number of players it selects in the Major League Phase, and an MLB club's AAA and AA affiliates must have as many slots open on their respective reserve lists prior to the Rule 5 Draft as the number of players the affiliate selects in the AAA and AA phases of the draft. There is no limit on the number of Rule 5 eligible players any one organization can lose.

4. A player selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft must be placed on the drafting club's MLB Reserve List (40-man roster) immediately, and must be tendered a major league contract by 5 PM (Eastern) on the day of the draft.

5. A player selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft can be traded at any time, but the player cannot be released or sent to the minors any earlier than 20 days prior to MLB Opening Day, and then only if Outright Assignment Waivers have been secured and the player's former club declines to re-claim the player.

6. If a player selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft spends at least 90 days on an MLB Active List during the MLB regular season following selection, Rule 5 restrictions are removed at the conclusion of the MLB regular season. If time spent on an MLB Active List is less than 90 days in the season following selection, the player remains a Rule 5 player into the next season, and the player continues to be a Rule 5 player until he has spent 90 days total on an MLB Active List.

7. If a club wishes to send a Rule 5 player to the minors before Rule 5 restrictions have been removed, the player must be placed on Outright Assignment Waivers, where any of the other 29 MLB clubs can claim the player for the $25,000 Rule 5 waiver price and assume the Rule 5 obligations.

8. If the Rule 5 player is not claimed off Outright Waivers, the player then must be offered back to the club from which he was drafted, and the player's former club can reclaim the player for $25,000, with the player being automatically outrighted to the Reserve List of the minor league club from which he was drafted. The club from which the player was drafted usually has 72 hours to decide whether to reclaim the player, but it has only 24 hours to decide if the player is eligible to be an Article XX-D Free-Agent if outrighted to the minors (player has accrued at least three years of MLB Service Time, qualifies for salary arbitration as a "Super Two" player, and/or has been outrighted to the minors previously in his career).

9. If a Rule 5 player is returned (outrighted) to the minor league club from which he was drafted, the drafting club is responsible for any portion of the player's salary above what the player was paid the previous season.

10. If a Rule 5 Player is returned (outrighted) to the minor league club from which he was drafted, and if the player has accrued at least three years of MLB Service Time, qualifies for salary arbitration as a "Super Two" player, and/or has been outrighted to the minors previously in his career, the player can elect to be an MLB Article XX-D minor league free-agent after being outrighted (he has three days to decide), or he can accept the Outright Assignment and defer the right to be a minor league free-agent until after the conclusion of the MLB regular season. (An outrighted "Super Two" Rule 5 player who has not previously been outrighted to the minors can elect free-agency if he is outrighted to the minors, but he cannot defer free-agency until after the conclusion of the MLB regular season).

11. If the club from which the player was drafted declines to reclaim the player, the Rule 5 restrictions are removed, the drafting club retains the player, and the player can be sent to the minors or released.

12. A player selected in the AAA or AA Phase of the Rule 5 Draft must be assigned to the Reserve List of the AAA or AA club that drafted the player, but the player can be assigned to the Active List of any minor league affiliate in the MLB club's organization once the minor league regular season commences. Also, unlike players selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft, a player selected in the AAA or AA Phase of the Rule 5 Draft does not have to be offered back to the club from which he was drafted if the player is ultimately assigned to the Active List of a minor league affiliate below the level of the minor league affiliate that drafted the player.

13. A club can select a player off the reserve list of one of its own minor league affiliates, but if the player is selected in the Major League Phase, the club is bound by the same Rule 5 roster restrictions as if it had selected the player off the reserve list of another club's minor league affiliate.

14. A player eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft cannot be "covered up" from selection, either by agreement between two clubs or by effect. Also, a player selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft cannot be "hidden" on a Disabled List to help the drafting club fulfill Rule 5 roster obligations. If the MLB Commissioner believes a club "covered up" a player to avoid losing the player in the Rule Draft or "hid" a selected player on a Disabled List, the offending club or clubs are subject to a penalty (TBD by the MLB Commissioner).

 

Comments

[ ]

In reply to by Hagsag

felix pena is getting the most love on the rumor market...pj francescon, too. from a dark-horse perspective, i think taylor davis is worth keeping an eye on and i wouldn't be shocked if someone decided j.andreoli was worth having around as a bench OF'r (3-slot guy, high Ks/low power, though). they may make it out of the MLB portion without losing anyone. also, the cubs aren't expected to snag anyone (rumor).

HAGSAG: All it takes is one club to like a particular player, and that player gets selected. And usually you don't  know (in advance) which team and which player.  

Occasionally everybody knows a player will get picked (LHP Andy Sisco, post-2004, LHP Donnie Veal post-2008, and Ryan Flaherty post-2011 are three Cubs that come immediately to mind), but generally there is a bit of a surprise factor, especially in the AAA Phase of the draft. 

That said, a couple of weeks ago I listed the five Cubs minor leaguers I thought were most-likely to get selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 Draft, and I still feel that way: 

1. Corey Black, RHRP 
2. Felix Pena, RHSP
3. Daury Torrez, RHSP 
4. Jonathan Martinez, RHSP 
5. P. J. Francescon, RHRP

Baseball America mentions Black and Pena in their Rule 5 Draft preview, but also adds LHRP Michael Heesch, C Taylor Davis,, and OF Jeffrey Baez as possibilities. But I think Baez is more-likely to be the PTBNL in the Austin Jackson trade, going to Seattle after the conclusion of the draft (presuming he doesn't get selected). just like SS Marco Hernandez was the PTBNL in the Felix Doubront deal this time last year, going to Boston after the conclusion of the 2014 Rule 5 Draft.

Also keep in mind that Derek Johnson (ex-Cubs Minor League Pitching Coordinator) is now the Milwaukee Brewers pitching coach and Anthony Iapoce (ex-Cubs Minor League Hitting Coordinator) is now the hitting coach for the Texas Rangers, so I would not be surprised if the Brewers take a Cubs pitcher or two  Also, former Cubs Scouting Diirector Tim Wilken now works for the Arizona Diamondbacks and  former Cubs Player Development Director Oneri Fleita is a Cincinnati Reds scout, so the D'backs and/or Reds might selectt a Cubs player who was with the organization when Fleita and Wilken were there. 

"Cubs spokesman Julian Green said Wednesday the team will add netting in front of the field-level seats from the end of one dugout to the other, and within 70 feet of home plate." meh.

I was VERY surprised that the Cubs did not assign LHRP Michael Heesch (Cubs 2012 8th round draft pick out of USC-Beaufort)  to their AAA roster (which would have made him eligible for selection only in the Major League Phase). He has some upside and  very likely would have been the #1 lefty reliever at AA Tennessee in 2016. 

OF Pin-Chieh Chen was signed (six-figure bonus) as a second-baseman out of Taiwan back in 2009 and he was eligible to be a 6YFA post-2015, but he signed a minor league successor contract and never made it to free-agency. The Reds described him as a srcond-baseman when they selected him, but he hasn't played infield for several years (he was moved to OF in 2011). Chen has been moved around the Cubs system quite a bit over the past couple of years, but he has the speed and range needed to be a decent AAA 4th OF, and he could even conceivably eventually emerge as a 5th OF/PR at the MLB level. Ex-Cubs Player Development Director Oneri Fleita (who is a Reds scout) knows Chen very well. 

I had projected both Aybar and Ovando to be on the AA roster, and that was correct.  

Aybar was originally signed by Tampa Bay about three or four years ago but missed a couple of seasons due to injury, and then the Cubs signed him as a "second contract" player after he was released by TB. I didn't think he would be placed on the Iowa roster because of his age (23) and because he has yet to pitch above DSL, but he did have an excellent year pitching out of the bullpen for the DSL Cubs in 2015. 

Ovando was a one-time Houston Astros bonus guy out of the Dominican Republic (received a seven-figure signing bonus at age 16). He was a power-hitting ouutfielder at that time, but he had trouble making contact and floudered in the Astros system. He was selected by the Cubs in the AAA Phase of last year's Rule 5 Dtraft, and the Cubs converted him to a LHP this past season. He did not pitch in Minor League Camp or at Extended Spring Training, but he did pitch quite a bit out of the bullpen in the AZL and put up some crazy K-numbers for the AZL Cubs, despite a fastball that tops out at 86-88. He is hard for batters to pick-up because he's all arms & legs (he reminds me of an octopus), and he has a plus-change up that he mixes with the "heater" (if you want to call it that)   
All three of the players selected by the Cubs in the AAA Phase will be minor league free-agents post-2016, so they are probably best-described as depth guys ("filler"). Certainly Theo Epstein knows Jesus Loya from his Boston days, but Loya has yet to make it past Lo-A in six minor league seasons (he was loaned to Ciudad del Carmen in the Mexican League in 2015).  

Loya and O'Neill probably project as AA or AAA 4th outfielders (both can play all three OF slots), and Freitas (who had enough upside early in his career that he was traded for Kurt Suzuki a few ago) should be a decent AA or AAA back-up catcher. 

Wanna know how bad the Angels farm system is?

When they did thev roll-call prior to the AAA Phase and confirmed how many players each club had om their AAA reserve lists, the Angels had 22 (no other club had less than 33, and the Cubs indeed had 35, although obviously not exactly the same 35 I projected/predicted). 

The Angels could only find 22 players in their system worthy of being protected on their AAA roster?  Wow. 

OT, but I want to make a last(?) statement about Starlin: I was VERY enthusiastic about him when he came up and for the first three years in the league. I loved his ability to put a bat on the ball and drive it. I cringed about his lapses in concentration and some of the boneheaded plays but I was willing to give him time to mature and to discover what he could and could not do. He had some good tools and I wanted to see him develop them while playing for the Cubs -- but not anymore. I guess what finally got to me was his inability to figure out how to straddle the bag and tag out a runner trying to steal 2nd base. Five plus years in the major leagues and he still couldn't consistently tag out a guy trying to steal 2nd. After watching Baez and Russell (as rookies) man the bag and snap a tag down on a runner, I got fed up. He is not consistently smart on the field -- and it leads to too many extra outs for the other team and too many missed opportunities on offense. You can put up with that from a guy who puts up a .350+ on-base average or a +.800 OPS or 100 RBI or runs scored or true Gold Glove level defense. He has never hit any of those milestones even once. And, because of his TOOTBLANS and his overall lack of "headiness", he is less than his numbers show. I don't think he is worthless -- I think he'll have a lengthy and moderately productive major league career, especially now that he is at second base -- if New York doesn't chew him up and spit him out. I just don't think he is likely to blossom into what his potential seemed to promise. And I think the majority of his All-Star game appearances are behind him, not in front of him.

"According to FOX Sports' Jon Morosi, the Angels are among the finalists for Jason Heyward. This seems to be coming to a head, with the Cardinals and Cubs acting as the other serious parties currently diving for the finish line."

[ ]

In reply to by Rob Richardson

I would love to have Heyward so much at the top of the order with Zobrist and all that power behind him. Young, great contact, on base guy, elite defender, can run. Just loving the idea of a better Fowler at the plate with a much better glove ahead of an improved Bryant and Schwarber.... I think it's not just driving the cost up to the Cardinals because they have to know that the agent can say yes at any point, but driving up the cost is a good consolation prize if they don't get him. Angels are also in this though so hard to know at this point.

O's claimed edgar olmos from the cubs...swing and a miss trying to sneak him through. they DFA'd junior lake to do it...lulz.

Musical chairs and a roster spot magically opens...Edgar Olmos (Battlestar Galactica) DFA'd and picked up by the Orioles. Junior Lake is available again as he was DFA'd by Orioles. Roster spot for...Brendan Ryan? (or J.Hay)

If it's really 8 years/$24 mill a year....pass...please... Lol..I know, I'm in the minority....but thats a ton of $$ for a good bat/great glove.

[ ]

In reply to by Dusty Baylor

You're talking about the #2 right fielder in WAR behind Bryce Harper here for a 26 year old. That kind of player doesn't come around too often on the free agent market and next year is going to be a very weak FA market. Yes it's overspending but that is the nature of the league so the question becomes if not Heyward who? It's not our money so then ask yourself whether you'd rather the Cubs overspend on a very good player who will be with us for years and will outperform Fowler or mix and match next year and probably not actually do better than Fowler at CF with fill in players. Think about how Fowler was able to set the table for us last year when he got hot and what a difference that made and then improve that. Heyward had a 93.1% contact rate on pitches inside the strike zone. For Fowler it was 86.8%. His swinging strike % was 6.5% compared to Fowler's 8.2%. His overall K% was 14.8% compared to Fowler's 22.3%. With all our strikeout problems think how good that would look combined with Zobrist. He had a wRC of 121 compared to Fowler's 110. 6 WAR compared to Fowler's 3.5. .797 OPS compared to Fowler's .757 with a higher OBP and SLG. 23 SBs and 3 CS vs Fowler's 20 SB and 7 CS. I liked Fowler but the thought of being able to have the top of the order improved and locked down for years to come is worth overspending in my opinion.

I think the Nats have "the $200 million offer "on the table, and he's waiting to see if cards or Cubs will match or exceed.

I'm in the process of doing the season ticket holder relocation and there are shit loads of seats available in the 400 level. I guess people don't want to drop $5125/seat to sit in the upper deck. If your number is up on the wait list, good luck. People are bolting from the lower level OF corners too due to a 40% price increase. I'd imagine they will get swooped up if they sign Heyward though.

Heyward is $9 million or so a year better than Fowler. Ok....I don't see that. Their career slash lines are almost identical...Fowler a slight edge in OBP, and Heyward in slugging. Heyward in CF is NOT a proven commodity, and I feel, that it's a misallocation of resources. Trout worth that much? Absolutely. Heyward? Nope.

[ ]

In reply to by Dusty Baylor

Heyward is a much better bet to keep it up over 5 years, not to mention 10 years. Heyward still has upside in his SLG. Fowler's "provenness" in CF is that he has proven he is a league-average CF. As the best defensive RF in baseball who's had a few cups of coffee in CF, I'll suspect that Heyward can be as good in CF as Fowler is. Heyward's contract is more reflective of his age than his status as one of baseball's elite players. Free agent contracts are buying future production, not past accomplishments.

[ ]

In reply to by John Beasley

I wouldn't sign Fowler for 5 years either. Anytime Heyward wants to slug a bit, would be great. If Heyward steps up his game, and plays CF? Puts up a .290/.360/.480...25 HR and 90 RBI type seasons going forward? Ok. Still not worth an 8 year deal, but "it is what it is." Playing 32 games over 6 seasons in CF proves nothing. He will most likely be good in CF, for a few seasons at least. At 6'5" 245lbs, I wonder how long that will last?

I

[ ]

In reply to by Dusty Baylor

this is most self-centered post on TCR, ever. i absolutely agree with you, though i would like to bring up the alternative of "me" for consideration.

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    in other news, it took 3 PA before a.rizzo got his 1st HBP of the season.

  • Eric S (view)

    With two home runs (so far) and 5 rbi today … clearly Nick Martini is the straw that stirs the Reds drink 😳

  • 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.  it will be telling if morel is not used at 3rd when an extreme fly ball pitcher like imanaga is on the mound.

  • 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.