Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
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

Navigating the Off-Season Roster

Submitted by Arizona Phil on

5 PM (Eastern) on the 5th day after the final game of the World Series (which was Sunday 11/1 this season) is an important deadline for several reasons. 

You already know about certain unsigned minor leaguers being declared second-contract or 6YFA on that date/time, but it is also the deadline for outrighting certain players. 

This is why you saw so many players get outrighted by MLB clubs prior to that date/time. 

Any player on an MLB Reserve List (40-man roster) who is not eligible to elect free-agency if outrighted (players on the 40 who are eligible to elect free-agency must have Article XX-D or Article XIX-A status, meaning the player either has been outrighted previously in his career or the player has accrued at least three years of MLB Service Time or the player qualifies as a "Super Two" player) but who would have been declared a Rule 55 minor league second-contract or 6YFA this past Sunday if it wasn't that he was on an MLB 40-man roster at the time cannot be sent outright to the minors unless and until the player has signed a 2021 MLB contract or until the player agrees (in advance) to sign a 2021 minor league contract. 

Since MLB contracts are not tendered until 12/2 (that's the MLB contract tender date) and since 2020 MLB contracts cannot be renewed until March 1st, a player in this class is usually advised by his agent not to sign a contract for 2021 until the player reports to Spring Training in February. That way, the player cannot be outrighted to the minors during the off-season (after this past Sunday). 

Players on the Cubs MLB 40-man roster who cannot be sent outright to the minors without the player's permission during the off-season are: 

PLAYERS WITH ARTICLE XIX-A STATUS:  
Javier Baez 
Kris Bryant 
Yu Darvish 
Kyle Hendricks 
Jason Heyward 
Craig Kimbrel 
Anthony Rizzo 
Kyle Schwarber 
Ryan Tepera 
Dan Winkler 

Players on the Cubs MLB 40-man roster who can be sent outright to the minors but can elect free-agency after being outrighted:  

PLAYERS WITH ARTICLE XX-D STATUS: 
Albert Almora 
Victor Caratini 
Willson Contreras 
Ian Happ 
Jose Martinez 
Colin Rea 
Kyle Ryan 
Rowan Wick (was outrighted previously in his career)

Players on the Cubs MLB 40-man roster who cannot be sent outright to the minors until the player either signs a 2021 MLB contract or agrees (in advance) to sign a 2021 minor league contract: 

PLAYERS WITH RULE 55 STATUS: 
Jason Adam 
Adbert Alzolay 
Dillon Maples  
Alec Mills 
Justin Steele 
Duane Underwood Jr 
Ildemaro Vargas 
 
In addition, any minor league player who has accrued less than three years of MLB Service Time, who is eligible for selection in the 2020 Rule 5 Draft, and who had his contract selected and was added to the MLB 40-man roster after August 31st (it was after August 15th in previous seasons) and prior to the 2020 Rule 5 Draft, cannot be sent outright to the minors until 20 days prior to 2021 MLB Opening Day. This is called a "Draft-Excluded Player." 

PLAYERS WITH DRAFT-EXCLUDED STATUS:  
Briailyn Marquez, LHP 

Also, any Rule 5 Draft-eligible  minor league player with less than three years of MLB Service Time who is added to the 40 by the 11/20 roster filing deadline will have Draft-Excluded Status as well (these players still TBD). 

So this means that very few players on the Cubs MLB 40-man roster can be outrighted to the minors during the off-seasson (after last Sunday) without restriction. 

The only ones who can be outrighted throughout the off-season without any restriction (other than the possibility that the player might get claimed off waivers) are: 

NO RESTRICTION: 
Miguel Amaya 
David Bote (has Rule 55 Status but is signed to a multi-year contract) 
Nico Hoerner 
Tyson Miller 
James Norwood 
Manuel Rodriguez 
Max Strock
Brad Wieck  

In addition, even if the player is one of the eight with "no rrestriction" listed above, an injured player cannot be placed on Outright Assignment Waivers and be sent outright to the minors after 11/20 and up until 15 days prior to MLB Opening Day unless the player accrued no MLB Service Time in 2020. The only such player on the list above is Miguel Amaya. 

And since Norwood, Rodriguez, and Wieck ended the 2020 season on the MLB 60-day IL, there may be issues with the player being medically cleared so that he can be placed on Outright Assignment Waivers during the off-season after 11/20. (Both Rodriguez and Wieck are active at AZ Instructs, and Rodriguez has even been pitching in AZIL games, while Wieck has thrown "live" BP only).   
 
So that doesn't leave the Cubs much 40-man roster wiggle room during the off-season if they need to open up additional roster slots for MLB free-agents, trades, waiver claims, and/or Rule 5 Draft picks.  

And that's why the MLB contract tender date (December 2nd) is so important.  

Players who cannot be outrighted during the off-season or who can elect free-agency if outrighted can be released at any time (but the player could be claimed off Outright Release Waivers, although a player claimed off Outright Release Waivers can reject the claim and elect free-agency, and once released the player cannot return to that club's MLB 40-man roster until May 15th), but non-tendering the player on 12/2 does not expose the player to waivers - AND - the player can be re-signed by the same club to a minor league contract (normally after the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft, so that the player would not be eligible for selection) and can be added back to the MLB 40-man roster prior to May 15th (perhaps by Opening Day if the player gets an NRI to MLB Spring Training and pitches or plays well enough to make the Opening Day MLB roster).    

So while the 12/2 contract tender date is often presented as the deadline to offer or decline to offer a contract to arbitration-eligible players, it actually isn't just about tendering or non-tendering arbitration-eligible players. 

It's also very important as the one off-season "roster oasis" as far as a club being able to remove a pre-arbitration (auto-renewal) player from the MLB 40-man roster who otherwise cannot be removed from the 40 during the off-season, except by Outright Release. 

Tags
Cubs Roster Strategy

Comments

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Tue, 11/03/2020 - 11:42 am

I expect the Cubs to make a lot of roster moves during the off-season. 

I expect several non-tenders on 12/2 (they non-tendered Addison Russell and Danny Hultzen last 12/2, although they re-signed Hultzen to a 2020 minor league contract after the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft). waiver claims (like C. D. Pelham last off-season) and minor trades (like acquiring Jharel Cotton for cash, the Tony Kemp for Alfonso Rivas trade, the Clayton Daniel for Casey Sadler deal, and the Jhonny Pereda for Travis Lakins trade last off-season), one or two Rule 5 selections (like Trevor Megill last December), and maybe a minor FA signing of players non-tendered by other organizations on 12/2 (like Dan Winkler, Ryan Tepera, and Steven Souza Jr last off-season).   

But to do that, the Cubs need to leave multiple 40-man roster slots open during the off-season (especially after 12/2 when they will no longer be able to easily remove players from the 40). 

For example, last off-season the Cubs acquired RHRP Travis Lakins from the Boston Red Sox for a PTBNL (turned out be C Jhonny Pereda) on 1/21 and then lost Lakins off waivers to the Baltimore Orioles ten days later after they signed FA OF Steven Souza and needed a slot on the 40 for him. And then Lakins ended up having a really nice year out of the Orioles bullpen, and the Cubs lost Pereda on top of it. 

That's why I believe the Cubs will add no more than three Rule 5 Draft-eligible minor leaguers to the 40 on 11/20 (and right now I would say those three will most-likely be RHSP Cory Abbott, INF Christopher Morel, and C-INF P. J. Higgins).  

[ ]

Submitted by Arizona Phil on Wed, 11/04/2020 - 11:45 pm

CRUNCH: Christopher Morel isn't injured. He participates fully in BP, infield practice, and baserunning drills. He just isn't playing in games. That could be an indication that he is altering his swing and/or approach at the plate, and when players are doing that they usually don't play in games until they have mastered the change(s). 

I believe Ed Howard IV, Edmond Americaan, and Fabian Pertuz might be doing the same thing.

Felix Stevens was working in the cages with coaches for about three weeks before he finally started playing in games last week. (Stevens is a big dude ex-RHP from Cuba with plus-power and a plus-arm from RF). 

Jared Young (lower body) and Yohendrick Pinango (shoulder?) are definitely injured, though, They both got hurt running the bases (Young) or sliding into a base (Pinango) in games a week or so ago  (I can't remember which games). 

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    i'd just like to take a moment to express to the world i'm still pissed willson contreras is not a cub when the pricetag was 5/87m (17.5m/yr).

    it would be nice to have a legacy-type player to stick around, especially one with his leadership and the respect he gets from his peers.  cubs fans deserved more than 1 season of contreras + morel...that was gold.

  • crunch (view)

    happ, right hamstring tightness, day-to-day (hopefully 0 days).

    he will be reevaluated tomorrow.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    I guess I'm not looking for that type of AB 

    Just a difference of opinion

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    I don’t see Tauchman as a weak link in any position. He simply adds his value in a different way.

    I don’t know that we gain much by putting him in the outfield - Happ, Bellinger and Suzuki and Tauchman all field their positions well. If you’re looking for Taucnman’s kind of AB in a particular game I don’t see why it can’t come from DH.

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Tauchman gets a pinch hit RBI single with a liner to RF. This is his spot. He's a solid 4th OF. But he isn't a DH. 

    He takes pitches. Useful. I still believe in having good hitters.

    You don't want your DH to be your weak link (other than your C maybe)

  • crunch (view)

    bit of a hot take here, but i'm gonna say it.

    the 2024 marlins don't seem to be good at doing baseballs.

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    Phil, will the call up for a double header restart that 15 days on assignment for a pitcher? Like will wesneski’s 15 days start yesterday, or if he’s the 27th man, will that mean 15 days from tomorrow?

    I hope that makes sense. It sounds clearer in my head.

  • Charlie (view)

    Tauchman obviously brings value to the roster as a 4th outfielder who can and should play frequently. Him appearing frequently at DH indicated that the team lacks a valuable DH. 

  • TarzanJoeWallis (view)

    Totally onboard with your thoughts concerning today’s lineup. Not sure about your take on Tauchman though.

    The guy typically doesn’t pound the ball out out of the park, and his BA is quite unimpressive. But he brings something unique to the table that the undisciplined batters of the past didn’t. He always provides a quality at bat and he makes the opposing pitcher work because he has a great eye for the zone and protects the plate with two strikes exceptionally well. In addition to making him a base runner more often than it seems through his walks, that kind of at bat wears a pitcher down both mentally and physically so that the other guys who may hit the ball harder are more apt to take advantage of subsequent mistakes and do their damage.

    I can’t remember a time when the Cubs valued this kind of contribution but this year they have a couple of guys doing it, with Happ being the other. It doesn’t make for gaudy stats but it definitely contributes to winning ball games. I do believe that’s why Tauchman has garnered so much playing time.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Miles Mastrobuoni cannot be recalled until he has spent at least ten days on optional assignment, unless he is recalled to replace a position player who is placed on an MLB inactive list (IL, Paternity, Bereavement / Family Medical). 

     

    And for a pitcher it's 15 days on optional assignment before he can be recalled, unless he is replacing a pitcher who is placed on an MLB inactive list (IL, Paternity, or Bereavement / Family Medical). 

     

    And a pitcher (or a position player, but almost always it's a pitcher) can be recalled as the 27th man for a doubleheader regardless of how many days he has been on optional assignment, but then he must be sent back down again the next day. 

     

    That's why the Cubs had to wait as long as they did to send Jose Cuas down and recall Keegan Thompson. Thompson needed to spend the first 15 days of the MLB regular season on optional assignment before he could be recalled (and he spent EXACTLY the first 15 days of the MLB regular season on optional assignment before he was recalled). 

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