37 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (three slots are open)
Last updated 11-17-2023
* bats or throws left # bats both
PITCHERS: 20 Adbert Alzolay Michael Arias Javier Assad Ben Brown Jose Cuas Kyle Hendricks Porter Hodge * Bailey Horn Caleb Kilian Mark Leiter Jr * Luke Little Julian Merryweather Daniel Palencia Michael Rucker * Drew Smyly * Justin Steele Jameson Taillon Keegan Thompson Hayden Wesneski * Jordan Wicks
CATCHERS: 2 Miguel Amaya Yan Gomes
INFIELDERS: 8 Nico Hoerner Nick Madrigal * Miles Mastrobuoni * Matt Mervis Christopher Morel Dansby Swanson Luis Vazquez Patrick Wisdom
OUTFIELDERS: 7 Kevin Alcantara Alexander Canario * Pete Crow-Armstrong Brennen Davis # Ian Happ Seiya Suzuki * Mike Tauchman
Faced with a glut of outfielders, the Giants designated Marquis Grissom for assignment yesterday. Normally, I'm all against signing aging players who are showing a considerable decline in their skills. BUT, over the last 3 years there is one thing that Grissom has done well and it's something we are in the need of.
When the Cubs acquired Jody Gerut just a fortnight ago, I wrote that...
With so many similar hitters to Gerut, it's difficult to see just exactly where he fits in right now. I suspect though that Gerut will replace Ben Grieve on the major league roster with immediate effect, thereby effectively ending his Cub career, and that we won't see Adam Greenberg again this season either. Dusty will probably use Gerut in a straight platoon with Jerry Hairston as the centre fielder and leadoff hitter, which, despite Hairston's reverse splits, is probably the right way to go. It would not surprise me if, having become an irrelevance, Hairy were then traded before the deadline... And, finally, if Gerut performs, particularly with regard to his power returning, this could mean the end for Corey Patterson in Chicago. For such a seemingly minor move, this trade could end up having some pretty major long-term ramifications. We will see.
That all fell down from the "Dusty will probably..." bit onwards, perhaps because the great man's allergic to "the right way to go". Gerut made just two starts for the Cubs in his shortest of tenures, neither in centre field, where he didn't play an inning for the Cubs. And the second of those starts was cut short by the trade. Otherwise, he was limited to occasional pinch-hitting and late-inning defensive work in left field. In all, he went 1-for-14 as a Cub, with a double, two walks and three strikeouts, and a single run scored. It was Gerut himself that became the irrelevance, not Hairston, and Gerut that quickly found himself traded.
Perhaps one of the biggest reasons for that is that it's not been hard to see where Gerut's power has gone. His swing right now consists of a real downward chop on the ball, and groundballs have a nasty habit of not going over the fences. Without power, and with an enormous platoon split, in the long-term Gerut is highly unlikely to amount to anything as a starting major league outfielder. It may be that the Cubs have seen enough to think that Gerut's power may not be coming back any time soon, and that it's time to move him now before other teams come to the same conclusion. Whether or not the Cubs would be right in such an assessment of course remains to be seen.
Whatever, it turns out the trade of Dubois for Gerut will have no long-term ramifications at all. Instead, it's this new trade, for Matt Lawton, that holds potentially interesting implications...
Phil Garner, Davey Lopes, Steve Sax, Glenn Hubbard, Tommy Herr, Bill Doran, Bobby Grich, Chico Lind, Manny Trillo, Willie Randolph, Damaso Garcia, Johnny Ray, Lou Whitaker, Frank White, Juan Samuel, Julio Franco, Harold Reynolds, Jose Oquendo
Running through these names is all that needs to be done to understand why Ryne Sandberg is a Hall of Famer, and should have been a first-ballot Hall of Famer. For a decade, Sandberg was unarguably the elite second baseman of the Major Leagues, both offensively and defensively.
bellinger wins comeback player of the year. the AL winner was liam hendricks and his 5ip before he got tommy john...setting himself up for a 2025 shot at the award.
I hope that Perlaza goes on to have a successful career. On most Cubs teams prior to the current administration, he would have been one of their more highly ranked prospects. As far as the others are concerned, one or more may well go on to be much better than expected, but unfortunately there is no way to tell which one at the present time. You can't keep everyone.
Another one of the nine Cubs post-2023 Rule 9 minor league 6YFA has signed, as RHP Carlos Guzman (acquired from the Tigers for Zack McKinstry at the end of Spring Training) signed a 2024 minor league contract with the Mets.
So RHRP Yovanny Cruz (SD), C-INF P. J. Higgins (CIN), and now Carlos Guzman (NYM) have already signed 2024 minor league contracts with new MLB organizations, and OF Yonathan Perlaza is headed for Korea (Hanhwa Eagles).
...and back to 3rd for another game. at this point i'm gonna hang back and when/if he actually plays 1st then i'll find it notable. i am glad he's playing a good amount of 3rd, though...give the club one more good look at him there. shrug
Recent comments
crunch (view)
thomas hatch is going to fight ham in japan. he was on PIT's 40-man.
crunch (view)
morel played somewhere besides 3rd and SS...he got 8 innings in CF, 2 putouts and an assist.
crunch (view)
ryan flaherty new cubs bench coach.
crunch (view)
bellinger wins comeback player of the year. the AL winner was liam hendricks and his 5ip before he got tommy john...setting himself up for a 2025 shot at the award.
Bill (view)
I hope that Perlaza goes on to have a successful career. On most Cubs teams prior to the current administration, he would have been one of their more highly ranked prospects. As far as the others are concerned, one or more may well go on to be much better than expected, but unfortunately there is no way to tell which one at the present time. You can't keep everyone.
crunch (view)
s.gray signs with the cards...3/75m
Arizona Phil (view)
Another one of the nine Cubs post-2023 Rule 9 minor league 6YFA has signed, as RHP Carlos Guzman (acquired from the Tigers for Zack McKinstry at the end of Spring Training) signed a 2024 minor league contract with the Mets.
So RHRP Yovanny Cruz (SD), C-INF P. J. Higgins (CIN), and now Carlos Guzman (NYM) have already signed 2024 minor league contracts with new MLB organizations, and OF Yonathan Perlaza is headed for Korea (Hanhwa Eagles).
crunch (view)
...and back to 3rd for another game. at this point i'm gonna hang back and when/if he actually plays 1st then i'll find it notable. i am glad he's playing a good amount of 3rd, though...give the club one more good look at him there. shrug
crunch (view)
morel played SS last night (no errors)...hit a homer and a double. he's got 2 of both in 19PA.
crunch (view)
e.escobar was throwing 95-97mph on his fastball in 2023.