Affiliate Rosters Preview: Still Some Kinks to Work Out Before May 4

Now that the major league roster is set for a while, barring injury, I can start to focus in on what the minor league rosters are going to look like and see how they evolve over the next month. With the minor league season set to begin on May 4, there are a lot of spots to still figure out. I still plan on having my individual affiliate previews the last week of April/first week of May and the rosters below should change a lot between now and then.

Two weeks ago, I had spring break and I was able to sit down and start moving some names around a spreadsheet to get a better idea of who is going to be where. The players are listed on what roster they are on now. Things could change quite a bit over the next month especially when it comes to pitching.

So, this is just a first glance at what the Cub affiliates look like.

The first thing you notice is just the amount of pitching as there are a plethora of starters and relievers. Each affiliate gets an expanded roster this year so that will alleviate some of the roster crunch. However, the Cubs can’t keep them all because they are limited to 180 stateside spots and that includes the rookie league in Arizona.

So let’s get to who could be where over the next month.

Iowa Cubs – They can roster 28 guys this summer.

At first glance, the roster above has really turned over when it comes to position players from 2019. They’re only just a few prospects while most are minor league free agents. That has more to do with how the Cubs drafted between 2016 and 2019 than it does anything else. The pitching, however, is going to be interesting to see just how many prospects are left standing when the final roster is submitted. Don’t expect to see Chase Strumpf and Andy Weber on Iowa’s opening day roster in a month. They are just there now because of their participation in spring training and the alternate site. More than likely, they should be at AA Tennessee.

Tennessee Smokies – They can roster 28 guys as well this summer.

Well, the first thing you notice is that there are a lot of new names on the position side of things and that might be a good thing as the Smokies have been spinning their wheels offensively the past couple years with pretty much the same players. It’s still unclear whether some of the pitchers listed above will be starters or relievers but that’ll get sorted out this month. The highlight this year is that most of the Cubs’ top prospects are going to be Smokies. Marquez, Davis, Amaya, Strumpf, and Morel should all begin the year at AA Tennessee.

South Bend Cubs – 30 players will find a spot here on May 4.

There are two ways to look at his roster. One, the pitching is going to be stacked, literally. From the rotation to the last guy in the bullpen, they are going to be fun to watch in the first half. When it comes to the hitters, I feel like a lot of these guys are going to be playing with a little chip on their shoulder, almost as if they have something to prove this year. I like that. I would not be surprised to see a quarter of this team in Myrtle Beach.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans – I like that there can also be 30 players here.

Even though the Pelicans are on the east coast, this initial roster is going to be like the wild, wild West. There are a lot of extremely young players who are getting their first crack at playing professional ball. Most of the eyes are going to be on Ed Howard and rightfully so. How long he stays in Myrtle Beach is going to be a different story. No one knows how aggressive the Cubs are going to be with his development. In addition, we’re going to see how good the prospects the Cubs acquired in the Yu Darvish trade are pretty quickly. I would not be surprised to see a lot of the names listed above be held back in extended spring training.

Arizona Rookie League – 60 guys can listed as part of this roster.

This portion of the roster is up for grabs. They are going to be some leftovers from 2019, but manager Lance Rymel is going to have a lot of young kids who are either making their debuts or have only played in the Dominican two summers ago. By the time the full season squads break camp, Rymel should have about 60 rostered guys to develop in come capacity this spring, summer, and early fall. It’s going to be quite the learning experience for him and for them. However, I’m hoping a Christian Hernandez is one of those guys.

If at first glance of the roster, you are worried about the lack of pitching in Arizona, don’t be. There are plenty of pitchers who are going to come north from the Dominican squads whose roster below is overflowing with pitchers.

As you can see the DSL roster has plenty of names, especially when it comes to pitching. No schedule has been set for rookie leagues this summer so it’ll be interesting to see what happens. Will there be an actual schedule. Will they just play intrasquad games? Will there be informal games against other teams? We should find out by mid-May.