A rebuild for the ages -|Chicago Cubs|-

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Rule 5 Draft nets two aces

The Cubs made a big coupe in the rule 5 drafts as they snag Eddie Butler from the Colorado Rockies farm system, oddly enough the young ace who was a top 50 prospect hadnt been protected by the 40 man roster designation and as such found himself being drafted away by the Cubs whom have stock piled the pitching talent in their farm system, he will most likely only be used out of the bullpen this season as he isn't ready to be in the rotation.

Corey Knebel a closing pitcher for the Detroit Tigers found himself traveling across Lake Michigan for his next home, the closer had a lot of potential but for some reason the Tigers refused to commit to bringing him on in the 40 man roster, and the Cubs likely find their replacement for Jose Veras.[/i]

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Cubs make several off season moves

Travis Wood will return for another season at a price lower than what the Cubs offered due to his persistence on arbitration, one of the many odd moments in a rather frantic free agency session that saw the Cubs trim a lot of the fat, as they further develop their farm system which immediately saw a plethora of talent come about in the offseason.

The biggest move of the offseason will undoubtedly be the trade for Alex Rios of the Texas Rangers. The Cubs had Nate Schierholtz in a one year deal and Kris Bryant in the wings, but neither was ready to compete at an allstar level, suddenly they had the flexibility to deal Schierholtz and allow Bryant more time at the AAA level to groom himself for a future job while also getting an excellent player that will come off the books as Bryant begins to ascend. The Cubs gave up Pedro Strop (RP), Arismendy Alcantara (2B) and (CP) Julio Ruiz. Ruiz and Alcantara are both excellent prospects that project to be MLB starters at worst, while Pedro Strop immediately bolsters a weak bullpen, the move however gives the Rangers a huge hole in right field.

That led to the Cubs dealing out Nate Schierholtz for relief pitcher, Josh Fields of the Houston Astros, Both players are steady contributors and with Schierholtz becoming suddenly expendable, the Cubs take his salary off the books, albeit for a rather cheap price, the top relief pitcher in the Astros system.

In a deal with the Giants, the Cubs dealt Dan Vogelbach, Christian Villanueva and Justin Ruggiano to the Giants for Kyle Crick, which was a rather odd trade. Crick is a big talent and Vogelbach wasn't doing all that much at the AAA level, Christian Villaneuva was the best part of the deal, at 23 years old he slides in as the top 3rd baseman and figures to only improve at the corner, as he is still young. Justin Ruggiano will back up and split time with Angel Pagan in the center field for San Fransisco, who pick up a starter for several years, a utility player and a hit or miss pick in Vogelbach, who will likely be unloaded given they have Brandon Belt at the corner and Belt is still very young.

A look at the Cubs 40 man roster and the entire systems roster will follow as the team looks to compete in the 2015 season.

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The Cubs Organization
From the top down
The House That Theo Built

Catchers:
Wellington Castillo (MLB)*
Luke Maile (AAA)
Luis Flores (AAA)
Rick Dixon (AA)
Rafael Lopez (AA)
Willson Conteras (A)

Castillo figures to be the only MLB ready talent of this group, with Rick Dixon getting his first licks at the AA level. Rick Dixon will take a long time to reach his potential if he follows the Cubs ETA of 2019, and Castillo is at his peak, the Cubs would love to see Dixon develop quickly or Castillo to find a spark, this unit is average at best.

First Base:
Anthony Rizzo (MLB) *
Tyson Kimble (MLB) *
Lars Anderson (AAA)
Dustin Geiger (AA)

Anthony Rizzo headlines the group as one of the franchise building blocks and rookie Tyson Kimble won't contest that ideology very much. Rizzo will start a clear majority of the games and will hope to rebound from a poor 2014 campaign, while Kimble will serve as Rizzo's replacement on rest days and late game pinch hit situations or playing as the DH in AL games. The Cubs drafted him entirely for that purpose, a cheap MLB capable player. Neither Lars Anderson or Dustin Geiger project to be MLB talents at this point.

Second Base
Jedd Gyorko (MLB)
Chris Valaika (AAA)
Gioskar Amaya (AAA)
Logan Watkins (AA)*
Stephen Bruno (AA)

Jedd Gyorko head lines this group and is truly the lone bright spot. Gyorko was a huge addition last year and proved to be one of the teams better players and he looks to continue to build upon that performance, he has gotten better, but some fear the 26 year old is peaking. Valaika will serve as a AAA place holder and come into the MLB if Gyorko ever need some rest. Logan Watkins is a mediocre talent at best and is mostly suited for minor league duty.

Third Base
Javier Baez (MLB) *
Jeimer Candelario (AAA)
Travis Harrison (AAA)
Jonathan Mota (AA)

Baez was a gem last year and while he had his rookie struggles, he put together a well enough first campaign and at the age of 22, he could be poised for a break out year at the corner, the short stop convert has worked on his fielding tremendously, and his defense was a big problem that scouts had. Again, outside of Baez, of the group, only Travis Harrison projects to be MLB caliber at some point in his career.

Shortstop
Starlin Castro (MLB)*
Marco Hernandez (AAA)
Jeudy Valdez (AA)
Sam Valentin (A)

Starlin Castro was one in a heavily contested short stop spot but now finds himself as the solitary bright spot on the Cubs roster at the position, he figures to be a strong piece of this Cubs offense and an a rather strong infield. Marco Hernandez looks to be a fringe MLB talent.

Left Fielders
Jorge Soler (MLB)*
John Andreoli (AA)
Shawon Dunston Jr. (AA)
Chris Coghlan (AAA)
Ryan Kalish (MLB)
Tom Trejo (AAA)

Jorge Soler was a highly touted prospect that was one of few international prospects to sign with the Cubs in recent history, and in doing so it took almost 3 seasons for him to work his way into the starting line up but he finally has and while some question if it's too soon, he will have time to work on his swing and develop into a player that many feel he can be. Kalish will be a key utility player especially with some use in the infield as well.

Center Field
Denard Span (MLB)*
Matt Szczur (MLB)*
Slade Heathcott (AAA)*
Bubba Starling (AAA)*
Albert Almora (AA)*
Eloy Jimenez (AA)
Jacob Hanneman (AA)

This is likely one of the deepest albeit rawest units on the squad, the Cubs have talents in Bubba Starling and Albert Almora sitting in the minors and Denard Span and Matt Szczur could start on several MLB teams, there is likely tradebait rooted somewhere in this group, especially because having so many solid fielders only helps so much when you can only field 3, the Cubs will likely monitor Starling and Almora closely to decide if one should be traded as they grow.

Right Field
Alex Rios (MLB)*
Kris Bryant (AAA)*
Rubi Silva (AAA)
Jae-hoon HA (AA)
Will Fernandez (AA)

Kris Bryant will likely get some MLB experience this season but will start the season in Iowa, Bryant is MLB ready the Cubs say, but the Cubs with the trade for Rios allow Bryant more time to grow and prosper to ultimately take over for the veteran. Bryant was slated to be the starter up until the trade.

Starting Pitching
Chris Archer (MLB)*
Travis Wood (MLB)*
Tyson Ross (MLB)*
Jake Arrieta (MLB)*
Matt Wisler (MLB)*
Anthony Ranaudo (AAA)*
Kyle Crick (AAA)*
Yordano Ventura (AAA)*
Taylor Guerrieri (AAA)*
CJ Edwards (AA)
Chris Rusin (AAA)*
Eric Jokisch (A)
Kyle Hendricks (AA)
Eddie Butler (MLB)*
Pierce Johnson (AA)
Carlos Pimentel (A)
Corey Black (AA)
Dillon Maples (A)
Duane Underwood (AA)*
Paul Blackburn (A)

Close your eyes, put your finger to a name on the page and open them, chances are that player is MLB caliber, approaching said caliber, or is projected to be that caliber. This may be the deepest unit in all of MLB, and while their top talent staves off from the early plateau of Travis Wood and Chris Archer, there are several talents that are on the fringes about to jump upwards, and with so many starters on the 40 man, expect if one of the bottom starters struggles, to see a young pitcher get early licks at the MLB level. This unit is strong.

Relief Pitching
Junichi Tazawa (MLB)*
Josh Fields (MLB)*
Wesley Wright (MLB)*
Andrew Miller (MLB)*
Blake Parker (MLB)*
James Russell (AAA)*
Neil Ramirez (AAA)*
Armando Rivero (AAA)*
Alberta Cabrera (AAA)
Marcus Hatley (AAA)
Tony Zych (AAA)
Frank Batista (AA)
Yoanner Negrin (AA)
Brian Schlitter (AA)
Zach Rosscup (AA)
Cam Stark (AA)

The Cubs bullpen will be boosted by the trade for Josh Fields, but Tazawa is still the head liner and from there the talent is sporadic, the bullpen has it's work cut out for it, and while there isn't much youth in this group, the Cubs are by no means starved for talent, they will likely continue to reload through free agency as they have been if needed.

Closing Pitchers
Corey Knebel (MLB)*
Luis Rivera (AAA)

Knebel is a big talent brought in during the rule 5 draft and the Cubs have every hope that he develops into what he is projected to be, even getting rid of Jose Veras in the offseason to clear cap space that ended up going unused. Rivera is in the wings and while still far off from Knebel, there is a lot of youth and potential here, one could move to be a strong relief pitcher as well.

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Cubs opening day roster

Chicago Cubs Baseball Depth Chart - 2015

• Catcher
• Wellington Castillo

• First Base
• Anthony Rizzo
• Tyson Kimble

• Second Base
• Jedd Gyorko

• Third Base
• Javier Baez
• Jeimer Candelario

• Shortstop
• Starlin Castro

• Left Field
• Jorge Soler
• Shawon Dunston Jr.

• Center Field
• Denard Span
• Matt Szczur
• Slade Heathcott

• Right Field
• Alex Rios

• Starting Pitcher
• Chris Archer
• Travis Wood
• Tyson Ross
• Matt Wisler
• Jake Arrieta

• Relief Pitcher
• Eddie Butler
• James Russell
• Andrew Miller
• Josh Fields
• Junichi Tazawa
• Wesley Wright

• Closer
• Corey Knebel

• Designated Hitter
• Tyson Kimble

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Cubs open season by taking Pirates series, admist fear

Opening day was in full swing and only one game in, a terrifying incident involving young out fielder Gregory Polanco of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Javier Baez hit a line driver to right field where Polanco would dive and the ball would hit him square in the head. The outfielder walked off the field on his own power and went in for testing, as the game concluded, the PA system blared out that Polanco only had cuts and bruising, no concussion and no serious injury, the crowd cheered for the youngster who played his heart out.

In the end though, thanks to two separate home run shots, the Cubs got out on top early, Javier Baez and Jedd Gyorko each had a home run in the first four innings to make it a 2-0 game and while Pittsburgh would manage an inside the park home run when Alex Rios misplayed a ball hit to right and would dive for the ball, missing completely, the ball would get caught up at the wall and once Rios recovered he rocketed the ball to third, but Sanchez would already be on his way home and throw would be just late at the plate to make it a 2-1 game. The Cubs would add another run in their half of the inning before turning the game over to Butler who allowed 3 hits in 1.2 innings of work, and struck out one but allowed no runs, Josh Fields would hold another inning as the Cubs rally with 2 outs, Starlin Castro hitting a big triple and adding 2 more runs on the inning before being sat down. Corey Knebel came in and pitched the save, allowing no hits in the final frame and striking out a batter.

After a day of rest, the Cubs and Pirates were back at it and starter Travis Wood pitched his heart out, going 8.1 innings allowing 4 hits and 1 earned run while sitting down 7 on strikes, Knebel picked up his 2nd save in as many tries as the Cubs rolled over Franssico Liriano and the Pirates. Jorge Soler had a big triple that led to a three run sixth inning, as he would knock in a runner, shortly after Denard Span scored two more.

In the final game of the opening series, the Pirates exploded for 8 runs in the first inning off Tyson Ross who would be pulled before the end of the first inning after allowing all 8, while Taillon for the Pirates would go the distance allowing 8 hits and striking out 4, allowing no runs to score.

The Cubs travel for two road series, facing the Nationals and Pirates in six back to back games before returning to the friendly confines for six more.