{"id":35057,"date":"2020-07-24T00:07:32","date_gmt":"2020-07-24T04:07:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonbaseball.com\/?p=35057"},"modified":"2020-07-24T00:07:32","modified_gmt":"2020-07-24T04:07:32","slug":"chicago-cubs-opening-day-2020-roster-is-set","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2020\/07\/24\/chicago-cubs-opening-day-2020-roster-is-set\/","title":{"rendered":"Chicago Cubs Opening Day 2020 Roster Is Set"},"content":{"rendered":"

Opening Day is finally upon us. Teams have officially set their rosters, which will have 30 total spots. In two weeks, each organization will have to cut that down to 28 players. The\u00a0Chicago Cubs<\/a> roster didn’t have too many surprises. It consists of 14 positions players and 16 pitchers. Here is what the Cubs opening day 2020 roster looks like:<\/p>\n

Infield:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

3B Kris Bryant<\/a><\/strong>
\n3B\/2B David Bote<\/a><\/strong>
\nSS Javier B\u00e1ez<\/strong><\/a>
\n2B Jason Kipnis<\/a><\/strong>
\n2B\/SS Nico Hoerner<\/a><\/strong>
\n1B Anthony Rizzo<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Catchers:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Willson Contreras<\/a><\/strong>
\nVictor Caratini<\/a><\/strong>
\nJosh Phegley<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Outfield:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

LF Kyle Schwarber<\/a><\/strong>
\nCF Ian Happ<\/a><\/strong>
\nCF Albert Almora<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>
\nRF Jason Heyward<\/a><\/strong>
\nOF Steven Souza Jr.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Starting Pitchers:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Kyle Hendricks<\/a><\/strong>
\nYu Darvish<\/a><\/strong>
\nJon Lester<\/a><\/strong>
\nTyler Chatwood<\/a><\/strong>
\nAlec Mills<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Bullpen:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

CL Craig Kimbrel<\/a><\/strong>
\nJeremy Jeffress<\/a><\/strong>
\nRowan Wick<\/a><\/strong>
\nKyle Ryan<\/a><\/strong>
\nBrad Wieck<\/a><\/strong>
\nCasey Sadler<\/a><\/strong>
\nDuane Underwood Jr.<\/a><\/strong>
\nDillon Maples<\/a><\/strong>
\nDan Winkler<\/a><\/strong>
\nJames Norwood<\/a><\/strong>
\nRex Brothers<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Pitching Analysis<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A majority of this roster was expected, but the decisions made within the pitching staff were interesting. The Cubs left Jharel Cotton<\/strong><\/a>,<\/strong> Ryan Tepera<\/strong><\/a>,<\/strong> and Adbert Alzolay<\/strong><\/a> off the initial roster. All of them could’ve been quality bullpen arms. Dillion Maples managed to get one of the last spots, after impressing David Ross<\/strong><\/a> in the final exhibition game against the Minnesota Twins<\/a>. Ross believes his slider<\/a> could be a real weapon and thinks hitters will struggle versus the 6’2 right-hander.<\/p>\n

Duane Underwood Jr. is also someone to keep an eye on. He performed well down the stretch of last season when he got opportunities on the mound. Many people believe he could be a potential closer in the making. He has elite velocity behind his pitches. His changeup has hit at over 90 mph.<\/p>\n

\n

Duane Underwood Jr. fastball (96 mph) and changeup (90 mph) pic.twitter.com\/8bp17OW24R<\/a><\/p>\n

— Brendan Miller (@brendan_cubs) July 23, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n