An early 26-man roster prediction ahead of Cubs spring training

With Spring Training games officially less than a week away, I still believe this Cubs roster is unfinished. The pitching may be done with additions, but the bigger question is who will earn the spots on the 26-man roster. The biggest question, however, is who the Cubs will still add to the lineup this offseason. Here's my 26-man roster prediction for the Cubs' Opening Day roster.

Early roster prediction - The starting rotation

• Justin Steele
• Shota Imanaga
• Jameson Taillon
• Kyle Hendricks
• Jordan Wicks

The first four, Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, Jameson Taillon, and Kyle Hendricks, are apparent. As for Jordan Wicks, I'm plugging him into the Opening Day rotation, but he and Javier Assad will switch places throughout the season between the rotation and the bullpen.

Craig Counsell will have the luxury of looking ahead at the next series in the schedule, seeing who's scheduled to pitch, and determining if, for example, there's a team coming up with a primarily right-handed lineup, having Taillon, Hendricks, and Assad face them with Wicks available in the pen is probably the better matchup. And vice versa with left-handed heavy teams.

Where we sometimes scratched our heads at what David Ross was doing matchup-wise last season, all of that will get cleaned up this season by Counsell. We will see guys used in spots that will be the stroke of genius. Counsell was a master at that with a small-market Brewers team; I can only imagine what he will do as the Cubs become more star-studded in the coming years.

Early roster prediction - The bullpen

• Javier Assad
• Luke Little
• Drew Smyly
• Yency Almonte
• Mark Leiter Jr.
• Julian Merryweather
• Adbert Alzolay
• Hector Neris

Here, I like the looks of a bullpen with at least two lefties. A season ago, the Cubs were plagued by the fact that everyone was a righty, and they had to lean especially heavily on guys like Mark Leiter Jr. just because he has good splits against LHBs. As stated, Assad is your swingman. Smyly is guaranteed since he doesn't have options, and Luke Little continues where he left off in his short stint in the majors last season.

Other than that, everybody here except for Neris and Smyly have options remaining and are interchangeable if need be. Triple-A Iowa certainly has talent, as guys like Hayden Wesneski, Caleb Kilian, Daniel Palencia, and even Keegan Thompson are all just a call away. The depth this year is some of the best in the majors.

What I like is the upside of the final five. We know Hector Neris and Adbert Alzolay will be there late in games because both had a fantastic season in 2023. Yency Almonte is a wild card because if he gets back to his 2022 version, he has the potential to be the best arm in the pen. Leiter Jr. and Julian Merryweather had a solid season for the Cubs last year, and I expect them to continue their roles later in games in the 7th or 8th, determining how Craig Counsell sees fit for any given matchup.

Early roster prediction - The catchers

1. Yan Gomes

Bench: Miguel Amaya

It's pretty straightforward here. Gomes is in his final year with the Cubs and will likely start the season as the Cubs' main backstop, slowly giving way to Miguel Amaya to take the reins once he departs next offseason. Gomes has been a fantastic game-caller for the Cubs after Willson Contreras departed, and his offense was also clutch for the team. Amaya has shown flashes that he's nearly ready to take over, as he, too, can be solid both offensively and defensively for the Cubs.

As for the backups, you have Jorge Alfaro, who will be utilized if one of the two starters lands on the IL. He's likely the first man up if it happens, given his big-league experience. He won't be able to be optioned against once the Cubs no longer need him on the main roster, so I don't expect him to finish the years as a member of the Cubs organization if he does make it to the majors this year.

Both Moises Ballesteros and Pablo Aliendo are promising catching talents. Aliendo may make a case for the next man up after Alfaro if he succeeds in Triple-A before any roster moves that need to be made in-season. Ballesteros was narrowly left off MLB Pipelines' top 100 list and is the more promising of the two, but likely a year or two away from the show.

Early roster prediction - 2. The infield

1. Nico Hoerner 2B
2. Dansby Swanson SS
3. Christopher Morel 3B
4. Michael Busch 1B
5. J.D. Martinez DH

Bench IF: Nick Madrigal, Patrick Wisdom

This is where it gets fun. After the Blue Jays bowed out of free agency after signing Eduardo Escobar, it paved the way for a team like the Cubs to cash in on what's left out there. More news that Christopher Morel is going to the third baseman opens up the DH again for the Cubs. As luck has it, those left in free agency are perfect fits for the Cubs.

Adding J.D. Martinez to round out this lineup gives the Cubs one of the best in the National League and can't be overlooked. Michael Busch and Christopher Morel slide into the 7 and 8 spots, making the Cubs' offense ridiculously deep and fun to watch. They slide that far into the lineup because Martinez is not the only addition to the offense I'm predicting before Opening Day.