Cubs: 5 players who won’t be on the roster by August 1

Tucker Barnhart may not have much of a future in the Windy City

The Cubs are one of the few teams in the MLB that carry three catchers on their active roster. There aren’t many circumstances that would consistently require the addition of the third catcher. In fact, it probably hurts the roster more than helping it. It doesn’t allow them to play their bullpen to its full strength or it could cut down depth in the infield or outfield. The addition of the third catcher simply isn’t worth the negatives that come with it.

With the Cubs having three active catchers, which one is the odd man out? Well, Yan Gomes seems to be safe. Gomes is their starting catcher and is under team control for the next year and a half. Miguel Amaya is the Cubs’ 14th ranked prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. He’s shown solid potential at being the Cubs backstop of the future. He’s controllable and projectable, making it hard to lose him from their roster this year.

That just leaves the veteran Tucker Barnhart. Barnhart has been the worst offensive catcher between the three and has a player option after this year. The Cubs will likely go with two catchers next year, with those two likely being Gome and Amaya. Chicago would be smart to see if they could move him before the deadline but if there’s no suitors, a DFA could be in his future.