Cubs Season Preview: Roster Updates, Positional Breakdowns, Predictions

The 2022 MLB season is two days away. There's speculation about who will make the Chicago Cubs Opening Day roster. This season, teams start the year with 28-man rosters to offset limited preparation time and Spring Training action due to the lockout.

Pitchers (14): Kyle Hendricks, Marcus Stroman, Justin Steele, Drew Smyly, Alec Mills, Keegan Thompson, Daniel Norris, Ethan Roberts, Chris Martin, Jesse Chavez, Mychal Givens, Scott Effross, David Robertson, Rowan Wick.

Kyle Hendricks is the Opening Day starter for the Cubs. Justin Steele will start the second game against Milwaukee. Marcus Stroman is considered the team's No. 1 starter. Alec Mills is still the No 5 option. Keegan Thompson will be a long reliever/sixth starter if he wins the job.

The Chicago Cubs have a lot of options for their bullpen. Daniel Norris will be the lone left-hander. Jesse Chavez has been outstanding this spring. Ethan Roberts made the Opening Day roster. Rowan Wick is the favorite to be their closer. The team will run with 14 pitchers to start the season. They have an off-day shortly following Opening day.

Yan Gomes is the Cubs' second catcher. Willson Contreras is their leader. Gome allows the team to DH Contrares occasionally.

The Chicago Cubs have six infielders this season. Frank Schwindel, Nick Madrigal, Nico Hoerner, Patrick Wisdom, Jonathan Villar, Alfonso Rivas and Simmons are the main players.

Madrigal is the only stable part of the infield. Hoerner or Villar will slide over to the keystone position on his days off. Rivas has played well in the spring and is a better first baseman than Schwindel.

The Cubs have a lot of options in their outfield. The players who will start on Opening Day are Suzuki and Happ. Clint Frazier should get more opportunities to play regular games. He was acquired from the Yankees. He is a former first-round draft pick. His bat speed and elite chase rate set him up for a more regular role in the lineup. It is also said that he is finally healthy after concussions. he was drafted five picks after Kris Bryant in 2013.

Yan Gomes, Alfonso Rivas, Jonathan Villar, Rafael Ortega, Michael Hermosillo are on the bench for the Cubs.

Cubs have updated their roster and made some changes. They have also made changes to their lineups. The current bench is Alfonso Rivas, Ian Happ, Yan Gomes, Rafael Ortega, Jason Heyward, and Villar.

Andrelton Simmons is close to returning from shoulder soreness. Wade Miley is still recovering from elbow inflammation.

Adbert Alzolay, Codi Heuer, Brad Wieck, David Bote and others are on the 60-day injured list. Alzoliay will start the year on that list with a shoulder injury. Wieser has been unable to stay healthy the past two seasons. Botes is out until at least early June because of offseason shoulder surgery.

The Chicago Cubs are aiming for 78 wins this season. The team is expected to finish third in the NL Central. Sportsbooks have the team's win total at 75.5. If everything goes well, the Cubs could sneak into a wild card spot. If the season falls off the rails, there will be individual players to watch and evaluate. It should be a fun season on the North Side. They might surprise us. Get excited. Let's enjoy the ride. I want them to win the World Series every year.