Veteran outfielder Michael Conforto has been informed he will be on the Cubs’ Opening Day roster, according to Patrick Mooney of the Athletic. In possibly related news, it appears that outfielder Seiya Suzuki will not be ready for Opening Day, according to manager Craig Counsell (link via Mooney).
Conforto, 33, had been in camp on a minor-league deal with a big-league Spring Training invite. On the heels of a rough 2025 season with the Dodgers, both offensively and defensively, he seemed like a long shot to make the big-league roster in Chicago. Center field was never an option. The North Siders have one of the game’s best defensive center fielders in Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Conforto has not played up the middle since 2019. That left the two corner outfield spots, DH, and the bench as potential landing spots, though he seemed blocked by the presence of Suzuki, Ian Happ, Moises Ballesteros, and Tyler Austin.
With the recent injury to Austin and today’s update on Suzuki, Conforto may get some outfield reps in the early going. Austin was brought in on a one-year, $1.25MM deal this offseason to shore up the bench, though he’ll now miss several months following knee surgery at the end of February. That leaves Matt Shaw, who was forced out of a starting spot by the Alex Bregman signing, as the main infield backup on the roster. In the outfield, Conforto and Dylan Carlson are projected as the backups according to RosterResource. With Suzuki potentially starting the year on the injured list, the team may use Conforto and Carlson in a right field platoon. In that scenario, Conforto would draw starts against right-handed pitchers, against whom he has a 121 career wRC+.
More to come.
