Well, it’s not QUITE a big league signing, but it’s also not QUITE a standard minor league signing. It’s also not the first move of the offseason of any kind, since the Cubs have already claimed Eric Orze off of waivers.
But it’s certainly A move, and an interesting one at that:
Cubs & RHP Bruno López have agreed to 2-year minor-league deal with invite to MLB spring training, source tells Tribune. López, 24, spent last 7 years in Cardinals’ system. Dominican Republic native features fastball that sits 98-99 mph.
— Meghan Montemurro (@MegMontemurro) November 10, 2026Two-year minor league deals are not unheard of, but they are rare. Typically, it’s when there’s an injury or surgery involved, and the expectation is that some of the following season might be missed (Shelby Miller was that kind of situation last year, but that was a Major League deal, which came with a 40-man spot).
With Bruno Lopez, 24, it was elbow surgery to remove bone chips in 2026, per Meghan Montemurro. The former Cardinals minor leaguer ultimately missed all of 2026, and I wonder if there’s some question about how many innings he’ll be able to pitch in 2027 – and, since he’ll have been in minor league ball for eight years, the Cubs are securing an extra minor league year of control in advance, rather than having to either put him on the 40-man roster next year or risk losing him to minor league free agency. Kind of a clever, rare deal.
As for the pitcher, though, let’s be clear that this is a scouting and development play, because Lopez has yet to pitch above A-ball, and has thrown exceedingly few pro innings:
(via FanGraphs)Seems like Lopez is a guy with a lot of obvious arm talent, but without the ability (yet) to stay healthy enough to harness it. Makes sense as a priority early-offseason minor league signing for the Cubs, who desperately need high-upside arms in the system, and have had some success with these types of reliever moves.
Guessing there is some nasty raw stuff here when healthy, albeit with some control challenges that he hasn’t worked through successfully:
One under-the-radar Cardinals pitching prospect I’m watching in 2026 is Bruno Lopez. He has a dynamic fastball/slider combo. After missing 2024, he returned in 2025 with a 40.2% K%. The command was an issue (20.6% BB%), but from 2021-23 he sat at a respectable 11.0% BB%. t.co/iAUGcZb97o
— Kareem Haq (@KareemSSN) February 15, 2026Lopez figures to come to Spring Training, if healthy, with a chance to open the season at High-A South Bend or maybe Double-A Knoxville if he really pops this offseason. Give his age and stuff, you could conceive of him being on the big league radar late in the year or the following season, but there’s a long road to go before we’d get to that conversation.
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