The Chicago Cubs added several players to their 40-man roster ahead of a pair of Tuesday deadlines, including pitcher Shota Imanaga.

Imanaga, who had until Tuesday to accept the team’s one-year, $22 million qualifying offer, did so in order to avoid free agency, giving the Cubs another starting pitcher for their 2026 rotation.

That group will also include Cade Horton and eventually Justin Steele, who is expected to return next season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Other questions still remain, but adding Imanaga back to the mix gives the Cubs another veteran option for 2026.

Imanaga had an injury-impacted 2025 season, with a 9-8 record and a 3.73 ERA, with 117 strikeouts in 144.2 innings pitched. He struggled in the postseason for the Cubs, with an 8.10 ERA in two appearances, giving up six earned runs and three home runs in 6.2 innings.

In addition to the qualifying offer deadline, the Cubs also had to contend with a 5 p.m. Eastern time deadline to protect players from the upcoming Rule 5 Draft, which will take place at the MLB Winter Meetings next month.

The Cubs selected the contracts of infielders James Triantos and Pedro Ramirez to the 40-man roster, and also added pitcher Riley Martin to that list, bringing their 40-man roster to 32 players as free agency continues.

Triantos, taken by the Cubs in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft, was ranked as the No. 73 prospect in all of baseball by MLB Pipeline prior to the 2025 season, but he hasn’t found his way to the big league club yet. He played in 102 games with Triple-A Iowa last season, hitting seven home runs, driving in 43 RBI’s and stealing 28 bases in 480 total plate appearances.

The 21-year-old Ramirez played 129 games at Double-A Knoxville last season, with eight home runs, 73 RBI’s and 28 stolen bases while slashing .280/.346/.386.

Martin was a sixth-round pick of the Cubs in the 2021 draft, and appeared in 47 games for Iowa last season. He had a 6-2 record and a 2.69 ERA, pitching in a relief role for the squad.

The Cubs did not opt to protect pitcher Brandon Birdsell, and did not protect infielder Cristian Hernandez, though it’s unclear if either player will be selected by another team.

Under MLB rules, the Rule 5 Draft allows players without a full 40-man roster to select unprotected players from other teams. Players who signed at age 18 or younger must be added to a team’s 40-man roster within five seasons, and players who signed at 19 or older must be added to the 40-man roster within four seasons.

Any players who are not protected are then eligible for the Rule 5 Draft. A selecting team must keep a player chosen in the MLB phase on their 26-man roster for the following season, or they must place him on waivers. If the player clears waivers, they must be offered back to their original team for $50,000.