As expected, they officially exercised the $16.5-million team option on first baseman Anthony Rizzo for 2020. The Cubs also selected the contract of right-hander Colin Rea to add him to the 40-man roster.
Beyond that, the Cubs declined the 2020 options on reliever Brandon Morrow, reliever Tony Barnette, reliever David Phelps and right-hander Kendall Graveman. They will become free agents. The Cubs have no intention of bringing Morrow or Barnette back, a source told 670 The Score. There remains a chance that Phelps or Graveman could be re-signed.
The Cubs also outrighted right-hander Allen Webster to Triple-A Iowa.
Rea was 14-4 with a 3.95 ERA in 26 starts at Triple-A in 2019, when he earned Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year honors. The Cubs signed him to a minor league deal last January. He has a 4.69 ERA in 26 outings in his MLB career.
Morrow, 35, missed the entire season after having elbow surgery last November. The Cubs only one half of production out of him in his two years in Chicago, as he didn't pitch after the All-Star break in 2018 due to forearm and elbow injuries.
Barnette, 35, made two appearances for the Cubs in 2019. Phelps, 33, posted a 3.18 ERA in 24 relief appearances for the Cubs, who acquired him from the Blue Jays just ahead of the trade deadline in late July.
Graveman, 28, spent all of 2019 rehabbing from Tommy John surgery that he had in July 2018. He had signed a one-year deal with the Cubs that included the 2020 team option.
The Cubs' moves Monday came two days after they exercised the $11.5-million option on left-hander Jose Quintana for 2020 and declined a $6.5-million option on reliever Derek Holland, instead paying him a $500,000 buyout.
The Cubs' 40-man roster now sits at 32 players.