2010 Minor League Assignments

[Wrigley Rat]

So where will everyone be assigned this year? Who is ready to skip a level? Who is repeating? Here are my thoughts (but they will probably change once non-roster invitees are announced)...

 

Chicago:

Geovany Soto

Koyie Hill

Derrek Lee

Mike Fontenot

Ryan Theriot

Aramis Ramirez

Andres Blanco

Jeff Baker

Alfonso Soriano

Marlon Byrd

Kosuke Fukudome

Sam Fuld

Reed Johnson

Carlos Zambrano

Ryan Dempster

Ted Lilly

Randy Wells

Tom Gorzelanny

Sean Marshall

Carlos Silva

John Grabow

John Gaub

Angel Guzman

Jeff Gray

Mike Parisi

Carlos Marmol

 

Iowa:

Steve Clevenger

Chris Robinson

Bryan LaHair

Tony Thomas

Darwin Barney

Marquez Smith

Matt Camp

Blake Lalli

Tyler Colvin

James Adduci

Brad Snyder

Andrew Cashner

Jay Jackson

Thomas Diamond

Jeff Samardzija

Esmailin Caridad

Jeremy Papelbon

Greg Reinhard

James Russell

Scott Maine

Blake Parker

Justin Berg

David Patton

Jeff Stevens

 

Vince Perkins - released

J.R. Mathes - released

Ezequiel Astacio - released

Micah Hoffpauir - released

Matt Matulia - DL (player-coach)

 

Tennessee:

Welington Castillo

Robinson Chirinos

Ryne White

Jake Opitz

Starlin Castro

Josh Vitters

Jonathan Mota

Russ Canzler

Matt Spencer

Tony Campana

Ty Wright

Brandon Guyer

Chris Carpenter

Casey Coleman

Hung-Wen Chen

Craig Muschko

Mitch Atkins

Marco Carrillo

Luke Sommer

Dustin Sasser

Alex Maestri

Marcos Mateo

Brian Schlitter

David Cales

 

Todd Blackford - released

Mark Reed - released

 

Daytona:

Michael Brenly

Luis Flores

Rebel Ridling

Ryan Flaherty

D.J. LeMahieu

Jovan Rosa

Nathan Samson

Marwin Gonzalez

Robert Wagner

Jason James

Brett Jackson

Kyler Burke

David Macias

Chris Archer

Jeff Beliveau

James Leverton

Ryan Searle

Rafael Dolis

Mike Perconte

Oswaldo Martinez

Ryan Buchter

Chris Siegfried

Hank Williamson

Dan McDaniel

Manolin DeLeon

Chris Huseby

 

Jake Muyco - released

Austin Bibens-Dirkx - not sure if he's still here?

John Contreras - released

Greg Rohan - released

Mario Mercedes - released

 

Peoria:

Richard Jones

Jose Guevara

Charles Thomas

Logan Watkins

Hak-Ju Lee

Derek Helenihi

Junior Lake

Jordan Petraitis

D.J. Fitzgerald

Francisco Guzman

Jose Valdez

Nelson Perez

Brandon May

Aaron Shafer

Justin Bristow

Dae-Eun Rhee

Ronny Morla

Robert Hernandez

Austin Kirk

Jeff Antigua

Alberto Cabrera

Chris Rusin

Brooks Raley

John Mincone

Timothy Clubb

Josh Whitlock - not all of these guys can make the team, but some combination...

Yohan Gonzalez

Josh Lansford

Dionis Nunez

Kevin Kreier

Ken McNutt

 

Justin Bour - released

[Guest]

 

Iowa:

Andrew Cashner

Jay Jackson

Thomas Diamond

Jeff Samardzija

Esmailin Caridad

That would be the best Iowa rotation in a long, long time.

[Cubswin11]

 

Iowa:

Andrew Cashner

Jay Jackson

Thomas Diamond

Jeff Samardzija

Esmailin Caridad

That would be the best Iowa rotation in a long, long time.

It would be, but I think one of Diamond, Samardzija, or Caridad will break camp with the big league club. Especially if Lilly misses the start of the season like expected.

[davell]

Very nice list. The guys I could see starting elsewhere possibly, would be the following......

 

 

Castro- I know he didn't have 150 plate appearances in AA, but I could really see the Cubs putting him in Iowa, especially if they think he'll be ready soon after. Although, he could obviously be called up from Tennessee as well.

 

Cashner- I don't think it's a slam dunk he gets moved up to Iowa that quickly. I'd say he's 50-50 on whether or not he starts in AA or AAA next year. I definitely think he'll finish in Iowa, if not with the big club though.....

 

Castillo- I know he struggled with the bat in AA, but it looks like alot of it was bad luck and he was supposedly working on defense mainly this past year as it is. It wouldn't startle me to see him on Iowa's opening day roster......

 

Coleman- I think he IS a slam dunk to start in Iowa personally. He did about all he could do last year in Tennessee for what he does......

 

Flaherty- It wouldn't surprise me to see him skip Daytona, partially because of his age. It also would have to do with us having a glut of middle infielders and his status could also be determined on whether or not some of the other guys are considered ready for higher levels as well.

 

Searle- He pitched an entire year in Daytona already, albeit at a young age and with varied success at times. But, it wouldn't surprise me to see him in Tennessee's rotation from the start.

 

Lee- While I do think he'll start the year in Peoria, they could "challenge" him and move him to Daytona right off the bat as well. Of course, him and Watkins seem like a package deal right now and are very comfortable with each other too, so maybe they don't want to break them up and it's unlikely that the Cubs would see them BOTH as being ready for Daytona right now and there's no need to rush them as it is.....

 

Rhee- Total wildcard here. If the Cubs see him as being back, I could see them putting him in Daytona from the start. Again, they'll probably err on the side of caution, but I think it's possible anyway......

 

Antigua- He pitched very well in his audition with Peoria already and although he's very young, he seems to me like the perfect candidate to "challenge" this year at a higher level.......

 

Rusin- Because of his age and his college pedigree, he could be bumped to Daytona as well. Although, they didn't do it with Shafer, so I guess it all depends on how he looks early on......

[Cubswin11]

Burke could be a guy they decide to start at AA/AAA, IMO.

[toonsterwu]

I was trying to guess the full-season rotations for the start of the year the other day. this is what I worked up so far. Probably off on a lot of the guesses.

 

Iowa: Jay Jackson, Casey Coleman, Mitch Atkins, Jeff Samardzija, James Russell.

 

Some other guys I could see in the mix: JR Mathes, Thomas Diamond, Jeremy Papelbon, maybe Esmailin Caridad if he doesn't make the pen out of spring.

 

Tennessee: Andrew Cashner, Chris Carpenter, Ryan Searle, Craig Muschko, Jeremy Papelbon.

 

Other thoughts: Hung-wen Chen, Marcos Mateo, Alessandro Maestri.

 

Daytona: Rafael Dolis, Chris Archer, Justin Bristow, Chris Rusin, Aaron Shafer.

 

Other thoughts: Dan McDaniel, Austin Bibens-Dirx, James Leverton.

 

Peoria: Dae-Eun Rhee, Jeffry Antigua, Robert Hernandez, Jon Nagel, Brooks Raley.

 

Other thoughts: Jeff Beliveau, Jose Rosario, Trey McNutt, Larry Suarez, Austin Kirk.

 

_______________________________

 

I don't really have any bold guesses, and last year, with the Jay Jackson/Casey Coleman/Dan McDaniel/Ryan Searle moves, amongst others, the organization made some relatively bold pitching decisions. I'm just not sure who is out there that could make a similar "bold" move this year. Rusin to A+ isn't really bold.

 

I'll be surprised if Cashner isn't in Tennessee. Would it stun me if they moved him to Iowa? Probably not, but I think they'll stick with the starting experiment as long as possible, and Tennessee's the better spot. I'm more curious where Jay Jackson lands, due to his issues last year. I may be projecting my own desires in putting Russell as a starter. I'm not sure they hold Coleman back.

 

The organization seemed quite pleased with Muschko's work and I expect him to get a starting slot as a result. Papelbon might not be able to be an effective pen arm, so they might stretch him out. I don't really love the idea of Searle as a starter in AA next year, but I'm not sure they will shift him to the pen, and I'm not sure they will keep him in Daytona. I could see Dolis sneak up to Tennessee to start early in the year, and then perhaps shifting to the pen if they decide his future is there, as most anticipate.

 

I'm very excited at the names that could compete in Peoria, and am looking forward to Justin Bristow.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Vince Perkins - released

J.R. Mathes - released

Ezequiel Astacio - released

Micah Hoffpauir - released

Matt Matulia - DL (player-coach)

 

Hoff is the closest thing to power we have off the bench, so unless we end up signing another Cliff Floyd or Daryl Ward type, I think he stays.

 

Now that we have righty full time CF, I really dont see Reed coming back.

[CUBZ99]

I see Samardzija being in the rotation at the beginning of the year. Between rumors that he has already been penciled into the rotation and the spot is his to lose, to the reports of the work he has put in with Rothschild and Rothschild's proclaiming that his secondary pitches have finally come around while pitching in Mexico.

 

Also, Caridad appears to be a near lock to make the bullpen out of ST, so I see Gaub in AAA to start the year.

 

In regards to a surprise promotion, it will be interesting to see what happens. As someone mentioned earlier Burke could start in AA? B. Jackson in AA? Vitters to AA to start the year? It will be fun to see how this plays out.

[Guest]

I wouldn't call Vitters to AA a lock by any means, but I've heard the team is very happy with how he came back and performed in the AFL against relatively advanced competition.

[toonsterwu]

I see Samardzija being in the rotation at the beginning of the year. Between rumors that he has already been penciled into the rotation and the spot is his to lose, to the reports of the work he has put in with Rothschild and Rothschild's proclaiming that his secondary pitches have finally come around while pitching in Mexico.

 

Also, Caridad appears to be a near lock to make the bullpen out of ST, so I see Gaub in AAA to start the year.

 

In regards to a surprise promotion, it will be interesting to see what happens. As someone mentioned earlier Burke could start in AA? B. Jackson in AA? Vitters to AA to start the year? It will be fun to see how this plays out.

 

From the positional side, I think Brett Jackson to AA is probably one of the early favorites. I doubt they'll shift Burke/Jackson together to AA, not when there are guys like Brandon Guyer that still need spots in AA. One of them may go. Flaherty was another oft-discussed possibility, although some water was put on that idea by, um, BA?

 

I wouldn't put Caridad as a lock just yet.

 

CL: Marmol

Lefty pen arms: Marshall/Grabow

Righty setup: Guzman/Gray

 

That leaves, at most, 2 regular spots. Parisi could be in the mix, along with Berg. Add in that the Cubs have repeatedly said they'd like to add a veteran pen arm, and I could see Caridad in AAA. As of now, I'd guess that he makes it, but I don't think it's a lock.

[toonsterwu]

I see Samardzija being in the rotation at the beginning of the year. Between rumors that he has already been penciled into the rotation and the spot is his to lose, to the reports of the work he has put in with Rothschild and Rothschild's proclaiming that his secondary pitches have finally come around while pitching in Mexico.

 

Also, Caridad appears to be a near lock to make the bullpen out of ST, so I see Gaub in AAA to start the year.

 

In regards to a surprise promotion, it will be interesting to see what happens. As someone mentioned earlier Burke could start in AA? B. Jackson in AA? Vitters to AA to start the year? It will be fun to see how this plays out.

 

From the positional side, I think Brett Jackson to AA is probably one of the early favorites. I doubt they'll shift Burke/Jackson together to AA, not when there are guys like Brandon Guyer that still need spots in AA. One of them may go. Flaherty was another oft-discussed possibility, although some water was put on that idea by, um, BA?

 

I wouldn't put Caridad as a lock just yet.

 

CL: Marmol

Lefty pen arms: Marshall/Grabow

Righty setup: Guzman/Gray

 

That leaves, at most, 2 regular spots. Parisi could be in the mix, along with Berg. Add in that the Cubs have repeatedly said they'd like to add a veteran pen arm, and I could see Caridad in AAA. As of now, I'd guess that he makes it, but I don't think it's a lock.

[Guest]

if Castro/Vitters/BJackson/Cashner are all in Tenn...gonna have to make a road trip early in the season.

[Guest]

I came up with this rotation about a month or two ago:

 

Iowa:

RHP Mitch Atkins

RHP Casey Coleman

RHP David Patton

RHP Jay Jackson

RHP Thomas Diamond

 

Tennessee:

RHP Chris Carpenter

RHP Andrew Cashner

RHP Ryan Searle

RHP Rafael Dolis

LHP James Leverton

 

Daytona:

RHP Justin Bristow

RHP Chris Archer

RHP Aaron Shafer

RHP Robert Hernandez

LHP Chris Rusin

 

Peoria:

LHP Jeffry Antigua

RHP Dae-Eun Rhee

LHP Brooks Raley

LHP Austin Kirk

RHP Jon Nagel

RHP Robert Whitenack

RHP Su-Min Jung

 

I think Samardzija breaks camp with the big league squad. Julio Pena, Jose Rosario, Oswaldo Martinez and Larry Suarez are people to look for at Peoria as there is always someone who surprises and makes a rotation.

 

I listed 7 guys in Peoria since they piggy back so many guys there...I listed the 7 in the order of most likely to start to least likely.

[Wrigley Rat]

Great discussion everyone! I started this thread to get this discussion going. I agree with a lot of everyone's thoughts. And actually, I had also thought about some of them like Coleman at AAA. Everyone is helping me revise my guesses - thanks!

[Wrigley Rat]

Iowa:

RHP Mitch Atkins

RHP Casey Coleman

RHP David Patton

RHP Jay Jackson

RHP Thomas Diamond

1. Anything you've heard to put Patton in the rotation?

2. I wonder if Jackson would start at AA, since he had some conflict with Sandberg last year (when he was demoted).

[davell]

They already punished Jackson last year by demoting him to Daytona and he tok the demotion well by pitching great down there. Plus, they brought him up to AAA for his final start and he pitched well then too, so my guess is he's almost a lock to start off in AAA.

[jersey cubs fan]

They already punished Jackson last year by demoting him to Daytona and he tok the demotion well by pitching great down there. Plus, they brought him up to AAA for his final start and he pitched well then too, so my guess is he's almost a lock to start off in AAA.

 

If I remember correctly they brought him to AAA to avoid another conflict with the AA pitching coach, which is where the issue arose. Maybe it depends in part on where that pitching coach is now.

[biittner77]

I wouldn't put Caridad as a lock just yet.

 

CL: Marmol

Lefty pen arms: Marshall/Grabow

Righty setup: Guzman/Gray

 

That leaves, at most, 2 regular spots. Parisi could be in the mix, along with Berg. Add in that the Cubs have repeatedly said they'd like to add a veteran pen arm, and I could see Caridad in AAA. As of now, I'd guess that he makes it, but I don't think it's a lock.

 

I'm not sure if Gray is a lock but you'd have to assume that Silva is. That means that there is only spot 1 if they decide to keep Parisi. I think there's a good chance they will. They wouldn't need to hide Parisi the way they did with Patton.

 

If they don't sign another SP from outside the org, some combo of Wells, Gorzellany and Smardj will be competing for the 4-5 spots in the rotation. If Smardj doesn't make the rotation he *should* be sent to Iowa's rotation.

 

That leaves Cardidad competing with Stevens, Gaub, Parker, Gray, Berg, Atkins and whatever NRIs they might bring in. Unless they can find somewhere to unload Silva, it's going to be difficult for Cardidad to make the team.

[SouthSideRyan]

So what you're saying is that Carlos Silva should be shot into the sun.

[davell]

They already punished Jackson last year by demoting him to Daytona and he tok the demotion well by pitching great down there. Plus, they brought him up to AAA for his final start and he pitched well then too, so my guess is he's almost a lock to start off in AAA.

 

If I remember correctly they brought him to AAA to avoid another conflict with the AA pitching coach, which is where the issue arose. Maybe it depends in part on where that pitching coach is now.

 

 

I don't remember ever hearing exactly WHY he was sent down. Was that ever discussed and brought out into the open? For some reason, I was thinking I had read he was missing curfews and it pissed off Sandberg.......Definitely could be mixed up here though.

[biittner77]

So what you're saying is that Carlos Silva should be shot into the sun.

 

All I'm saying is that bra bomb better work, Nerdlinger.

[NCCubFan]

They already punished Jackson last year by demoting him to Daytona and he tok the demotion well by pitching great down there. Plus, they brought him up to AAA for his final start and he pitched well then too, so my guess is he's almost a lock to start off in AAA.

 

If I remember correctly they brought him to AAA to avoid another conflict with the AA pitching coach, which is where the issue arose. Maybe it depends in part on where that pitching coach is now.

 

 

I don't remember ever hearing exactly WHY he was sent down. Was that ever discussed and brought out into the open? For some reason, I was thinking I had read he was missing curfews and it pissed off Sandberg.......Definitely could be mixed up here though.

I was thinking the conflict was with Lewallyn, the pitching coach (as Goony was thinking). He's still pitching coach at Tennessee for 2010.

[Guest]

Goony and NCCF are right. The conflict was between Jackson and Tennessee's pitching coach, Dennis Lewallyn though I'm sure Sandberg was upset with what Jackson did too.