Minor League Discussion & Boxes, 5-6-18

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Box Scores:

 

Iowa won 4-1 Box Score

 

DH M. Freeman 1/5, R, 2B (3), RBI, K

2B D. Bote 5/5, 2 R, HR (5), 2 RBI, SB (1)

1B E. Navarro 1/5, K

RF M. Zagunis 1/3, RBI, BB, SB (2)

C C. Gimenez 1/3, BB, 2 K, SB (1)

SP D. Underwood Jr 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K, 5-6 GO-FO, 92-61 pitches-strikes

RP S. Simmons 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HR, 2-1 GO-FO

RP A. Bass 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

 

Tennessee won 6-2 Box Score

 

LF Je. Báez 2/4, R, 2B (8), RBI, CS (4)

SS Z. Short 1/2, 2 R, HR (5), RBI, 2 BB, K, SB (2)

1B J. Vosler 2/4, R, 2B (4), 2 RBI

RF E. Martinez 1/4, K

CF C. Burks 1/4, R, HR (1), RBI, K

SP M. Rucker 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 5-4 GO-FO, 87-57 pitches-strikes

RP D. Mekkes 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 1-0 GO-FO

 

Myrtle Beach lost 4-0 Box Score

 

SS A. Monasterio 0/4

C PJ Higgins 0/3; defense: 0/1 CS

3B W. Galindo 1/3

DH J. Pereda 0/3, K

1B A. Upshaw 0/3

SP J. Paulino 6 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 2 HBP, 4-6 GO-FO, 76-51 pitches-strikes, balk

 

South Bend won 5-4 Box Score

 

SS J. Bethencourt 2/4, R, 3B (2), K

1B J. Young 1/3, R, 3B (3), RBI, BB

3B A. Filiere 1/3, R, RBI, BB, 2 K

DH M. Amaya 1/3, R, BB

RF B. Hughes 0/2, 2 BB, K

2B Y. Peguero 0/4, 2 R

SP R. Lacy 4 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HBP, 6-3 GO-FO, 59-38 pitches-strikes

RP J. Camargo 3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 2 WP, 2-5 GO-FO, 40-23 pitches-strikes

RP E. de los Rios 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 1-2 GO-FO

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Zack Short HR (5)

[Jaxbro]

Will the real Duane Underwood please stand up

 

6 innings 1 hit 0 runs 2 walks 5 Ks

[Jaxbro]

Eloy HR (6)

 

 

 

Oh forgot my bad.........

[Transmogrified Tiger]

HR to Eloy aside, better results from Rucker: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 5/2 K/BB

 

Still need fewer walks though, his profile works because of great control, not just a ‘not bad’ amount of walks.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Will the real Duane Underwood please stand up

 

6 innings 1 hit 0 runs 2 walks 5 Ks

 

Underwood ended up with 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K. 27 K and 4 BB with a 3.25 ERA in 27.2 innings this season.

 

@TransmogrifiedTiger

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Bote HR #5

[davell]

Bote HR #5

 

He's 5-5 on the day.

[Regular Show]

Bote HR #5

 

He's 5-5 on the day.

 

Bote is legit in my mind. I think he could start at second for some teams. He didn't look great in his short time with the Cubs, but he looked WAY better than Zagunis.

[Cubswin11]

Bote HR #5

 

He's 5-5 on the day.

 

Bote is legit in my mind. I think he could start at second for some teams. He didn't look great in his short time with the Cubs, but he looked WAY better than Zagunis.

I like him and liked his approach when he was up. He seems like a 2nd division starter or bench player on a good team. If Happ doesn’t get it going I wouldn’t mind Bote coming up for him while Happ gets reset in Iowa.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

 

He's 5-5 on the day.

 

Bote is legit in my mind. I think he could start at second for some teams. He didn't look great in his short time with the Cubs, but he looked WAY better than Zagunis.

I like him and liked his approach when he was up. He seems like a 2nd division starter or bench player on a good team. If Happ doesn’t get it going I wouldn’t mind Bote coming up for him while Happ gets reset in Iowa.

 

I see a bit of DeRosa in him.

[Cubswin11]

 

Bote is legit in my mind. I think he could start at second for some teams. He didn't look great in his short time with the Cubs, but he looked WAY better than Zagunis.

I like him and liked his approach when he was up. He seems like a 2nd division starter or bench player on a good team. If Happ doesn’t get it going I wouldn’t mind Bote coming up for him while Happ gets reset in Iowa.

 

I see a bit of DeRosa in him.

I made that same comp in a game thread while he was up. I think it’s a pretty solid one.

[CubsWin]

Bote HR #5

 

He's 5-5 on the day.

 

Bote is legit in my mind. I think he could start at second for some teams. He didn't look great in his short time with the Cubs, but he looked WAY better than Zagunis.

I was watching a Smokies game last season and the color analyst that night said something I found quite surprising. I don't remember who he was (a retired college coach or something) but he was definitely a baseball lifer. Bote had only decent numbers at the time, and only had one really good season in his pro career at High A the year before. He said, without hesitation, that Bote was going to be a starting 2nd baseman at the major league level.

 

My eyebrows shot up. He might be right...

[CaliforniaRaisin]

I like him and liked his approach when he was up. He seems like a 2nd division starter or bench player on a good team. If Happ doesn’t get it going I wouldn’t mind Bote coming up for him while Happ gets reset in Iowa.

 

I see a bit of DeRosa in him.

I made that same comp in a game thread while he was up. I think it’s a pretty solid one.

 

I definitely stole that comp from somewhere. Might’ve been you.

[Regular Show]

 

Bote is legit in my mind. I think he could start at second for some teams. He didn't look great in his short time with the Cubs, but he looked WAY better than Zagunis.

I like him and liked his approach when he was up. He seems like a 2nd division starter or bench player on a good team. If Happ doesn’t get it going I wouldn’t mind Bote coming up for him while Happ gets reset in Iowa.

 

I see a bit of DeRosa in him.

 

DeRosa was better on defense and more athletic. I mean I haven't watched Bote enough to be absolutely sure, but I remember DeRosa was very good defensively at 2B and 3B.

[Cubswin11]

I like him and liked his approach when he was up. He seems like a 2nd division starter or bench player on a good team. If Happ doesn’t get it going I wouldn’t mind Bote coming up for him while Happ gets reset in Iowa.

 

I see a bit of DeRosa in him.

 

DeRosa was better on defense and more athletic. I mean I haven't watched Bote enough to be absolutely sure, but I remember DeRosa was very good defensively at 2B and 3B.

Bote started at SS the other night, I don’t think he really is projected to be more than an emergency back up SS at the ML level but I think he’s plenty athletic.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

 

I see a bit of DeRosa in him.

 

DeRosa was better on defense and more athletic. I mean I haven't watched Bote enough to be absolutely sure, but I remember DeRosa was very good defensively at 2B and 3B.

Bote started at SS the other night, I don’t think he really is projected to be more than an emergency back up SS at the ML level but I think he’s plenty athletic.

 

Yeah, something went wrong if Bote is starting at short in the big leagues. It’s definitely an emergency-only situation.

 

In the minors, utility guys will play tougher positions (SS, CF) a lot more than he ever will in the majors.

[Regular Show]

 

DeRosa was better on defense and more athletic. I mean I haven't watched Bote enough to be absolutely sure, but I remember DeRosa was very good defensively at 2B and 3B.

Bote started at SS the other night, I don’t think he really is projected to be more than an emergency back up SS at the ML level but I think he’s plenty athletic.

 

Yeah, something went wrong if Bote is starting at short in the big leagues. It’s definitely an emergency-only situation.

 

In the minors, utility guys will play tougher positions (SS, CF) a lot more than he ever will in the majors.

 

Yeah, I know Bote is only playing SS to get some experience. I think DeRosa was actually a passable SS at the big league level in his younger days. DeRosa was very underrated before he joined the Cubs.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

South Bend's website makes it sound like Albertos' move to the bullpen is permanent, which is dumb when Extended Spring Training should be a better option:

 

MiLB.com[/url]"]Sending right hander Rollie Lacy to the mound for his first start with South Bend, the Cubs inserted Lacy into their six-man rotation with Jose Albertos moving to the bullpen. Sunday was Lacy's second professional start and first since 2017 with the Eugene Emeralds.

[CubsWin]

South Bend's website makes it sound like Albertos' move to the bullpen is permanent, which is dumb when Extended Spring Training should be a better option:

 

MiLB.com[/url]"]Sending right hander Rollie Lacy to the mound for his first start with South Bend, the Cubs inserted Lacy into their six-man rotation with Jose Albertos moving to the bullpen. Sunday was Lacy's second professional start and first since 2017 with the Eugene Emeralds.

That depends on what you mean by "permanent", I guess. There's nothing in there that said he'd never be used as a starter again. He's being moved to the bullpen for now. And I think that's smart.

 

It's not a bad idea to limit his exposure for the time being. Have him work things out with coaches in side sessions, and then take it into game situations out of the pen in shorter stints. Get things ironed out (if they can...), hopefully have him get a couple of scoreless innings under his belt. Rebuild his confidence, which has assuredly taken a hit. And when they think he's ready (a month or so down the road depending), give him a start.

 

I mean, maybe it's more dire than that, I don't know. But that seems like a more logical plan than moving him to the pen permanently at the age of 19.

[toonsterwu]

I tend to think of Bote as a guy who will probably be a utility backup for the majority of his career, but may have a couple years where he's a capable starter. I'm trying to think of guys that fit that mold and few of those guys ever become consistent starters in the bigs (I'm thinking of guys like DeRosa/Kipnis) because they end up not being good enough to stay as the starter. Zobrist was an exception, because he was actually a decent defensive shortstop coming up. The guy I think of as a positive case is someone like Derek Dietrich, although my recollection is that Dietrich was actually a decent shortstop at Tech, and might have been, when he was younger before the position moves, a bit more agile than Bote. I think Dietrich's

 

Btw, I loved DeRosa, but he really wasn't much before he joined the Cubs. He was a mediocre utility guy with the Braves. One could argue opportunity, and I may buy that. He had a decent year with the Rangers before coming over, had a nice run with the Cubs, then settled back down.

 

On Albertos - If it's something mechanical, then I think you send him back to XST. If it's more nerves/weather/confidence, then okay, keep him in the pen and monitor him and let him get comfortable. My guess is that they are hoping a few outings in the pen to build up confidence might help him, so they are avoiding that XST move for now.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

DeRosa was a 7th round pick and IIRC a pretty well regarded prospect, but that might be revisionist history.

 

For a more recent example that even has a Cubs prospect connection, Josh Harrison would be a good outcome for Bote.

[toonsterwu]

Harrison is an interesting comparison. He is obviously smaller, but my recollection is that he was actually good defensively at 2nd and 3rd, but moved around because they weren't sure his bat would be enough and got OF time to develop versatility. Could be wrong, but that's what I recall, and he had a lot more speed (I believe he was in college with Tony Campana, which made for a fast duo) and hit for better contact than I think Bote will. I'm not sure Harrison ever made swing adjustments like Bote did, although it wasn't as ... prevalent a discussion point as it has become.

 

Actually, thinking about it now ... a comparison to a former Cubs prospect that might work is Marwin Gonzalez. Both guys are about the same size, and Marwin also made swing changes to get more loft. I don't know if I ever expect anything like 2017 Marwin out of Bote, but then again, those huge one-year wonder breakouts, and then settling down ... you never really expect it.

[Hrubes20]

South Bend's website makes it sound like Albertos' move to the bullpen is permanent, which is dumb when Extended Spring Training should be a better option:

 

MiLB.com[/url]"]Sending right hander Rollie Lacy to the mound for his first start with South Bend, the Cubs inserted Lacy into their six-man rotation with Jose Albertos moving to the bullpen. Sunday was Lacy's second professional start and first since 2017 with the Eugene Emeralds.

That depends on what you mean by "permanent", I guess. There's nothing in there that said he'd never be used as a starter again. He's being moved to the bullpen for now. And I think that's smart.

 

It's not a bad idea to limit his exposure for the time being. Have him work things out with coaches in side sessions, and then take it into game situations out of the pen in shorter stints. Get things ironed out (if they can...), hopefully have him get a couple of scoreless innings under his belt. Rebuild his confidence, which has assuredly taken a hit. And when they think he's ready (a month or so down the road depending), give him a start.

 

I mean, maybe it's more dire than that, I don't know. But that seems like a more logical plan than moving him to the pen permanently at the age of 19.

 

Underwood has lasted in a rotation in this system for several years now, despite not deserving it. Albertos won't be pushed to the pen permanently.