Junior Lake

[Brandon Glick]

Junior Osvaldo Lake played professional baseball for four seasons, spending parts of three of those campaigns with the Cubs.

Junior Lake signed with the Cubs as a relatively unheralded free agent in 2007 as a 17-year-old out of the Dominican Republic. He quickly switched off shortstop and made the transition to the outfield, where his prodigious arm talent would have a chance to player better. He never quite reached top prospect lists, but his scouting report reads like that of a modern NBA prospect: loud tools and endless athleticism, but poor fundamentals and a lack of in-game IQ. He progressed all the way to Triple-A by the end of the 2012 season, though a stress fracture in his rib during Spring Training prevented him from making the Opening Day roster in 2013.

Nevertheless, Lake made his MLB debut on July 19, 2013, going 3-for-4 with a stolen base in an impressive introduction. His first week in the big leagues hardly could have gone better, as he batted .484 with two home runs over his first seven games. Since 1900, Lake is tied for the third-most hits (15) in a player's first seven major league games.

After Alfonso Soriano was traded at the deadline that season, Lake took over full-time in left field for the Cubs. Despite playing in just 64 games as a rookie, Lake ended the season as one of the Cubs' most prolific contributors, slashing .284/.332/.428 (112 wRC+) with six home runs, four stolen bases, all totaling up to a 1.2 bWAR. He was rewarded for those efforts with the left field job on Opening Day 2014, but his rookie season proved to be nothing more than a tantalizing fluke. In 108 games in 2014, he posted a .597 OPS and was worth -1.3 WAR. He was optioned back to Triple-A on August 16, 2014, and he would play just 30 more games for the Cubs over the next year, before being traded to Baltimore in exchange for reliever Tommy Hunter at the 2015 trade deadline.

Lake's story began as a huge development win when he broke out in his rookie season, but his lack of polish contributed to a disappointing career in the big leagues. His time with the Cubs prematurely ended when the team got off to a hot start in 2015, aided by the production from the team's core of offensive prospects, like Kris Bryant and Javier Baez. Lake couldn't establish himself quickly enough, and a team on the rise chose to move on before the outfielder could prove his worth.

Lake has continued his playing career in the Mexican League since 2017. He played for Toros de Tijuana in 2024, slashing .257/.353/.457 with 15 home runs, 40 RBI, and 15 stolen bases. He is expected to continue playing in the league in 2025.

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