Kevin Alcantara is Making Himself Hard to Send Down

[Andrew Wright]

Did you know a jaguar's roar is called a "saw", because it sounds like the bite and sing of a blade through wood? Pretty soon, we're going to need a similarly evocative new name for the sound of the bite and sing of The Jaguar's bat through the baseball.

Image courtesy of © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Kevin Alcántara made his MLB debut in 2024, but he collected just one hit in 10 at-bats. Spring training 2025 has been a much different story. In 11 at-bats so far this spring, Alcántara boasts a .545 batting average, with an OPS of 1.272 and four runs driven in. He has collected not only a hit, but also an RBI, in every single game. He's been everywhere, with two doubles, a stolen base, and four runs scored.

A hot week in the desert won't be enough to knock down the door to the big leagues. The Cubs have a loaded outfield at the major-league level, with Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker. Seiya Suzuki is technically the "fourth outfielder"; he will serve as the primary DH. Alcántara won't be placed on the roster to begin the season as a mere supplement to them; the reps he can get in Iowa are much more valuable to the team.

Nonetheless, this laser show has been eye-opening. Alcántara took a high, two-strike fastball all the way to the right field fence in Monday's game against the Padres, with an exit velocity of 104.4 miles per hour. He hasn't come by his results cheaply, and if he keeps this up all spring, he'll force the issue for the team sooner than expected. 

That still won't mean bringing him along to Tokyo for the season-opening series against the Dodgers. As the hype builds, though, so will the pressure to find a way to fit him into the roster picture soon. These aren't quite true big-league reps, but it can only benefit Alcántara to stay with the parent club and continue to build confidence in this preseason setting. Sometime this season, he'll return to the majors, and the Cubs need him to be ready. If he can do anything like what we've seen so far, he could have a transformational impact on the team's playoff odds.

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[JBears79]

Very excited about his start. This could be his big monster year. Just keep working on getting lift on the ball.

[CubinNY]

The MFing jaguar belt is the best thing ever. 

[G.Krisch]

He's still super lanky, but it looks like he's thicker in the shoulders and chest. He might not fill out completely until he 25+.