Cubs Players Project Round Up: MLB's First Korean Position Player & Two Championship Caliber Depth Pieces

[Brandon Glick]

There's more updates to the Chicago Cubs Players Project rounding out the database, including a few players with complicated legacies on the North Side.

What is the Players Project? It's a community-driven, wiki-style project focusing on Cubs players of all stripes. It's open to all North Side Baseball users, and we've had contributions from current players, past players, and players who never even made the major leagues but played in the Cubs’ farm system. Create your favorite player today!

Welcome back to our Players Project updates, everyone! The database continues to be filled with notable Cubs players, whether they played their prime years in Chicago or came to Wrigley Field to ride off into the sunset before retirement. This edition of the Players Project round up features the first Korean position player that played in the big leagues, as well as two non-key pieces to some key Cubs teams of the 2010s.

We also ask that members of the community who are interested in the project join us in the forums to discuss what the future of it should look like!

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Hee-Seop Choi made his Major League debut against the Milwaukee Brewers in 2002 and became the first Korean-born position player to play in the major leagues. He was the Opening Day starter at first base for the Cubs in 2003, and he slashed .244/.389/.496 with seven homers through early June. He looked to be the team's cold corner star of the future, but a collision with Kerry Wood on a Jason Giambi pop fly on June 7 brought ambulances to Wrigley Field as Choi suffered a serious concussion. He was never the same after that collision, hitting just .164/.263/.269 in 77 plate appearances for the remainder of the season.

Ultimately, Choi was traded for Derrek Lee, giving the Cubs the first base star they long hoped the Korean sensation would be.

 

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Carlos Villanueva made a name for himself with the Brewers before signing with the Cubs in free agency in 2012. He initially won the fifth starter job out of camp that spring as Jake Arrieta (acquired at the 2012 trade deadline) was dealing with shoulder stiffness. Through two seasons in Chicago, Villanueva would go on to make 20 starts (15 in 2013) while appearing in 69 additional games out of the bullpen, running up a 4.27 ERA (3.59 FIP) and 175 strikeouts in 206 1/3 innings.

 

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Tim Federowicz was originally drafted in the seventh round of the 2008 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox (at the time run by Theo Epstein) and served as a journeyman catcher before signing a minor league deal with the Cubs in January 2016. He was meant to serve as pure Triple-A depth that season, with Miguel Montero, Willson Contreras, and David Ross already on the roster. However, an early-season injury to Montero forced Federowicz into action as Contreras was still honing his plate approach at Triple-A. Though he struggled dearly, he did earn a World Series ring for his contributions to the squad.

 

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Of course, other entries, like Carlos González and Jerry Hairston Jr., continue filling up our database. The Chicago Cubs Players Project is open to all North Side Baseball users. If you're a Cubs history buff or just want to dive into the background of your favorite player, come on board!

Please stop by the Players Project by hitting the button below!

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