Cubs prospect/player you wanted to make it so bad but didn't

[Neuby]

Bobby Hill was going to be the greatest leadoff hitter of all time.

[chopsx9]

The other prospect I occasionally recall and wonder "What if?" is Ozzie Timmons.  He was a prospect of some regard and, I believe, opened the season as the every day LF in 95 and scuffled.  He caught fire in late June but it was too late.  The Cubs acquired Luis Gonzalez (Wilkins trade) which presumably had been in the works for at least a week.  Gonzalez started in LF on 6/29 and Timmons was relegated to back-up status.  In the 7 games leading up to and including the 28th Timmons  started all games (as he had done for most of the season) and hit over .450 with a couple of HRs. He was back in minors by 96 and never was able to establish himself.  Now, obviously 7 games is no indication of certainty in any way shape or form but I always wonder if things may have worked out differently if that hot streak had come a few weeks earlier.

[NorthsideAvenger]

The one prospect that I dream the most on becoming the super dooper superstar was Corey Patterson. While he did have serviceable career but he should have been more.

Others include: Luis Montanez, Ryan Harvey.  Brett Jackson and Josh Vitters. Not to mentioned others that have already been mentioned in this thread.

[CubinNY]

15 minutes ago, NorthsideAvenger said:

The one prospect that I dream the most on becoming the super dooper superstar was Corey Patterson. While he did have serviceable career but he should have been more.

Others include: Luis Montanez, Ryan Harvey.  Brett Jackson and Josh Vitters. Not to mentioned others that have already been mentioned in this thread.

Vitters was a bad draft decision. His numbers in high school were good, not great, and then he got Mono his senior year and didn't even play. I'm not saying he shouldn't have been drafted, but maybe not in the 1st round. 

But we all have guys we dream on. Tyler Colvin was another guy who I thought was going to be an everyday player, and he never made it. 

[chopsx9]

9 minutes ago, CubinNY said:

But we all have guys we dream on. Tyler Colvin was another guy who I thought was going to be an everyday player, and he never made it. 

Colvin had a not too bad 1st year in Colorado but then I think the Rockies traded for someone and he was relegated to back-up and then fell off the table.  I just remember the ball jumping off his bat when he go a hold of one.  Some guys I think need a couple of years playing time to establish themselves and that opportunity is not always there. 

[Outshined_One]

Colvin is one of the few guys who've ever made me thought, "I might have just seen a guy die on television."

That broken bat injury...woof.

[javy knows my name]

I have a foul ball I caught off Tyler Colvin 

[Tryptamine]

17 minutes ago, Outshined_One said:

Colvin is one of the few guys who've ever made me thought, "I might have just seen a guy die on television."

That broken bat injury...woof.

That one and the Almora foul ball were just the biggest wtf moments.

[Stratos]

8 hours ago, CubinNY said:

I get what you are saying, but Prior sort of doesn't count for this one. Dusty killed him, and then that 2nd baseman made sure he stayed dead. I was at the game where he got hit in the elbow. You could hear the smack from the bleachers. 

Prior is probably the most talented pitcher I've ever seen throw in a Cubs uniform.  I feel terrible for him because everything that happened to him wasn't his or his body's fault at all.

[Stratos]

Hee Seop Choi.  I thought he was a sure 30-40 HR guy in that era.  They dumped Mark Grace for him.

Juan Cruz was supposed to be better than Carlos Zambrano.

[Rcal10]

19 minutes ago, Stratos said:

Prior is probably the most talented pitcher I've ever seen throw in a Cubs uniform.  I feel terrible for him because everything that happened to him wasn't his or his body's fault at all.

I’m not sure Prior didn’t have something to do with not becoming a star. If I remember correctly there was a lot of talk of him enhancing his body illegally in college and the minors. He may have broken down when he stopped illegal activity. I am not sure of this, and not accusing him of anything. Just pointing out there were questions out there. And he was very brittle. 🤷

[jersey cubs fan]

9 hours ago, Rcal10 said:

The biggest disappointment to me was Prior. I thought we had something there. I know he had a little more than a cup of coffee in the majors, but damn, he should have been special. I like you choices, but when I think of prospects I lean to guys ranked high who never developed. So I think if Brennen Davis, Mike Harley, Vitters, Pie, Patterson, Almora, etc…. Those were all either first rd picks or guys who worked their way up to top 20 prospect status and never developed much beyond that. I am trying to remember the pitcher they Cubs wouldn’t trade then to the Rays in the Garza trade so they gave them Archer instead. Also, the lefty pitcher (Marquis?). He pitcher an inning against the Sox several years ago. He was supposed to be special for some time. Struggling to think of a right handed pitcher rhat every year he was supposed to be a special one coming up and never made it. Hispanic guy. Can’t remember his name. 

Prior made it and had way more than a cup of coffee. He was abused 

[jersey cubs fan]

2 hours ago, CubinNY said:

Vitters was a bad draft decision. His numbers in high school were good, not great, and then he got Mono his senior year and didn't even play. I'm not saying he shouldn't have been drafted, but maybe not in the 1st round. 

But we all have guys we dream on. Tyler Colvin was another guy who I thought was going to be an everyday player, and he never made it. 

Was Vitters the guy the front office instructed coaches to not touch his swing after drafting him.? 

[Rcal10]

14 minutes ago, Stratos said:

Hee Seop Choi.  I thought he was a sure 30-40 HR guy in that era.  They dumped Mark Grace for him.

Juan Cruz was supposed to be better than Carlos Zambrano.

Grace left after the 2020 season. Choi didn’t play in the majors until September of ‘02. He was not the reason they dumped Grace. He was probably in A ball at the time. But, yes, I thought he would be good. Don’t think about him because we got D Lee for him. 

[Stratos]

19 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

I’m not sure Prior didn’t have something to do with not becoming a star. If I remember correctly there was a lot of talk of him enhancing his body illegally in college and the minors. He may have broken down when he stopped illegal activity. I am not sure of this, and not accusing him of anything. Just pointing out there were questions out there. And he was very brittle. 🤷

Interesting, I never heard of those rumors.  He was a very big guy.

The thing with his injuries is most were freakish like Marcus Giles plowing into his shoulder and also getting a liner off his elbow that fractured it.  He also was horribly abused by Dusty Baker.  But Zambrano survived Dusty so maybe you're right, there's some fault of his body i guess.

[Stratos]

21 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

Grace left after the 2020 season. Choi didn’t play in the majors until September of ‘02. He was not the reason they dumped Grace. He was probably in A ball at the time. But, yes, I thought he would be good. Don’t think about him because we got D Lee for him. 

Maybe Gracie called Jim Hendry's wife a dingbat.

[Bobson Dugnutt]

I remember clinging hard to the optimistic half of a Brian Dopirak write up (probably from BA) that he would either be a perennial 40 HR bat or flame out in AA. Alas.

I thought Angel Guzman, Brennen Davis and Brailyn Marquez were all destined for greatness too.

[Derwood]

Prior was supposed to have "perfect mechanics" and was thus not going to get hurt, but then Dusty said "hold my beer"

[BobbyD3]

Walton.

[NorthsideAvenger]

Felix Pie is another guy who I thought should have been a good player,

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

My top three. 

First, going way back was Gary Scott. I thought he was going to be the one.

Next, was Kevin Orie. I met Orie in Houston when he was a rookie and that encounter made me a fan.

Murton, who was already mentioned was my third. I even have one of his game-worn DJaxx jerseys that he signed to me that was able to get through Cubbie Chris. I thought for sure he was going to be a solid regular.

 

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

Does Mike Olt count? He just needs to fix his eyes.

[Stratos]

Did the Cubs system even produce a major league hitter in the. 90s that wasn't terrible? Lol. 

For years it was Brooks Kieschnick as our big hitting prospect, then Kevin Orie. What a terrible org back then.

I remember liking Kevin Roberson in the early/mid 90s because of his power.

[BigbadB]

Wow. The list of names here is amazing. So many forgotten "future heroes". I'd have to say most of my favorites have already been mentioned. I'm sure a few more will pop up that I've also completely forgotten about by now. 

[Bull]

12 hours ago, Rcal10 said:

I’m not sure Prior didn’t have something to do with not becoming a star. If I remember correctly there was a lot of talk of him enhancing his body illegally in college and the minors. He may have broken down when he stopped illegal activity. I am not sure of this, and not accusing him of anything. Just pointing out there were questions out there. And he was very brittle. 🤷

This is silly. Sure, everyone was using peds, but Dusty Baker send him out to pitch the 8th inning with 108 pitches, up 8-1. Dusty killed Prior and Wood.