toonsterwu

dae-eun rhee is currently listed as the pitcher. Guess they are rotating.

dunno if you guys are going to create a new thread for it or something, but AzPhil put up his first report on XST, as their Opening Day occurred. http://www.thecubreporter.com/2010/04/12/cubs-extended-spring-training-overdrive Admittedly, I lost track of Leverton, so it's nice to here's he's still in the system. Albert Hernandez coming over is somewhat exciting. Like Morelli, both guys sounded intriguing enough.

I'd be somewhat intrigued to find out what Marcos Mateo is throwing these days. He's still on the 40 man and now that he's in the pen, he doesn't have to worry about adding a change and can attack fast/slider. If his fastball is still mid-upper 90's and his slider is more consistent ... could be someone to ponder as a call up this year.

ugh, I can remember how excited I was by his performance in Boise and the fact that some thought he was just tapping into his ability. Hey ... at least he's taking walks right now. It's gonna be tough for him to get time at 2nd, with Flaherty there, Samson, Opitz perhaps, and a guy like LeMahieu behind. I half-wonder if they'll ask him to pick up and OF glove, but if not, he may need to maximize all his opportunities early to stick around.

To partly answer your above question Nate, I would be interested to know about Casey Kopitzke's interactions with the kids. It feels like he's being fast-tracked, and it'd be interesting to find out little things. How hands on is he? What sort of rapport? The small stuff in some respects. To ask you a question, is it possible to get some information on McNutt's start last night? Velo? Swings against him? Did he seem to have some juice left (could he have gone longer if this was later in the season?)

There's a part of me rooting for a guy like Mike Perconte. Unless memory is slipping me, he was a UDFA. Solid effort today. I'm trying to find positives in the D-Cubs bats despite the slow start, and I like the fact that Brett is taking walks. I hope T. Diamond can keep this up. that would be a sweet pickup. Obviously, excited about Starlin. Not sure what I expected out of Austin Bibens-Dirkx, but he did better than that today.

They did run into a good pitcher last night in Wily Peralta. That said, it's been a disappointing start for the D-Cubs. Here's hoping it's just early season kinks and running into hot pitching.

Our Starters Today: Jon Nagel (vs. Tyler Blandford) Alberto Cabrera (vs. Dan Merklinger) Austin Bibens-Dirkx (vs. Scott Diamond) Thomas Diamond (vs. Marco Estrada)

Hmm ... sounds right. That's what I recall Struck's scouting reports suggesting his peak was. Nice to see Latham hit 93. Seems like the lost year hasn't hurt his velo.

The overall line doesn't look horrid for Jay, but geesh, he struggled early, 37 pitches to get through the first 2 frames, IIRC. He did get off to a slow start last year (it was the 4th game last year, IIRC, when he got on his early season roll). The long balls could be expected for a guy who's going to give up flyballs in the PCL.

spoke to soon ... checked nate's blog and i see antigua gave up a 2 run shot to danny carroll. final line for rusin : 4 ip, 7 h, 1 bb, 3 K's, 1 hbp, 5 R's. I-Cubs getting mowed down by Chuck Lofgren - 9 up ... 9 down.

Lotta pitches for Jay Jackson to get through 2 (37). Has given up 2 hits (1 solo to Angel Salome) and 1 walk. So far so good for Jeffry Antigua, 2 shutout, 3 K's, 1 bb. Brevard County jumped on Chris Rusin, 4 runs in 4 ip, on 5 h, 1 bb, 3 K's, 1 hbp so far. 2-6 GO/FO. Burke/Lemahieu/Lake with 3 singles so far. Tenn/Miss just under way.

don't disagree. i said as much (early in the year comment). my point is, if they want him to be a starter, they gotta take the gloves off at some point, particularly if the stuff is there.

Skimming through the comments You know what, there's a part of me that sorta wish that they had let Cashner stay in there, even if we had lost. That said, early in the year, but at some point, he has to be pushed. It seemed like he simply made a bad pitch to Cody Johnson, and Johnson's a guy who will murder a bad pitch. Nate, could you give us an idea on Whitenack and Latham's velo last night? I'm very curious. Hope you had a good night's rest. Thanks for the info, and am very glad to hear Struck is in the rotation. I don't have a huge issue with Rhee piggybacking. It just caught me by surprise, but considering his frame and that he was off most of last year, no biggie. The most exciting news last night, to me, was that Dolis didn't walk anyone (and that he got a lot of groundball outs). Like Cal, I imagine he could move up real soon.

If Papelbon makes it, I imagine it'll be as a "jack-of-all-trades" lefty. That said, I think I like Luke Sommer, Dustin Sasser, Ryan Buchter more as possible lefties that could reach the bigs and fill a pen role.

I'm disappointed in the McDaniel release, but not surprised. The stuff didn't show as well as it did out of the pen in Boise. There were reports that the Cubs weren't pleased. Now, the stuff isn't bad, so I expect him to latch on, and he was one of the final cuts, so the Cubs must have tried to hold off.

c'mon i-cubs ... looks like a great opportunity, 2nd and 1st, no out.

Looks like early season kinks/just a bad day for the Daytona hitters. None of the Brewers arms are top level guys, off the top of my head.

to be fair ... the last two were strikeout king Cody Johnson and Mike Minor. Still awesome, though, and 42 p through 3 innings looks awfully nice. Here's hoping I'm dead wrong on him and he's a studly starter.

Awesome to see Dolis roll and Cashner do well so far (To be fair, that Mississippi lineup looks fairly weak). A bit surprised Rhee was called in to piggyback off Dolis. Didn't realize Mitch Atkins was shifted to the pen. A bit surprised with Barney at 2nd and Camp at short. No issue with it, might as well get Barney prepped for a possible future and Camp can handle short fine, but a bit surprised. Yes, Castro got a hit ... and stole a base! A bit surprised that Cerda is the number 3 hitter. Early in the year, though.

no love for Mathes???? j/k ________ Fricking hard to get in a Cubs question on the BA chat. Sent in every possible question I could come up with. ________ Reason why I almost enjoy following the minors than the majors - you don't have as many "end of the world" or "we are so great" posts. Emotions are more stable following the minors.

Craig, that was from the pjstar. http://www.pjstar.com/news/x12625341/Chiefs-good-vibes-more-than-talk I'm expecting a lot of shuffling down there this year. Like you, I hope Morla gets some starting opportunities.

Looks like it is JR Mathes getting the start in Iowa and Rafael Dolis getting the start in Daytona.

CRAAP ... I typed a whole post and lost it. Rough rankings and comments Peoria – Honestly, after the top 4, I think you can order the arms in a number of ways. 1. Hak-ju Lee – the one guy here who might have star potential. Love him, but a bit overhyped, IMO, as the bat is still more a work in progress and I want to see some physical things (how he develops, his arm strength). 2. Jeffry Antigua – looks like a guy who could develop into a solid mid-end of the rotation lefty. 3. Logan Watkins – Possible top of the order 2nd baseman type. Waiting to see how bat develops. 4. Trey McNutt – Stuff is excellent. 5. Su-min Jung – Seems like a lot of positive reports on his secondary pitches to go with a solid enough fastball. 6. Ronny Morla – I might have him a tad high, but I’m excited based on potential. 7. Nick Struck – Intrigued by athletic potential. 8. Robert Whitenack – The predraft reports were good. Maybe he just needed some time. 9. Jeff Beliveau – Has the stuff to move as a LOOGY. Can he develop a good enough 3rd pitch, and improve his command, to stick as a starter? 10. Jovan Rosa – Easy to forget he’s only 22 (won’t turn 23 until after the year). Cubs catching depth is rather slim. If he takes to catching and maintains his bat to a degree, he’ll be really intriguing. 11. Jon Nagel – Still have intrigue with the big sinkerballer. May be a Justin Berg. I like guys like Jones/Bour/Rohan to a certain extent, but as of now, see them more as possible system guys than legit prospects. Until I know what they are doing with Cerda, hard for me to rank him high. I mean, Cerda at 3rd? Not intriguing. Cerda up the middle? Mildly intriguing, depending on his bat, but we have loads of MI depth. Valdez or Morelli would’ve been 12th for me. I’m fascinated with Morelli’s overall package, and Valdez’s speed garners attention, although I wonder if his approach is good enough to move up as a top of the order guy. Corey Martin’s fastball could get him up the ladder. I’ve always been intrigued with Latham, but a year away, and considering why he was away, I would like to see some performance. Much as I’d like to see him get a shot as a starter (IIRC he had a decent change once upon a time), his future is probably in the pen. Daytona – Jackson and Vitters are in a tier to themselves. I’d be okay with ranking my 5-7 in any order but LeMahieu seems to have enough ceiling and seems safer than the two arms. I’m open to ranking 8-10 in any order either. The issue with Alberto Cabrera is that I simply don’t know enough. The little I know makes it seem like he could be higher, so I admit, that’s a flaw in my rankings. 1. Brett Jackson – 5-tool CF, strikeouts are an issue. He’ll never have great discipline, but can he find a balance? 2. Josh Vitters – I don’t NEED to see more walks. Just take a few more pitches. If he does, his chances improve dramatically. 3. Kyler Burke – Some folks are making it out to be a make-or-break year, which somewhat puzzles me. That said, a big year and he’ll move up prospect rankings fast. 4. Dae-Eun Rhee – Ceiling is so high. Can he stick as a starter? 5. DJ Lemahieu – somewhat akin to the Matt Murton situation, but he’s in the middle infield, so there should be minimal pressure to add power. 6. Brooks Raley – Ceiling seems higher than Rusin’s, but that’s assuming he adds velo and improves overall now that he is a FT pitcher. 7. Rafael Dolis – Pondered as high as 5 … but I think his future is in the pen and that impacted my placement. 8. Chris Rusin – Seems nice and safe as a possible end of the rotation lefty. 9. Chris Archer – Can he improve his command and stick in the rotation? 10. Ryan Searle – Can he improve his secondary offerings and take the next step? 11. Alberto Cabrera – Well … I’m paying attention now. Chris Huseby would’ve taken 12th for me, but I still don’t love the arsenal in the pen. Sommer’s a lefty that I think could move fast. Brenly has status in the system, not because of Bob, but because our catching depth charts are relatively weak. Marwin/Junior/Nelson are all toolsy guys that could emerge, but hard for me to rank them high with their glaring issues. Tennessee - Top 4 and then a jumble 1. Starlin Castro 2. Andrew Cashner - Durability and circle-change improvement would make him a starter. 3. Chris Carpenter - I want to know more on the injury. 4. Ryan Flaherty - I went from thinking he was overhyped to underhyped. Solid defensive players with some pop in the MI are nice assets. In another system, he might have a shot to move up as a SS. 5. Craig Muschko - Excellent control, enough pitches, and I think slightly better stuff than given credit for. 6. Robinson Chirinos - Possible backup backstop. 7. Matt Spencer - Does he have enough power to rise? 8. Steve Clevenger - Possible backup backstop. 9. David Cales - Somewhat a more consistent Maestri. 10. Brandon Guyer - Show me power, I'll give love. 11. Alessandro Maestri - The raw stuff is good and am willing to hope some control comes. Buchter would've been next, over Sasser, as I think Buchter's fb is a bit better. That said, toss up, although off the top, I don't recall too much on Sasser (other than former TJ guy, fb tops out upper 80's mostly, although might be able to squeeze a 90/91 out). I am completely blanking on his secondary options. Could I see ABD as more Muschko-ish than Cales-lite-ish? It's possible. Chen was ridiculously overhyped by one site last year, but now, I think he's somewhat underhyped as I think he could be a decent rubber arm in the bigs with a good arsenal, enough sink on the fb, and solid secondary options. Still have a soft spot for Samson, but he's got to perform. Giving Campana a mention because if someone decides they need a pinch runner one day and he's in the right situation ... ta da? Iowa - Jay Jackson and Co. 1. Jay Jackson - Mechanics and changeup improvement would make him that much better. 2. Thomas Diamond - The positive reports convinced me to make this move. His value as a pen arm is probably close to Gaub/Parker, and the starting value gives a tiny nudge. 3. Jeff Gray - Ready to help now as a power pen arm. 4. John Gaub - Control improvement and he could be a plus-LOOGY (don't want to call him a setup option). 5. Welington Castillo - Can he build on his 2nd half and overall defensive progress last year? 6. Casey Coleman - The cutter could help him K more, which would give him a better shot. 7. Blake Parker - Possible setup type. 8. Sam Fuld - Nice depth OF option. 9. Darwin Barney - Should at least get looks to be a utility guy. 10. James Adduci - Fuld-ish, but with a tiny more power potential, so maybe a Fuld/Murton combo is the best description. 11. Mike Parisi - tough race for 11th. A number of options, but Parisi is close to ready and could be a rubber arm type. Maine was close, as I like his arsenal. Atkins/Schlitter/Stevens seem more middle relief (than starter (in Atkins case) or setup). I could see Robinson get a look as a backup backstop in the right situation. Hoffpauir/LaHair/Snyder/Camp/Smith are all guys that I could see getting more cups of tea/coffee (whatever your beverage of choice is).

Is Francisco Guzman still around? I know he was supposed to have good speed. When all the rankings were going around this offseason, I took a look at other systems, and I thought that the Cubs had more than enough speed, ranging from some fast guys, to a lot of above average guys. Maybe I'm off.