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Per BA: Chicago Cubs Released: LHP Tommy Hottovy, 1B Matt Scioscia, SS Trevor Stevens

Per BA: Chicago Cubs Signed: SS Ho-Young Son

Per BA 4/11-4/17 Chicago Cubs Released: RHP Casey Coleman Loaned to Mexican League: RHP Frank Batista (to Tijuana)

Per BA: Chicago Cubs Iowa (AAA): RHP Dallas Beeler (24), RHP Barret Loux (60-day DL), RHP Trey McNutt (60-day DL), LHP Tommy Hottovy, 2B Edgar Gonzalez, OF Casper Wells, OF Jae-Hoon Ha Tennessee (AA): RHP Pierce Johnson (6), C Taylor Davis Daytona (Hi A): RHP Josh Conway, RHP Marcelo Carreno, LHP Michael Heesch, C Nathan Maldonado (60-day DL), C Lance Rymel Kane County (Lo A): RHP Dillon Maples (18), RHP Duane Underwood, RHP Trey Masek, C Cael Brockmeyer Pierce Johnson dealt with a tight hamstring during spring training, while Dillon Maples suffered a broken rib and could miss two months.

BA updated transaction page: Chicago Cubs Signed: LHP Tsuyoshi Wada (re-signed under new terms), C Nathan Maldonado (re-signed) Released: RHP Paolo Espino, RHP Chang-Yong Lim, RHP Loiger Padron, RHP Orbandy Rodriguez, RHP Nick Struck, LHP Frank Del Valle, LHP Tsuyoshi Wada (subsequently re-signed), LHP Al Yevoli, C Wilfredo Petit, 2B Ryan Roberts, SS Walter Ibarra, SS Alex Sanchez, OF Jose Dore, OF Reggie Golden Traded: 1B Trevor Gretzky to Angels for 1B Matt Scioscia Optioned to Triple-A: RHP Blake Parker, RHP Neil Ramirez Right fielder Reggie Golden hit .236/.308/.390 in 139 pro games, but the Cubs expected much more from their 2010 second-rounder based on his bat speed and raw tools. Three times he ranked among the Cubs top 31 prospects, but he topped out at low Class A Kane County in the Chicago system last year.

Yes. He was an over-aged football player (WR) from Florida St. trying to regain his high school and somewhat limited college baseball skills.

After watching video of Kolek, I hope the Cubs stay away from him on draft day. He has a very pronounced step toward 3rd base. The cross-body action in his delivery will always limit his control and is a precursor for arm injury, ala Kerry Wood.

I attended the Kane County game on Saturday. V-bomb was pinch hit for in the 5th inning. He was the DH. His previous AB he hit a grounder to 2B and carried his bat to first base, not running full speed. Nothing was said if he was injured. I would suggest now that he was taken out by the manager for not hustling.

Here is the preliminary list of top 20 prospects with scouting reports and a chat to follow later in the day. NORTHWEST LEAGUE TOP 20 PROSPECTS 1. Mike Zunino, c, Everett (Mariners) 2. Dan Vogelbach, 1b, Boise (Cubs) 3. Victor Sanchez, rhp, Everett (Mariners) 4. Joe Ross, rhp, Eugene (Padres) 5. Tom Murphy, c, Tri-City (Rockies) 6. Marco Hernandez, ss, Boise (Cubs) 7. Jeimer Candelario, 3b, Boise (Cubs) 8. C.J. Edwards, rhp, Spokane (Rangers) 9. Gioskar Amaya, 2b, Boise (Cubs) 10. Patrick Kievelhan, 3b, Everett (Mariners) 11. Mac Williamson, of, Salem-Keizer (Giants) 12. Rosell Herrera, ss/3b, Tri-City (Rockies) 13. Jose Valdespina, rhp, Spokane (Rangers) 14. Dane Phillips, c, Eugene (Padres) 15. Stephen Bruno, inf, Boise (Cubs) 16. Trey Martin, of, Boise (Cubs) 17. Tayler Scott, rhp, Boise (Cubs) 18. Jeremy Baltz, of, Eugene (Padres) 19. Ketel Marte, ss/2b, Everett (Mariners) 20. Taylor Cole, rhp, Vancouver (Blue Jays)

Fron BA Here is a story about Jesse Hedges: http://www.islandsportsnews.net/component/content/article/5-baseball/3218-breaking-news-hodges-signs-free-agent-contract-with-chicago-cubs

I put this as a new topic so the players of interest don't get lost through the rest of the season. Thanks for the info Raisin.

Has anyone noticed that Alcantara's errors went down when his batting avg. started to rise? Now, rare is the occasion when he has an error and hit in the same game. I remember when he was the only talent to follow his last year in the DSL. He showed extra base hit power with avg. Hopefully, we are seeing the blossoming of his talent, but I am not sure of his ceiling with the bat. I think I will wait out the year before I rank the Latin middle infielders. To many variables right now and 3 months to go with the draft coming up.

I attended the final Peoria vs. Fort Wayne game this morning and here are my observations: Concepcion, Cruz, Shafer, Liria and Lorrick pitched today. Concepcion turned 20 years old in February, but has a mature (older looking) face and good physical make up. When the Chiefs made the last out in the first, Concepcion was quickly out of the dugout and ran to the mound. He retired the first hitter and then the wheels came off allowing 7 runs in 2/3 of an inning. His delivery is smooth and very simple with a classic 3/4 arm angle. He has no wind up. He turns his plant foot, raises his leg and throws with minimal shoulder turn. From behind the plate, I saw very little to no deception to his delivery. I imagine the Tin Caps got a very good look at the ball coming out of his hand. Concepcion's FB was 86-88 mph (when the scoreboard showed the speed) with little movement. His curve was rolling with an occasional late snap. He also threw a couple of change ups that were inconsistent. Gerado's location was not good, leaving too many pitches over the plate, belt high. After he was taken out of the game, he sat on the bench with his head down for a long time, wiping the water from his eyes after a few minutes. His teammates were very supportive of him in the dugout with several players consoling him. My first impression of Concepcion is he must have more deception to his delivery. Right now, I want to take a turn in the batter's box against him. His stuff cannot overcome his delivery. In his defense, he looks the part of a pitcher with smooth actions and physical make up. At this time, he doesn't throw an out-pitch or locate his FB very well. If he was a 6-figure signing, I would say wait 4 years. However, the $6 million contract will hang over his head and may stunt his growth. He is a looong way from Wrigley Field. Wellington Cruz replaced Concepcion and promptly gave up a bases loaded double that pinned the last 3 runs on Concepcion's ERA. Cruz is tall and lanky. He has a low 3/4 arm angle and a jerky delivery. He also has very little wind up. He turns his plant foot, raises his leg, dips his shoulder then whips or slings his arm quickly toward home plate. There is nothing smooth about his motion. Needless to say, his control and command were all over the place. The scoreboard rarely posted his pitch speed, but from other pitchers later in the game, he wasn't throwing very hard - no catcher's mitt pop. His curveball was very inconsistent and he couldn't put in in the strike zone. He also throws a change up that was more effective, but average at best. Although his pitching line looked good, his performance relied on having the Tin Caps chase bad pitches. One last thing, his motion was so jerky that 6-8 different times he had to call time to tuck the front of his jersey back in. After the Tin Caps put a 7 spot on the board in the 1st inning, the Chiefs looked deflated and the game was rather boring; the tone rarely changed the last 8 innings. The 11am start and $1 food family day promotion brought plenty of bus loads of school children and young families, keeping an up beat buzz off the field more so than on. Bryce Shafer followed Cruz to the mound. He also has a funky delivery. He has a quick, high leg kick then a slight pause before throwing from a high 3/4 arm angle. The catcher's mitt popped with Shafer's FB and he consistently kept it low in the strike zone. I suspect this is why the over-aged Shafer is still pitching in the minors. Because of his funky delivery, he had control problems, but managed to get out of trouble. Luis Liria followed Shafer and threw his first pitch over the umpire's head to the backstop. He pitched exclusively from the stretch. I don't know why or if that is an indication of future use. He threw too few pitches for me to get a good understanding of his stuff or demeanor. Jeffrey Lorrick pitched the last inning and has a classic 3/4 arm delivery. He also throws a hard FB, popping the catcher's mitt. I suspect that is why he still pitching over-aged in low A. He looked good, but had command issues. His FB showed excellent movement, tailing away and moving inside (probably a cutter). His curve had good snap, but he struggled to throw strikes with it. I imagine Lorrick will move up to Daytona when ext. spring training arms are moved up to Peoria. Final thoughts on positions players: DeVoss continued to impress me. He is a well-built, tightly wound, albeit short player (in comparison to teammates). He runs on his toes and is quick in his actions. He is a switch-hitter that pulls the ball too much - all but one at bat were pulled. My conclusion is he is the top player at Peoria. Darvill played SS again and fielded his position cleanly. His best play was going into the hole and throwing a runner out at 1B with a strong throw. When he was signed, reports from AZ Phil pegged Darvill with a weak arm (possible shoulder problems). However, that is no longer the case. Darvill has the talent to be a success, but the production is inconsistent. If the light goes on, his tall, athletic build and bat speed will be fun to watch. I don't know. We have been waiting awhile and I remember Tim Wilkens talking about Darvill in the spring of 2011, saying the kid was ready to break out. Darvill is now on the clock. After watching Pin Chieh Chen for three games, I am not convinced he will be a player. There is no urgency to his play. When he is not running out a batted ball or fielding a hit ball, he looks methodical and uninterested. He looks like a ball player, tall, wiry, and athletic, but his approach in the batter's box has left me disappointed. He has the "Fukudome bucket stride" with his butt bailing out. His flat, "Asian slap" approach may work well for Ichiro and Hak Ju Lee, but Chen doesn't have the bat speed to make it work. I also question whether he can hit a good FB. At times he was over-matched in the box. He does show patience at the plate; drawing walks and bunting are part of his game. Two years ago, Jae Hoon Ha showed aggressive moxie at Peoria and I knew he would advance to higher levels. I just don't know about Chen. It is April and the weather in the Midwest has been cold. A warm summer may light a fire in the kid . . . or not. Oliver Zapata has a strong arm in right field. He is a short, well-built (almost thick), baby face 19 year old. He is mired in slump and looked over-matched at the plate. He consistently swung at balls out of the strike zone and was late on good FBs. I would like to see him when he's hitting well. He gets good leverage hitting off his front foot, but his hands and weight-shift are out of sync. Too early for prospect or suspect. Rafael Lopez caught the last two games and showed a mature game behind the plate. He is short and well-built. His swing is compact and smooth. He will hit the ball where it's pitched. Lopez will advance up the ladder, but will be over-aged in each league. My guess, he will top out as a back up in AA. Although I was not very impressed with Cuneo's athleticism, when he hits the ball it is more often than not a line drive that carries well. His mature approach at the plate will allow him to draw paychecks until the many lower level first basemen start to advance. Paul Hoilman his big, broad and well-built. He runs well and swings at everything. When he makes contact, the ball goes. The problem is he rarely makes contact. He plays like he enjoys the game and will use his Ivy League degree sooner than later. Brad Zapenas played 3B the last two games and hit very well, going with the pitch and driving the ball to the outfield. He is tall, thin and runs fairly well. His swing is loose with a lot of wrist action and little shoulder turn. His actions in the field are of a player well-schooled at baseball. His arm is okay at 3B. I wish he were 4 years younger. I can see why he was drafted as a organizational player. Solid. Overall, the top prospects (best chance to reach the ML), in my opinion, are DeVoss, Marco Hernandez, Ben Wells, Jose Rosario, Kyler Burke and Wes Darvill - in that order. I didn't see Reggie Golden or Andrew McKirahan. Easterling,Chen and Cruz seem to be fringe. Taylor Davis was impressive in one game as DH. I didn't see enough of Luis Liria and Yao Lin Wang and Austin Reed is a wild card, "wild" being the operative adjective. Although Peoria lost 2 of 3 to Fort Wayne, I was impressed with the professionalism of the play and the athleticism of the team. One of the more talented Peoria teams.

I am limited to Fort Wayne games and Peoria is in the other division. This means I only get to see Peoria every other year for one series (There is no home and home with opposite division teams). I do have the advantage of all Fort Wayne games being televised on local cable. I can watch the game in person, then go home and watch parts on replay. This allows me to see the strike zone movement of pitches and slow-mo replays. I have seen many Cubs major leaguers come through their Midwest League affiliate in the last 20 years. The ones who have a chance are fairly easy to recognize. I remember Todd Wellemeyer throwing gas in a game in which he struck out 13 hitters. The catcher's mitt was popping like I hadn't heard a mitt pop. Juan Cruz was effortless in throwing upper 90s. I saw Ryan Dempster struggle to get Low A hitters out in his rehabilitation from Tommy John. I was not impressed with Corey Patterson's hitting stroke or the Korean 1B (I cannot remember at the moment). He seemed mechanical in his movements and swing. Brian Dopirak hit a HR that sounded like a metal bat hitting a golf ball. The HR was a line drive that was rising as it went over the fence. However, he sold out for HRs on almost every pitch and I knew he probably wouldn't make it (awful fielder too). I was impressed with Kyle Lohse even though I didn't know much about him at the time. The good ones let you know with their actions and athleticism. They are easy to pick out in a short time.

I took in the Peoria vs. Fort Wayne game and here are some thoughts: Ben Wells and Kyler Burke pitched today. Wells is big and long armed. He is not fat or thick and looks athletic on the mound. His motion is smooth and repeats it well and he showed good composure throughout his start. In his delivery, he drops his hands to waist then raises and separates them with a leg kick. Wells pitches off the 1st bast side of the rubber. Early in the game, he struggled with his control. By the 3rd inning, he found a rhythm, settled in and mowed down the Caps before being taken out on a pitch count. He threw almost exclusively fastballs, taking off and adding on as much as 4 to 5 mph. The FB was upper 80s to low 90s, although more upper 80s. When he was in a jam and needed something extra, the FB would climb to 94. He pounded the lower half of the strike zone all game. The sink was there, but not as extreme as Austin Reed yesterday. The few times he threw a breaking ball it appeared to be a slider with a small break. His change up was not much less than his FB. I liked Wells a lot and he looked like a 3/4 starter in the bigs. I don't think he has the stuff to dominate an opponent and needs to keep the ball down and be pitch and game savvy to succeed. Kyler Burke pitched the last 3 2/3 innings. He has a smooth, high 3/4 arm angle and pitches across his body. His demeanor is a cool customer. In the 8th inning, the Tin Caps loaded the bases with no outs and scored 2 with a ground single. Burke pitched out of the jam without another run scoring. Kyler's showed a good FB that moved when down in the zone, but flattened out at and above the waist. The Caps' hits came on the FB up. Burke took a couple of innings to control his off-speed stuff. After a visit to mound from the manager, he began to take something off his curve and change up, controlling both pitches in the strike zone. Kyler's curve is more sweep than snap and controlled it in the mid-70s. His change doesn't have much sink or fade, but it fooled the Caps on several occasions. I did notice his arm slow a couple of times during the change up. I was impressed with Burke as a pitcher although I don't think he will be a starter. He pitched exclusively out of the stretch. I think his piggy-backing is to get innings and not an indication of a future starter. Wes Darvill played SS today (3B yesterday) and looked mechanical. He is athletic looking in his actions, but slows to make plays at SS. I like Darvill. I don't know if he will tease or turn the corner in the future. He looks better than Logan Watkins, Matt Cerda and Junior Lake at the same age. Zeke DeVoss is ultra-athletic. Super quick in most of his actions, he dove 3 different times for balls hit his way at 2B. But, his 2B instincts need work. On a slow hit ball and a runner advancing from first, DeVoss chose to throw to second. The runner was safe - standing up. However on the last out of the game, DeVoss reached for a ball in the hole, spun around and threw the runner out at first. He is a fun player to watch and I can see why the Cubs drafted him in the 3rd round. His polish is better than Darvill, but I think the best IF prospect so far is Marco Hernandez. Taylor Davis his a monster grand slam. He DH'ed in the game and showed a loose swing. Davis is good at protecting the plate and his first hit was a two-strike slap down the 1st base line that went for a double. He has a lot of wrist action to his swing. On the slam, he put his front foot in the bucket, opened his front shoulder and snapped his quick wrists - wow did the ball travel far. Ryan Cuneo is RH first baseman that bats left. Although the box score looked good for him today (2 hits and a walk) his swing is long and can be pitched inside. Also, he is a very slow runner - very slow. I don't see him advancing much past Peoria. Better pitching will expose his limitations. All-in-all, an efficient, well played game by the Chiefs.

I attended the Peoria vs. Fort Wayne game last night and here are a few thoughts: I was impressed with Jose Rosario. Although the radar gun has never worked properly in Fort Wayne, Rosario showed a good FB with movement. His best off-speed pitch was a very effective change up. It has fade and sink and was fooling the Tin Cap hitters all evening. His breaking ball had more sweep than snap (could have been a result of cold windy conditions). He had trouble showing command in the strike zone. The Tin Caps pounding the pitches he left over the plate. Rosario shows a cool, competitive demeanor. He was visibly upset when a double steal by the Caps produced a steal of home. Austin Reed is a big young man. I understand now why he has control problems; his FB has so much movement he has trouble controlling it in the strike zone. He throws a bit across his body and reminds me of pitchers from a few decades ago that would pitch with more movement than velocity. Zeke DeVoss hit the ball solid all evening. He wore out the right side of the field. Good hitter, the ball sounds different off his bat. Chen is a tall, wiry player that is patient at the plate. His swing has a flat, slap approach much like Hak Ju Lee except not as forceful. He and 3 or 4 teammates laid down bunts during the game. Small ball must be an emphasis with the team. Marco Hernandez looks like a player. Very athletic in the field and at the plate. I read a comment here about his bat speed and that was evident last night. However, his swing at this time is not in sync. His hands do not follow his weight shift. This looks to be a correctable flaw. Once he figures it out, he should take off and be one of the players to watch. Yaniel Cabezas did not impress me. His arm was not accurate and the Caps ran on him at will. On throws to home, Cabezas came way out front (dirt cut out) to field the ball. He showed no attempt to block the plate. Easterling made two plays that showed his raw baseball abilities. First, he was picked off on a fake throw to third and first. He was on first and broke when the pitcher faked to third - dumb base running. Second, he made an outstanding diving catch on a ball hit to the gap. Easterling, playing CF, laid out full to grab the tailing line drive. Oliver Zapata showed off a strong arm from RF by throwing out a running attempting to advance from 2nd to 3rd on a medium fly to the RF line. Zapata one-hopped a perfect strike to the 3B to get the runner by two strides. At the plate, Zapata hits off his front foot. His weight shift and hands get out of sync at times. There have been many good ML players who hit off their front foot, time will tell if Zapata is one. Wes Darvill has the look of a ball player. He is tall and athletic. He played 3B and showed a solid, accurate arm. He also has excellent bat speed and an upper cut stroke. Overall, the team looked disciplined and well coached, not always the case in the past. They gave a vibe of all business and every play had meaning. I will see Ben Wells today and Concepcion Monday morning at 11am.

Fron BA, a breakdown of last year's international free agent signings:

I think we are getting ahead of ourselves in projecting Concepcion. I am going to take a step back and review what I have read about him. 1. He pitched in Cuba's highest league as a teenager. 2. He took a regular turn in the rotation and found success in a strong hitter's league. 3. He is a fairly tall left-hander with a projectable body. 4. Although he doesn't throw mid-90s heat, his fastball (last year) was better than what is considered a soft-tossing lefty. 5. Reports have stated that he has shown pitching savvy. Reports on Chapman was just the opposite, his feel for pitching was suspect and his success was spotty depending on how his FB was working during any given start. 6. He has pitched very little since ending his Cuban league season early last summer. 7. He will be new to the American way of living which may cause a culture shock that stunts his maturation. 8. Castro era Cuban players do not have a long track record of success in MLB. 9. He may be older than his stated age, although Cuban players have fairly good "age" documents for scouts to cross reference. 10. He is considered the 3rd best unsigned Cuban player available and rates as a MLB prospect, unlike several others that are available. What interests me the most about Concepcion is his early success against older competition. A very good indicator of a player's potential is early success. If you look at minor league stats of quality ML players, most have had early success. Zambrano was very effective as a 17 year old in the Midwest League. Greg Maddux and Jamie Moyer dominated the Midwest League as teenagers. The light can turn on later for some quality ML players, but early success by young players (for their league) shines big league potential more often than not. Finally, I have a hunch that the contract Concepcion received was a "show" to Soler and Cespedes that the Cubs are serious about wanting their talents and are not afraid of the spotty track record of past Cuban players. I would rather have a $7m/4yr/40-man roster Concepcion than not have him. And the Cubs are not going to spend that kind of money on a player they don't think is top 10 prospect material.

The main tools of evaluation that Hockey Futures uses to evaluate prospects include a rating scale of A-D on a prospect's probable ability to fulfill his potential and a separate scale of 1-10 rating the prospect's tools. An example: 9-10 has future HOF potential. 7-8 probable top 2 line with regular all-star appearances and so on down the line. The letter scale works as: A - most likely to reach potential, to D - most likely not to reach potential. For Baseball: I would use 9-10 as HOF, 7-8 All-Star, 6 solid major leaguer, 5 - fringe regular, 4 - fringe utility, 3-4 - AAAA minor leaguer, under 3 - career minor leaguer. If I were to apply this scale to Junior Lake at SS his tool rating would 7/8, but his probability rating would be a D. Thus, 7D at SS. As a third-baseman, Lake would rate a 6D. As you can see, his tools play up at SS, but not as much at 3B. I would rate Vitters as a 6.5C Brett Jackson as a 6.5B Anthony Rizzo as a 7.5C Trey McNutt as a 6C Javier Baez as an 8C with the ability to upgrade to a B For Andrew Cashner, I would have rated him as a 7D starter, (injury issues) but an 8b as a closer. Feel free to alter and enhance this scale.

From BA Here is the refresher: http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/2011/12/cubs-sign-cuban-prospects-yasiel-balaguert-carlos-martinez/

Here is a past minor league scouting report on Ian Stewart.

Here are past scouting reports and rankings of Casey Weathers and Jeff Bianchi.

From Carrie Muskat's article on the Cubs website:

From MLB Trade Rumors: Rule 5 players must stay with their new big league club all year or be offered back to the old team. Today's picks in the Major League phase: 1. Astros take Rhiner Cruz from Mets. 2. Twins take Terry Doyle from White Sox. 3. Mariners take Lucas Luetge from Brewers. 4. Orioles take Ryan Flaherty from Cubs. 5. Royals take Cesar Cabral from Red Sox; traded to Yankees for cash. 6. Cubs take Lendy Castillo from Phillies. 7. Padres 8. Pirates take Gustavo Nunez from Tigers. 9. Marlins 10. Rockies 11. Athletics 12. Mets 13. White Sox 14. Reds 15. Indians 16. Nationals 17. Blue Jays 18. Dodgers 19. Angels 20. Giants 21. Braves take Robert Fish from Angels. 22. Cardinals take Erik Komatsu from Nationals. 23. Red Sox take Marwin Gonzalez from Cubs, traded to Astros for Marco Duarte 24. Rays 25. Diamondbacks take Brett Lorin from Pirates. 26. Tigers 27. Brewers 28. Rangers 29. Yankees take Brad Meyers from Nationals. 30. Phillies

This from "Ask BA" posted Monday: If the Red Sox have to choose from among second-tier prospects, they should target catcher Steve Clevenger and lefthanded reliever Jeff Beliveau. Clevenger is a lefthanded hitter with solid defensive skills and positional versatility, making him an ideal big league backup. [b]Beliveau works at 88-91 mph with his fastball and doesn't have a true plus pitch, but the ball seems to come out of his sleeve and hitters just don't square him up[/b]. How does the forum feel about this trade scenario?