CubsWin

Congrats to Dillon Maples! Quite the journey for him this season. It was fun to watch!

How this for progression? July: .129/.129/.323, 0 BB, 11 K in 31 ABs August: .289/.407/.645, 14 BB, 25 K in 76 ABs That's 18-year-old OFer and 2017 5th round pick Nelson Velazquez. Hmm, Cubs may have something there...

Hudson with his longest outing of the season. He completed 7.2 innings on just 97 pitches allowing just 3 hits (all singles), 2 walks, 4 Ks and no earned runs (just 1 unearned). He's definitely progressed in the 2nd half going 8-1 with a 3.69 ERA and raising his K/9 from 4.69 to 6.75 and lowering his BAA from .288 to .259.

Heh. Ademan has doubled in a run against Anibal Sanchez (or the remnants thereof) while Hudson struck out Paredes.

I find that especially with players that are being challenged by their clubs by being young for their level, slow starts and having a bad first half don't mean much. It's how they've done after being exposed to a level of competition they've never seen before that matters. After the minor league season is over, I'm planning on posting a piece on player's progression this season, mostly how younger prospects did from 1st half to 2nd half. Jonathan Sierra certainly fits this description... 1st half: 88 ABs, .205/.278/.330, 7 BB, 34 K 2nd half: 89 ABs, .303/.367/.393, 9 BB, 23 K The power's not there yet, but he's still just 18. With his frame and the time he has to develop, I'm not concerned about that yet. The power should come. Will he be a 15 HR guy or a 25-30 HR guy? Way too early to tell. I'm just glad that he seems to be learning how to make better contact, strikeout less often and seemingly become a little more selective. All good signs. He's a year behind Eloy in his development timetable (Eloy was 17 when he was in rookie ball), doesn't come with the same IFA pedigree (though their bonuses were similar) and I'm certainly not expecting Sierra to become a top 10 overall prospect, but it's important to remember two things. Eloy wasn't good in Mesa either and the Cubs have shown an impressive ability to develop young hitters over the last 5 years. As always, it's a wait-and-see game, but the numbers show Sierra has definitely developed as a hitter this year.

That's awesome.

Tseng strikes me as a guy who has learned how to be the best starter that, specifically, HE can be. Using his unique style and combination of what he does best, he's unlocked a combo of pitches that has had him succeed at AA and AAA this year. He's learned that over 6 innings, he's better off commanding an 89 mph FB with some movement, than throwing it 92 but straighter. He's learned how to keep hitter off balance enough with his change and curve in order to make that FB play up. I really don't know how it will play in the bigs, but my sense is he'd make a moderately successful BOR on days when his command is on. I agree with your assessment that he's Hendricks-esque. They both require really good command and generally keeping the ball down to get guys out consistently. The main difference is that Tseng doesn't have an out pitch or any one pitch that is clearly and consistently plus. For Hendricks, that's his change up. So I see Tseng as having even less margin for error at the major league level. On days when he doesn't have quite as much movement on his change, he'll likely struggle. On days when he's not hitting his spots with his 89-91 mph FB, he'll likely struggle. If his average curve is hung, it will be pretty easily crushed. What Tseng does have is a FB he can command, a average curve he can command and a change with good movement that can be above average but not devastating. When he is throwing all 3 well, he can succeed. If he can consistently throw all 3 well 25 starts out of 30, he could be an above average BOR. That sort of consistency is rare but he's shown it this year in AA and AAA. The big problem is that if he misses with his pitches, he's gonna get hit hard by major league hitters. It should be fairly easy for them to hit his mistakes. So the margin for error is pretty thin. Pitchers with really good stuff but spotty command (i.e. Arrieta on some days) can get away with a lot more mistakes than someone like Tseng. If he's off on just a few pitches in key spots, he will likely give up 4 runs over 5 or 6 innings. If he's having a bad day, his team will be out of it by the 3rd. And when he's dialed in, he can pitch you a shutout (or allow 1 run) thru 5 or 6 innings. I just described most 5th starters in the league. The challenge then becomes, how consistent can he be? As far as moving to the pen (in a role other than long relief), I suspect it would be a little like starting over. He'd have to learn what combo of pitches makes him most successful over just one inning or a few batters. Is he able to gain velocity if he out of the pen? Can he keep the movement and command of his FB if he starts throwing it harder? He'd have to find the right mix again to maximize his effectiveness in that new role. But he certainly could come up and try it out in a couple middle inning relief appearances and see how it goes.

Those are all good picks. I can see Trey Martin getting consideration. He's missed a fair chunk of time this season.

I'm plenty pleased with how he's done. As an 18-year-old in the NWL, he's been great. As a pitcher of any age in that league, he's been great after getting his feet wet. Out of his 8 NWL starts, only one of them has been really bad, and that was the one where he came back after skipping a start. In his 1st 3 starts (including that one really bad one) 11.2 IP, 10 H, 0 HR, 7 BB, 12 K, .208 BAA, 4.63 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, 1.00 GO/AO For an ordinary 18-year-old pitcher, I'd take that, but of course, Albertos isn't ordinary... In his last 5 starts, 23 IP, 14 H, 0 HR, 7 BB, 30 K, .165 BAA, 1.96 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 2.15 GO/AO. That's a great line. And his stuff matches it. Mid-90s FB, plus change, plus curve. I'm excited to see what he can do as a 19-year-old in full season ball.

Nope. Unless the on screen readings on the Birmingham broadcast are way off... Stinnett 89-90 on the FB. Curve at 79-80 and a change about the same velo.

Jake Stinnett has pitched well in limited action out of the pen for the Smokies since returning from the DL. He had pitched in the mid to upper 90s in college coming out of the pen. As a rather mediocre starter in the Cubs system his velo dropped to the low 90s. The Smokies game was broadcast today but is still being archived. I'll watch it once it's available to see if any velo readings are given for Jake. Interested to see what it is now that he's back to being a reliever (a role I've wanted him to revert to for a while now).

DJ goes 4-for-4 with 2 doubles and a walk. No word on what happened yet, but Tyson Miller was taken out after facing one batter and giving up a single. Bailey Clark replaced him and proceeded to poop the bed in his MWL debut giving up 8 hits (1 HR, , 7 runs (5 earned) while walking 4 in 4 innings. In case anyone had doubts about just how meaningless the won/loss stat is (and I doubt anyone does), despite facing just one batter Miller got charged with the loss because Bailey allowed the inherited runner on 1st base to score (along with 6 others) and the Cubs never regained the lead.

And he did that against the best hitting team in the NWL. FB was 93-95. The Eugene gun is "a tick or two slow" according to the broadcaster, so that would be anywhere from 94-97. Assad showed good placement of his FB tonight, often pounding the corners and elevating when called for. His curve was a strikeout pitch 4 times. Three of those times he would bounce it (by design) and get a swing and miss for the 3rd strike with catcher Will Remillard throwing down to 1st. The curve looked really good tonight. Remillard, by the way, looked great behind the plate. Really agile at blocking balls in the dirt and, despite coming off of TJS (his 2nd I believe), his throws were strong and accurate cutting down a runner trying to steal 3rd by 5 feet and nearly picking off a guy with a snap throw from his knees in the 7th inning. Assad turned 20 a little less than a month ago, so inconsistency is to be expected. He's allowed 2 or fewer earned runs in 7 of his 12 starts (with 4 games in which he didn't allow any), but in 4 of his other 5 starts he's allowed 4 twice and 5 twice. What you hope to see as a young prospect gets more reps is that he becomes more consistent, and he pitches like he did tonight more frequently. If he can do that, the Cubs may have a legit MOR starting prospect on their hands. He's got the stuff and plenty of time to learn to repeat his ideal delivery. It appears he's already starting to gain some of that desired consistency in the 2nd half of this season, however. After his 6th start on July 17th, he was getting hit to the tune of a .353 BAA. In his last 6 starts, he's dropped that to .265 on the year allowing a BAA well under the Mendoza line. Not surprisingly, his GO/AO has gone up over his last 6 as well. First 6 - 29.2 IP, 42 H, 2 HR, 7 BB, 31 K, 5.16 ERA, 1.65 WHIP Last 6 - 30.1 IP, 19 H, 0 HR, 12 BB, 36 K, 2.97 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 2.77 GO/AO

Here's hoping it's nothing serious. He really took a nice step forward this year.

That's jives with everything I've been seeing during his broadcasted starts.

Yeah, today (and likely the next couple starts) wasn't really about results. At least he was throwing strikes.

Nice!

Romero is extremely interesting at this point. All these guys that are relievers in the lower levels have a hard road in front of them. We've got quite a few guys that are interesting out of the pen right now. I feel oddly confident Maples is going to wind up a true contributor. And I figure the rest of these guys will produce an arm or two, as well. Not even counting the starters we may wind up moving that way too. Yeah, as of now, all Mekkes and Romero have shown is that they can get A ball hitters out really well, but neither have typical major league stuff. That said, not every successful major league reliever throws 95+. There's a lot to be said for deception, command and a good breaking ball. It will be interesting to see what they can accomplish at the upper levels. I've been all in on Maples for a while now, and you're right on about the starters. Guys like Alzolay, Rucker, De La Cruz, Hatch, even Underwood and Stinnett could all supply the Cubs with good relief options going forward. It's kind of amazing. 4 years ago, I looked at relief-only prospects as non-prospects. Then the Royals happened.

Reliever A in South Bend this year: 18 G, 31 IP, 14 H, 1 HR, 14 BB, 47 K, .133 BAA, 0.95 WHIP, 0.58 ERA, 4-for-4 in save chances. Reliever B in South Bend this year: 11 G, 22.1 IP, 7 H, 0 HR, 5 BB, 32 K, .097 BAA, 0.54 WHIP, 0.40 ERA, 3-for-3 in save chances. Both are 22 years old. (Reliever B is just 2 months younger.)

Nice!

DSL2 also got a no-hitter today. They played a make-up game from an earlier rain out so it was the 7-inning variety. 20-year-old RHP Jesus Tejada went 7 IP, 0 H, 2 BB and 9 Ks to close it out. Interestingly, he was a part of a 1-hitter in his previous outing. In his last 2 starts, he's gone 14 IP, 1 H, 2 BB, 10 K. He's put up really good numbers this year (75 IP, 2.54 ERA, .228 BAA, 1.05 WHIP, 2.38 GO/AO) and decent career numbers overall, but this is his 3rd season in the DSL and will turn 21 in October.

17-year-old LHP Jonathan Bruzual has put together a decent August for DSL2 after showing flashes earlier in the year but struggling badly overall. In his 4 appearances thus far this month: 13.2 IP, 9 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 16 K.

Solid 3 pitch mix for Albertos tonight. 92 early on sitting 94 a couple innings in. Very good change and a worth curve. He earned that line. Assuming Lange and Little are good going forward (they haven't looked that impressive to date), Eugene has got a pretty good rotation. Albertos Lange Little Camargo Assad Abbott It'll be interesting to see if Lange starts next year in Myrtle Beach with Moreno, Hudson and possibly De La Cruz. A South Bend rotation of Albertos, Little, Abbott, Assad and Camargo should be fun. AA could see Hatch, Rucker, Steele, Clifton and Robinson with Alzolay, Tseng, Underwood, Mills and maybe Williams in Iowa. Some guys with a chance to be MORs and plenty of BOR/depth options in that group. Some could populate the bullpen down the line to go along with Maples and possibly Mekkes. How quickly the tides have shifted in this organization from hitter-heavy to pitcher-heavy.

5th round pick Nelson Velazquez has hit his 4th HR and Brailyn Marquez has pitched 4 solid innings thus far. He's gotten hit a bit allowing 5 in his 1st 4 innings, but has limited the White Sox to just 1 run, 1 walk while striking out 6.

Javier Assad with a very effective and efficient outing for Eugene tonight. 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K with 6 GO and 2 AO on 70 pitches. Ben Hecht came on in the 6th striking out 2 and walking none allowing a double on a hanging curveball. It was his only mistake with that pitch as he struckout two on knee-buckling curves. He threw his FB at 92-93 (adjusted for slow stadium gun).