CubsWin

Going once...

Jimenez has now equaled his HR total from last season in 16 less games and around 70 less at bats.

Alcantara with his 4th triple to drive in a run. That's his 13 extra base hit on the year. Wiry.

3 of them have come off today's pitcher Imani Abdullah. He hit 2 off of him on 5/19.

#1: Gleyber Torres #2: Willson Contreras #3: Albert Almora #4: Ian Happ #5: Billy McKinney #6: Eloy Jimenez #7: Dylan Cease #8: Jeimer Candelario #9: Duane Underwood #10: Carl Edwards Jr. #11: Eddy Julio Martinez #12: Oscar De La Cruz #13: Pierce Johnson #14: Victor Caratini #15: Mark Zagunis #16: Donnie Dewees #17: Bryan Hudson #18: Dan Vogelbach #19: Chesny Young #20: DJ Wilson #21: Jake Stinnett #22: Trevor Clifton

Ok, so to get us to a round number (25), I'm putting up one last poll (though there could be a run-off if there aren't 3 clear winners). Please vote for your 3 favorite of the remaining prospects. The top 3 vote-getters will be named prospects 23, 24 & 25.

Contreras hits his 4th HR of the year.

Dylan Cease continues to lack consistency, but that's to be expected given his age, control being the last to return after TJS and the fact the Cubs have him working on his curve and change in-game. Here's AZ Phil's write-up...

The rotation at Iowa has been awful and there's no real SP prospects there other than Williams. May just be a sink or swim promotion or maybe there's a coach(s)/competition they want him working with there/against. And Williams just went on the 7-day DL after being removed in the middle of his last start.

His promotion may have been influenced by the amount of injuries to the starters in AAA. Plus, he's 24 and had logged 115.1 IP in AA. There wasn't really anyone in AA they could've promoted instead of him. I agree on picking him in the 2nd round not working out at all. At the time, reports were that when the Cubs saw him, he was throwing mid-90s and looked nasty. That didn't continue though once he joined the Cubs. He's been very hittable. What's worse is the Cubs could've taken LHP prep arm Cody Reed, Prep 3B Ryan McMahon, C Andrew Knapp or another more highly touted college lefty Kevin Ziomek who has done much, much better than Zas thus far.

#1: Gleyber Torres #2: Willson Contreras #3: Albert Almora #4: Ian Happ #5: Billy McKinney #6: Eloy Jimenez #7: Dylan Cease #8: Jeimer Candelario #9: Duane Underwood #10: Carl Edwards Jr. #11: Eddy Julio Martinez #12: Oscar De La Cruz #13: Pierce Johnson #14: Victor Caratini #15: Mark Zagunis #16: Donnie Dewees #17: Bryan Hudson #18: Dan Vogelbach #19: Chesny Young #20: DJ Wilson #21: Jake Stinnett #22: Trevor Clifton #23: Paul Blackburn #24: Justin Steele #25: Ryan Williams Just missed: Jacob Hannemann and Carson Sands. We'll do another one after the All-Star break. Should look pretty different...

I would say no. Chances are he'll cool off. But if he stayed that hot for another month or so, then maybe they'd consider promoting him. Jimenez's K-rate is still very high. Lowering that, I'd bet, is one milestone they're asking him to hit in his personalized development plan before advancing. He's still just 19 and still a little raw. Torres was always described as the more advanced of the two when they were signed.

#1: Gleyber Torres #2: Willson Contreras #3: Albert Almora #4: Ian Happ #5: Billy McKinney #6: Eloy Jimenez #7: Dylan Cease #8: Jeimer Candelario #9: Duane Underwood #10: Carl Edwards Jr. #11: Eddy Julio Martinez #12: Oscar De La Cruz #13: Pierce Johnson #14: Victor Caratini #15: Mark Zagunis #16: Donnie Dewees #17: Bryan Hudson #18: Dan Vogelbach #19: Chesny Young #20: DJ Wilson #21: Jake Stinnett

Pretty close vote for #22. I've narrowed it down to 5 guys. You can vote for one.

Report on Contreras' development. Montero and Federowicz quotes. http://m.cubs.mlb.com/news/article/178451176/willson-contreras-is-close-to-joining-cubs

Nice. I already said I was. But I learned a lot from this back and forth. Not about baseball, but...

Oh boy. If the Cubs signed Jason Heyward to be their CFer for the next 8 years (it was an 8-year contract with opt outs, not 7) at the exclusion of any and all possibilities, then why did they sign Fowler? Why isn't he playing CF right now? They signed him because he's got a good bat, gives consistently solid at bats, doesn't K a lot, is arguably the best defensive RFer in the game, is an elite baserunner and has the ability to play CF well. Nothing was locked in. Why would the Cubs lock in on anything? They're all about flexibility. The talk of Heyward playing CF was as a result of the roster construction at the time of his signing. That changed when Fowler returned. It changed again when Schwarber got injured. It will change again when Fowler very likely signs an expensive and long-ish FA contract this off-season with another team. Them mentioning he would play some CF this year certainly has nothing to say about how the Cubs feel about Almora's future with the team. It provides options in case Almora proves unable to hit major league pitching soon enough for their championship window. Where did anyone say that Almora and Contreras alone would bring back any pitcher the Cubs desired? Where are you getting this stuff? The only one who has brought up trading Almora and Contreras (and only them) for a pitcher was, wait for it... you. You asked "what would the reaction be like if Almora and Contreras were traded in the same deal for pitching? How would the press react?" I think you got a range of reactions. The weirdness came in when you attacked some of the reactions you asked for as unreasonable. I'm moving on.

You're correct. You have not limited the prospects to be traded to just Almora and Contreras. You did suggest those two (and only those two) in the post that kicked off this discussion. Some responded to that post saying why those two when they fill immediate holes in 2017. You could've responded by saying, it could be others, too, but you didn't. Instead, in a response to a list that included Torres and Happ, you responded by saying: "Your generosity knows no bounds They can basically pick from an A ball SS, Edwards (who unlike the other two has no shot at a 2017 roster spot already slated for him, I assume?), and then anyone under performing in the system. Maybe throw in Vogelbach to really really sweeten the pot?" That sounds like you're scoffing at that list, dismissing it out of hand and saying teams wouldn't be interested in those guys to me. Does it to you or am I misunderstanding what you wrote? It also precludes anyone currently underperforming to bounce back and be traded then. No one is saying that these hypothetical trades would be happening now. It would be great to get a mid-20s TOR or MOR with upside before Arrieta's contract is up, though.

Again, never said it was on par with what guys in the majors were doing offensively. Bringing up the signing of Heyward as a CFer is a point that doesn't support your position because no one ever said they signed him to be their CFer for the length of his contract. Just for this season. The earliest Almora could be ready would be next season.

I think this is a valid opinion. Just not the only valid opinion. We agree that Almora is not an offensive powerhouse. I really don't care how a prospect performed in previous years if he's talented, young for his league, has the make-up and work ethic to improve through adversity, has shown the ability to play well previously and is in a developmentally sound organization like the Cubs are now. I care what he's become. The jury is still out on that, but the fact that the league he's hitting well in is the PCL is only a part of the context that gives those numbers meaning. So is his age, the number of other players at his position that are matching him, etc. We both acknowledge he is strong defensively. That's important, too, as is the fact that he's playing a premier defensive position. If Almora were middle of the pack in the PCL, that would mean something. He's not. He's 17th in AVG in a list where you only need 36 ABs to qualify. Everyone above him is 24 or older. In fact, 10 of the 16 hitters ahead of him are 28 or older and not one of them is a CFer. Almora is 22 in his 1st year in AAA. He's currently 36th in SLG. There are two 22-year-olds ahead of him, Renato Nunez and Dilson Herrera. That's not middle of the pack in a league with 12 teams in it. Among players his age, he's one of the best in the league and the best CFer.

This is what I mean by missing my points. I never said they were safe or untouchable or on par with the guys currently making up the core of this team. I said they were two prospects (good ones, too) that play positions the Cubs will likely have open next season. I also said they play positions (catcher and centerfield) that are more difficult to find than reliever.

Your generosity knows no bounds They can basically pick from an A ball SS, Edwards (who unlike the other two has no shot at a 2017 roster spot already slated for him, I assume?), and then anyone under performing in the system. Maybe throw in Vogelbach to really really sweeten the pot? You guys do understand that the quality of the 2 year contract FA pitcher will go down as successes pile up? That their prices will go up? Feldman got a 3 year deal immediately after 2013 and he wasn't even all that good after the Cubs traded him. It is not a sustainable model for building a starting pitching rotation. Currently the best FA SP available after the 2017 season is the Cubs' own FA in Arrieta. I don't think people are so much against trading for a young, controllable pitcher - another key should be that he is a very good SP - so much as some underestimate what it will cost. I also don't get why some insist on marrying the org to Almora. A 7-9 of Montero-Almora-P or Montero-P-Almora is not something to look forward to. That instantly makes the 2017 team worse than they were in 2016. I think you missed most of the point of my post in defense of your original statement. I'm all for trading for a mid-20s MOR starter with upside. I just don't see the need to limit the trade pieces to the two prospects the Cubs have immediate need of next season. Not advocating for more Hammel or Feldman signings. The Cubs will have an opening for a guy like Edwards, but relievers are A LOT easier to find than CFers and catchers. Thus my including him in a potential deal. You think he has value, right? If you think Torres and Happ don't interest other organizations, that's fine. I disagree. If you're concerned that the 2017 team might not be as good as this year's team, you should be. This year's team as so far been on an incredible pace and is projected by many to be the best team in baseball. They will likely lose Fowler. Almora in his rookie season will certainly be worse offensively. Will they be so much worse as to not make the playoffs and be a strong contender to go deep into them? I doubt it. We are certainly able to see this topic differently. There's a lot of subjectivity involved, especially in how we value and project players.

You do realize the Cubs either sucked or were rebuilding for the first 4 years of of this decade, right? And no one is talking about the Cubs building a dynasty around Hammel or Lackey. They're talking about the possibility of a dynasty around good, young, controllable talent like Bryant, Russell, Rizzo, Baez and others. You know like Contreras and Almora. I don't think anyone is against trading for a good, young controllable pitcher. Maybe just not trading the two prospects who will be filling the roster spots opening up next season. If the Cubs were to trade some from the group of Torres, Happ, Jimenez, Underwood, Edwards, McKinney, Candelario, etc., I think that wouldn't be seen as strange at all.

A guy they just signed.

Now hitting .356/.408/.600 with 2 doubles and 3 HRs in the month of May.