Bernie Pleskoff released his prospect dream teams for the National League and American League this week. And four Cubs farmhands made his NL squad, along with two Pirates and two Cardinals prospects. At first base is the Cubs’ slugger Dan Vogelbach and the 21-year old can flat out hit according to Pleskoff, and everyone else that has seen Vogelbach swing a bat. Vogelbach ended last season with High-A Daytona and a .284/.375/.449 slash line with 23 doubles and 19 home runs in 131 games for … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 10/31/13
Position Analysis The CCO’s off-season look at each position in the Cubs’ farm system continues today. The series of articles to summarize and project how the organization stacks up on a position by position basis has already examined all four infield positions, catcher, left field and centerfield. Up next is right field, a position that has some of the most interesting players in the system. … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 08/15/13
It was moving day for many of the Cubs’ prospects, as Kris Bryant and Dan Vogelbach now call Daytona home. Reliever Armando Rivero is now in Tennessee, while nomadic lefty Jeffry Antigua has returned to Iowa. Cael Brockmeyer is back in Boise and Trevor Gretzky has made his way to Kane County. Meanwhile, Javier Baez just keeps on hitting and working counts in Tennessee. Baez is 18-for-43 with six doubles, one home run, 13 RBI, three walks and nine strikeouts in last 10 games … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 08/01/13
The Cubs’ system had mixed results this week. Kane County has started winning ballgames and the Smokies moved back into first place with Wednesday’s night victory. Iowa dropped their sixth game in a row on Wednesday despite a decent start from Justin Grimm. And Daytona rode an excellent outing from Ivan Pineyro to a win on Wednesday. Javier Baez went deep for the 11th time in a Smokies’ uniform on Wednesday night and has hit safely in seven of his last nine games while reaching base in all … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 07/29/13
All eyes were on the Cubs’ system this week after two trades added more inventory and talent to the organization. Mike Olt, Justin Grimm and C.J. Edwards were acquired in the Matt Garza deal with Texas and each player made their organizational debuts. Justin Grimm struggled in his first start while Mike Olt is 2-for-19 in his first five games. C.J. Edwards made his D-Cubs debut on Sunday and made a very good first impression. Edwards tossed five innings of shutout ball, allowed one infield … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 07/25/13
The Cubs moved into a new era in their minor leagues as first round pick Kris Bryant joined many of his 2013 draftees in Boise. The Cubs also added pitchers Justin Grimm and C.J. Edwards, along with infielder Mike Olt in the trade for Matt Garza … and more players should be added to the Cubs’ system over the next six days. Iowa, Tennessee, and Daytona battled to keep their playoff hopes alive while Kane County looked for any kind of positives this week. Along with updates from the … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 07/22/13
“That’s Baseball” is usually the response when something out of the ordinary happens in the game we love, but even the most diehard fans couldn’t expect to see the declared tie Daytona experienced on Saturday. A slew of recently drafted pitchers have helped Boise to a seven game winning streak, while weather played havoc with both Daytona and Kane County. Tennessee and Iowa came back from All-Star break with mixed results. To see what else strange and unusual has happened, check out today’s … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 07/18/13
For the second straight week, four of the Cubs eight affiliates are in first place, and a fifth is in second place as both Iowa and Tennessee headed into their All-Star break. Iowa had marathon game on Sunday with a light’s out pitching performance from Jake Arrieta. Boise saw the first start of second round draft pick Rob Zastryzny and went onto win three straight. Tennessee and Daytona maintained their first place standing, while Kane County actually won a game thanks to Willson … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 07/15/13
As the season moves into the second half, some stories remain the same. Kane County continues to struggle winning games while Tennessee and Daytona keep rolling along. Iowa is still hovering around .500, as are the AZL Cubs, but Boise found trouble winning north of the border. Pierce Johnson, Zach Cates and Matt Loosen led the D-Cubs’ pitching staff with three excellent outings while Ivan Pineyro made his debut with five scoreless innings. Chang-Yong Lim also made his D-Cubs’ debut and … [Read more...]
Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 07/11/13
While the Boise Hawks slipped a little last week, four of the Cubs’ eight affiliates have stayed in first place. Iowa used some offensive explosion from Luis Flores and Logan Watkins. Boise saw the debut of second round draft pick Rob Zastryzny, while Kane County and Tennessee struggled. But the big news to end this week once again came out of Daytona as the CCO’s preseason Pitcher of the Year Matt Loosen tossed a no-hitter for the D-Cubs. For more information, see what’s inside of this … [Read more...]