Cubs Minor League Baseball Blog

Daytona Cubs 2011 Pitching Stars

Drew Martin — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:34:56 +0000

Dae-Eun Rhee led the team with 117 strikeouts and he walked 43 in 127 2/3 innings. He was hittable though and he finished with a 4.02 ERA and just an 8-7 record but eight wins led the team as well.

Aaron Kurcz had a very nice 91 strikeouts in 82 1/3 innings in 2011. He did walk 34 though and the Cubs can’t decide whether to start him or bring him out of the pen. He did have a 3.28 ERA which was one of the better marks on the team.

Jeffry Antigua struck out 81 and walked only 18 in 83 1/3 innings. He also started and pitched out of the pen and he had an impressive 2.92 ERA. Home runs were a problem though and he gave up nine.

Daytona Cubs 2011 Hitting Stars

Drew Martin — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 18:25:44 +0000

Justin Bour led the team in just about everything in 2011. He finished with 23 home runs, 85 RBIs and an .813 OPS. He also was very durable and played 133 games. He does have a pretty extreme platoon split though. He hit .311 against right handed pitching but just .182 against left handed pitching.

Matthew Cerda posted an impressive 71/71 strikeout to walk ratio in 2011. That was good for a .394 OBP and while he doesn’t have much power, he could turn into a nice table setter for the Jays going forward.

Michael Burgess was second on the team with 20 home runs but he hit just .225. He did draw 60 walks though. Still, the all power thing means his OPS is going to be perpetually dragged down because of that low on base percentage.

Tennessee Smokies 2011 Pitching Stars

Drew Martin — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 03:05:46 +0000

Jeff Beliveau – The top reliever on the squad, Beliveau struck out 69 with 13 walk in 57 innings. He oddly gave up seven home runs though and fly balls are an issue. He finished 6-1 and this was after he was lights out in Dayton.

Ryan Searle – Probably the best of the starters, Searle finished with a 3.51 ERA and a 5-3 record. His rates weren’t that great and he had 66 strikeouts and 43 walks in 84 2/3 innings.

Jeff Stevens – Another hard thrower, Stevens struck out 52 and walked 16 in 41 2/3 innings. he finished 3-0 with a solid 2.59 ERA. Oddly he was death on left handed hitters and he held them to a .152 batting average against.

Tennessee Smokies 2011 Hitting Stars

Drew Martin — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 02:56:00 +0000

With only a handful of guys who played more then 90 games for the Smokies, there weren’t a lot of big number stats compiled. Still, here are the best few hitters on this past season’s squad.

Ryan Flaherty – Out of players with more then 80 games, Flaherty led the team with a .907 OPS. He was second with 14 home runs and he had a very nice 55/40 strikeout to walk ratio. Flaherty is 25 but now that Aramis Ramirez is out of the fold, Flaherty could get his shot.

Rebel Ridling – Ridling finished with a team high 20 home runs and his 79 runs also led the team. He was right behind Flaherty with a .887 OPS and he’s having a very nice showing in the Venezuelan Winter League.

Steve Clevenger – an interesting catcher, Clevenger walked 35 times and struck out 39 times. He doesn’t have a lot of pop but a .295 average helped prop up his .812 OPS. He’s having a tough time in the Dominican Winter League but he raked in 25 games when he was pushed to the PCL.

Cubs Top Eleven Prospects

Drew Martin — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 21:44:59 +0000

Kevin Goldstein released his list of the top eleven Cubs prospects and it’s an interesting one. Topping the list is outfielder Brett Jackson, the Cubs first round pick in 2009 and the only five star prospect. Jackson split time between Double-A and Triple-A and while he’ll probably start the season back in Iowa, there’s a good chance that Jackson will be with the Cubs before the end of the first half.

Number two and the lone four star prospect is shortstop Javier Baez. The Cubs first round pick in 2011, Baez played in only five minor league games and he doesn’t turn 19 until December 1. He’ll play for Peoria next year and he’s well away from his big league debut but this is a guy worth watching.

Wellington Castillo (C), Dillon Maples (RHP) and Mat Szczur (OF) round out the top five. Castillo is close to big league ready and he could be the backup catcher in 2012.

Iowa Cubs 2011 Pitching Stars

Drew Martin — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 18:08:49 +0000

Playing in the PCL makes it tough for pitchers. Throw in the fact that the Cubs really don’t have top notch pitching prospects and it makes for some interesting numbers when you mention “stars.” Still, here were the better pitchers on the team.

Ramon Ortiz – One of the better starters, Ortiz had 16 starts for the Cubs before heading to the big league club. Of course Ortiz is a veteran and no longer a prospect, he did put up some decent numbers in 2011. He had 81 strikeouts in 99 1/3 innings and his 4.26 ERA was one of the best amongst the pitchers with as many innings as he had. Ortiz is a journeyman though so we’ll see where he ended up in 2012.

Robert Coello – Coello had an impressive 94 strikeouts in 95 innings but he also had 41 walks and a subpar 1.33 WHIP. He split his time between the pen and the rotation and his fly ball rate is an issue.

Blake Parker – Probably the best reliever for the Cubs, he struck out 60 hitters in 51 1/3 innings and his 2.81 ERA was one of the best on the team. He did split time between Triple A and Double A and he actually pitched better for Iowa last year.

Cubs Top Ten Prospects

Drew Martin — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 00:51:12 +0000

Here’s Baseball America’s Top Ten Prospect List

1) Brett Jackson OF
2) Javier Baez SS
3) Matt Szczur OF
4) Trey McNutt RHP
5) Dillon Maples RHP
6) Welligton Castillo C
7) Rafael Dolis RHP
8) Junior Lake
9) Josh Vitters 3b/1b
10) Dan Vogelbach 1b

Iowa Cubs 2011 Hitting Stars

Drew Martin — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 17:45:17 +0000

Iowa plays in the PCL so the numbers can get a little inflated. Still, the Cubs had their share of hitting stars in 2011. Here’s a look at some of the Cubs better hitters in 2011.

Bryan Lahair – Lahair racked all season and this even translated into a decent stint for the big league club. He led the team in home runs (38), RBIs (109) and runs (91). He finished with a 1.070 OPS and that included 60 walks.

Lou Montanez – Montanez had a solid season and he hit .321 and he finished with a team high seven triples. His 164 total bases were second on the team and he had a really nice 47/38 strikeout to walk ratio.

Scott Moore – Moore finished with an OPS of .823 and like Lahair, he’s a career minor leaguer. He hit .295 and scored 60 runs in a solid season. I also like the 48 walks and that helped him with a really nice .380 OBP. With Ramirez on his way out, Moore might see some time at third base with the Cubs.

Chicago Cubs Final Minor League Standings

Drew Martin — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 00:21:27 +0000

Iowa Cubs – 66-77, 13 1/2 games back of first place Omaha
Tennessee Smokies – 40-30, 2 1/2 games back of first place Chattanooga
Daytona Cubs – 29-38, 9 1/2 games back of the first place Dunedin Blue Jays
Peoria Chiefs – 27-42, 14 1/2 games back of first place Quad Cities
Boise Hawks – 19-19, three games back of first place Tri-City
AZL Cubs – 28-28, thirteen games back of the first place AZL Giants

Smokies Lose to Mobile In Southern League Championship

Drew Martin — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 06:13:04 +0000

The Smokies made it to the Southern League championship but they fell to Mobile one game to three. Trey McNutt gave up two runs on two hits with four walks and three strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings.

Jae-Hoon Ha went two for five with a double, a home run and three RBIs. James Adduci went two for five with a run.