The rebuilding work that Chicago Cubs president Theo Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer have been instituting is something innovative that the MLB perhaps has never seen before. Their farm system is seemingly producing a number of MLB-ready players, but what's the plan for next year?
So far this year, the Cubs have called up prospects Arismendy Alcantara, Javier Baez and Jorge Soler. They're all 22 years old or younger and have many things to work on, but their talent and ability to perform at the professional level is not in doubt. On top of that, the Cubs have the talented 25-year-old Anthony Rizzo at first base and still have two of the top prospects in baseball - Kris Bryant and Addison Russell - still in the minor leagues.
Alcantara has been with the team for 54 games and has appeared mostly in center field despite his primary minor league position being second base. He's batting .210 with 25 runs scored, eight home runs, 25 RBIs and seven steals, which isn't too excellent considering the team wanted him to eventually be their leadoff man in the lineup. In 70 at-bats in the leadoff position, Alcantara has only 12 hits, five walks and one steal. In Triple-A Iowa, the speedster was batting .307 with 62 runs scored, 10 home runs, 41 RBIs and 21 steals in 89 games. But Cubs manager Rick Renteria doesn't doubt the youngster.
"I think that comes with experience and time," Renteria said of becoming a leadoff hitter, in this MLB.com article. "[Alcantara] does have the skill set to allow him to be a leadoff hitter."
Baez has played the next most games out of each of these prospects with 24. He's played most of his minor league career at shortstop, but the Cubs were using him at second base before Starlin Castro went down for the year with a sprained ankle. Baez's power is unbelievable for a middle infielder (he hit the game-winning home run in his first major league game), but there's a concern with his number of strikeouts and injury-conducive swing. In 133 at-bats, Baez has seven home runs and 15 RBIs, but is batting just .169 with 61 strikeouts.
"Baez swings the bat with such force and speed that he appeared to hurt himself twice this weekend," wrote David Just of the Chicago Sun-Times. "The first came after a swing and miss during his third at-bat Friday. Then on Saturday, in the same game, he appeared to injure his leg on another swing and miss."
Even Renteria acknowledged it, which means Baez might have to work on his technique in the offseason rather than trying to belt every ball out of the park.
And finally, outfielder Jorge Soler is showing his talents and shortcomings as well. The 22-year-old Cuban defector is hitting .382 with five doubles, three home runs and seven RBIs in his first 34 major league at-bats. For comparison, he hit 11 doubles, eight home runs and 29 RBIs in 127 at-bats with Triple-A Iowa. But Soler has had a recent history of leg troubles, which is concerning for a man of only 22 years. He was placed on a special program earlier this year to redefine his muscles after multiple injuries in the minors.
He's already missed a few games because of his tired legs, which isn't a great sign. Like Alcantara and Baez, the Cubs will need to work on his weaknesses in the offseason if they want to make sure the core of these players is stable. Soler will need to undergo a strengthening and conditioning regimen to keep his legs healthy so nagging injuries don't derail his career.
Nonetheless, the Cubs are in a great spot with their rebuilding efforts and we can only imagine what the addition of Kris Bryant will do to help the team next year, and we're sure Epstein and Hoyer are keeping their eye on a few pitching free agents to help bolster their rotation.
