In a series of posts that will preview the 2015 season, I will focus today on the infielders. There are plenty to go around this spring and it will be a tough decision for Joe Maddon and Theo Epstein to decide on who is going to be in Chicago come April 5th. To start off, here is a list of every infielder attending Spring Training along with their age and position(s).
2B/SS/3B/OF Arismendy Alcantara (23)
2B/SS/3B Javier Baez (22)
3B/OF Kris Bryant (23)
3B/2B/1B Jeimer Candelario (21)
SS Starlin Castro (25)
2B/SS/3B Jonathan Herrera (30)
2B/3B Tommy LaStella (26)
2B/SS/3B Danny Lockhart (22)
3B/1B/OF Mike Olt (26)
1B Anthony Rizzo (25)
SS/2B Addison Russell (21)
IF Chris Valaika (29)
3B/OF Christian Villanueva (23)
1B Dan Vogelbach (22)
2B/SS/OF Logan Watkins (25)
In my eyes, there are four groups of players come Spring Training. There are the players that will be starting day one and will be there throughout the span of the entire year (Keepers); there are the players that will start off the season with a starting job but will not finish there (Placeholders); there are players that are not quite ready for The Show right now but will be doing their best to get there by the end of the year (Prospects); and there are the players that are currently in a fight for a position and probably will be for most of the season (Battlers).
KEEPERS
In the cluttered Cubs infield, there seems to be only two guys that belong in this group and they are here for good reason.
Anthony Rizzo is the face of the Chicago Cubs franchise already at the age of 25 as well as one of the best first basemen in the game. Expect even better numbers this year with Dexter Fowler in front of him in the order getting on base. Starlin Castro, although often under the microscope by Cubs fans and baseball analysts alike, has had one of the best starts to a career on the North Side than anyone EVER. Castro and his three All-Star invites are safe for years to come in my eyes.
PLACEHOLDERS
Much like the previous group, there are very few guys in the placeholders category. These guys are good enough to get the job done for now until one of the big names coming up takes their place.
Mike Olt and Tommy LaStella are expected to win the third base job out of Spring Training as a platoon. The God of a prospect Kris Bryant apparently needs more time in the minor leagues following his 43 homerun campaign, and so until then, the job seems to be Olt and LaStella's. Olt is a guy with plenty of power, hitting the second most home runs among NL rookies last year in just 89 games, but also finishing second for most strikeouts. LaStella is the polar opposite as he boasts a high on base percentage, drawing many walks, but lacking the power that normally comes along at the third base position. Either way, expect both of these guys to be seeing minimal playing time at third base come late April and the call-up of Bryant.
PROSPECTS
Kris Bryant. We all know the name. He hits everywhere he goes and don't expect that to stop when he gets his call-up in late April. The Cubs want to keep him under contract the extra year so they need to keep him in the minors for an extra few weeks, but once he reaches Wrigley, expect him to be placed right in the middle of the order playing third base on a daily basis.
But Bryant isn't the only prospect with his sights on Wrigley this summer. Addison Russell is no slouch himself (ranked as high as the number 3 prospect in the minors). With a crowded infield, expect this natural shortstop to slide into second base or the outfield around midseason. He is just too good to keep in the minors for too long.
Christian Villanueva's glove has been major league ready for the last three years or so. He has Gold Glove caliber fielding ability at third base, and all it will take is for his bat to come around in order for him to receive the call every prospect dreams of.
BATTLERS
One year ago if you told me Javier Baez would be in a battle for a starting spot I would have been shocked. But the 2015 season has come around and not only is that the truth, but he is close to seeing himself starting the season in Iowa. His absurdly high strikeout rate is starting to take away from his Gary Sheffield fast hands and light tower power, and he will have plenty of competition all season long if he just can't seem to cut down on the K's. His main competition will be coming from LaStella who is actually naturally a second baseman as well as fellow youngster Arismendy Alcantara. As soon as Dexter Folwer came over from Houston, Alcantara became the super-utility guy off the bench for this team, but as a natural second baseman, he could give Javy a run for his money at the keystone. Chris Valaika is another utility guy that came up and played some quality innings on the big league squad last summer. Being able to play anywhere in the infield is useful, especially in the long MLB season where injuries often occur. Expect Valaika to be called up to the majors a few times over the span of the season to just fill in time when needed.
EXTRAS
While guys like Jeimer Candelario, Danny Lockhart, and Dan Vogelbach are all a few years away from expecting a big league call-up, they are earning some quality experience in Mesa this spring and should really help them out in the long run. Jonathan Herrara is a long shot at making the team out of spring, as he just never really made it in the bigs like he was expected to with other teams and I just don't see it happening with the Cubs either. Logan Watkins is a sad story as the former top prospect and Cubs Minor League Player of the Year tore his achilles tendon one of the first days of Spring Training and his hopes of taking strides forward were ruined.
Predicitons
Opening Day
1B- Anthony Rizzo
2B- Javier Baez
3B- Mike Olt/ Tommy LaStella
SS- Starlin Castro
End of Season
1B- Anthony Rizzo
2B- Addison Russell
3B- Javier Baez
SS- Starlin Castro
(With Kris Bryant eventually moving to the outfield midseason.)
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