Candelario and Andreoli Making Their Case

Going into this spring the Cubs Major League roster seemed about as close to set as one could be in February. On the offensive side of the ball there seemed to be only one real spot up for grabs and really that is not going to change. But the lack of space on the 25-man roster does not mean that there aren’t any guys in big league camp trying to impress. There are plenty of guys that are trying to prove their worth these first few weeks of the spring while they have a shot at it in front of Joe Maddon, Dave Martinez, and all the other big league coaches.

Lineup Notes 3/10 vs. Mariners

Joe Maddon is trotting out a team this afternoon against the M’s that actually doesn’t have too many prospects. With nearly all of the starters having some type of Major League experience, here is what the lineup card looks like today:

Lineup Notes for 3/4 vs. Brewers

So the lineup for the first real Spring Training game on Thursday against the Brewers was released and there are a few things to look out for: 

1. Kyle Schwarber- LF

2. Kris Bryant- 3B

3. Anthony Rizzo- 1B

4. Jorge Soler- RF

5. Miguel Montero- C

6. Javy Baez- CF

7. Tommy LaStella- 2B

8. Dan Vogelbach- DH

9. Munenori Kawasaki- SS

P- Travis Wood

Now you are going to see crazy lineups all spring so anything I am about to say you should take with a grain of salt because this lineup truly means nothing when it comes to how things will play out come Opening Day. But I am going to throw out my opinions anyway. 

-Kyle Schwarber batting leadoff? Realistically we will see this a total of zero times throughout the course of the regular season but there is actually quite the contingent of people that would love to see this happen. Now I am not one of those people and anyone that has any say in the Cubs starting lineup probably isn't one of those people either. But I like to think that Joe Maddon just enjoys messing with our minds a little bit.

-Javy Baez is getting the start in center. I expected to see a lot of the outfield version of Javy this spring and that will be a story to watch as the year goes on. Will he make the transition to super utility guy seemlessly?

-Dan Vogelbach gets the start! And would you expect him to be placed anywhere else than DH? Here's to hoping he rakes all spring.

-Munenori Kawasaki will be manning the shortstop position on Thursday. Can  we really expect anything less than 3 dingers and 4 diving plays from the new Cubs funny guy?

Chicago Cubs baseball is back people and let's all enjoy the ride. 

Fowler is Back Home

In the last couple hours all hell broke loose. My previous post regarding all the confusion as to the Chris Coghlan trade now makes sense as the Cubs have brought back Dexter Fowler on a one year deal with a mutual option for a second season. 

The signing comes after a Fowler to Baltimore deal was supposedly sign, sealed, and delivered yesterday. NOT SO FAST. Chicago front office reportedly stayed in contact with Fowler's agent throughout the whole process and now the man is reunited with his teammates in Mesa. Enjoy yourself for the next couple lines of text because more chaos ensues and of course there is confusion regarding playing time. So here goes...

Epstein stated that he is very content with the team as is and that no further trades with come about between now and Opening Day, meaning the Cubs are stuck with four starting outfielders: Dexter Fowler, Kyle Schwarber, Jason Heyward, and Jorge Soler. Your initial thought would be a trade of Soler is coming next but after Epsteins comments, obviously you can rule that one out. 

So what about using Fowler as a very good 4th outfielder? The argument here is that you start the game with Schwarber, Heyward, and Soler across the outfield and use Fowler as a pinch hitter, runner, or defensive replacement mid to late in games, sliding Heyward to right and removing either Soler or Schearber and their defensive woes. That's all good and well until you realize the Cubs just spent $8 million for a fourth outfielder. 

Option number two would seem to use Soler and Schwarber as a natural platoon with Soler playing against lefties and Schwarbs against righties. That's a whole lot of power either way and both players hit tremendously well against their counterpart and struggle a little against pitchers of their own handedness. Now comes the problem. Both of these guys are very, very young. Relegating either of them to platoon roles at such a young age can have a very significant impact on their progression as a young player. 

The third and most likely scenario post Fowler signing would be the most likely of the three options and that is that Joe Maddon uses his wizardry of managing skills and finds a way for each player to get all their at-bats in over the course of the season and the Cubs execute the 4 outfielder problem perfectly. 

Go Cubs!

Cubs Trade Chris Coghlan to A's

This morning the Cubs traded utility man Chris Coghlan to the Oakland A's and in return for the services of swing man Aaron Brooks. 

The trade comes as a major surprise as this leaves a void on the bench for a fourth outfielder. Coghlan was expected to get few starts this year with Kyle Schwarber taking over in left field but Cogs was still expected to spell Jorge Soler against tough righties on occasion. Not only that but the trade puts quite a bit of pressure on young Javy Baez to be able to produce off the bench all over the field (both infield and outfield) as he is the new utility man off the bench. 

Adding to the confusion here is the fact that Aaron Brooks is somewhat of an unproven swing man. The 25 year old spent the majority of the season last year in AAA after being traded to the A's in the Ben Zobrist deal with the Royals. With guys like Adam Warren, Travis Wood, Trevor Cahill, and Clayton Richard, there isn't any room at the Major League level for Brooks, so the Cubs will probably use one of his options to send him back down to Iowa. 

While it is always nice to add pitching depth, this definitely was not the way I expected it to occur. My guess is that we see a corresponding deal made to sign Austin Jackson to fill the role as the Cubs fourth outfielder as he is a guy who could cover all three outfield spots this season. That being said, Theo & Co. are putting a lot of faith into the combination of Tommy LaStella and Javy Baez to produce off the bench this upcoming season. 

2016 Preseason Position Player Prospects

After writing up each of the top 20 players on the position players side of Out of the Vines, I am providing you with a final list of those top 20 players in order. First, here are how each of the minor league organizations stacks up:

Top 20 Position Players by Team

Rookie AZL Cubs: 2

A- Eugene Emeralds: 2

A South Bend Cubs: 2

A+ Myrtle Beach Pelicans: 5

AA Tennessee Smokies: 7

AAA Iowa Cubs: 2

Position Player Prospects #1-5

After reading up on position player prospects #16-20 as well as #11-15 and #6-10, it is now time for the top five hitters in the Cubs minor league system. At this point it is pretty clear what five players are left but it is just a matter of what order they are in on this list. Before you jump to conclusions on where those five will be listed, why don't you just check out how I see some of the top prospects in the system.