Results tagged ‘ Logan Watkins ’
Minor Matters – April 22, 2013 (Cubs Minor League Recaps)
At The Plate – Iowa had several solid performances in this one and it led to a solid victory over a good Redbirds team. Logan Watkins went 1-for-3 with two walks, a double, a stolen base, and a run scored. Ian Stewart finally showed some life as he went 1-for-3 with a double, two RBI’s, and a run scored. Brian Bogusevic was 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored, he’s now hitting .389 on the season. Brad Nelson was 2-for-4 with a home rune, two RBI’s, and a run scored in the victory.
On The Mound – Brooks Raley had another solid outing, and was rewarded with his second win of the season. Raley went 5.1 innings giving up two runs on five hits while walking two and striking out three. Zach Putnam, Rafael Dolis, and Blake Parker combined to shut the Redbirds down over the final 3.2 innings to preserve the win. Putnam went 1.2 scoreless innings giving up two hits while walking one and striking out three. Dolis and Parker also worked scoreless innings with Parker walking a tightrope to earn his second save, he didn’t give up a hit while walking two and striking out two in the ninth.
At The Plate – The Smokies wasted no time in getting back into the win column as they destroyed the Biscuits…Biscuits! Arismendy Alcantara was in the middle of everything once again for the Smokies, he was 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI’s, two stolen bases, and two runs scored. Eight of the nine hitters had at least one hit for the Smokies, Alcantara was the only one to have a multi-hit game. Jae-Hoon Ha was 1-for-3 with a walk, a double, and two runs scored. Jonathan Mota was 1-for-4 with two RBI’s in the victory.
On The Mound – Eric Jokisch continued his tremendous start to the season tonight, he went 6.1 innings giving up three runs, one earned, on eight hits while walking two and striking out three to move his record to 3-0. Brian Schlitter, who has been just as good, if not better, did the rest out of the pen. He went 2.2 scoreless innings giving up two hits and striking out one, he has yet to give up an earned run this season.
At The Plate – After yesterday’s poor offensive effort the D-Cubs got back at it tonight as they pounded out ten hits and seven runs. Javier Baez, who is really turning it on of late, was 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI, and two runs scored. Dustin Geiger also had a big night going 3-for-5 with three RBI’s, he now has 18 already on the season. Jorge Soler was finally shut down, he was 0-for-5, but did have an RBI, and scored a run.
On The Mound - Austin Kirk had some trouble navigating through five innings, but he was able to do so and improve his record to 3-0 on the season. He gave up four runs on four hits while walking two and striking out eight over those five innings of work. The bullpen was stout for the D-Cubs, and it was just two guys doing the work. Zach Cates worked 1.1 scoreless, and hit-less innings while walking one, and Hunter Cervenka worked 2.2 scoreless, and hit-less innings while walking one and striking out two.
At The Plate – Tough one to take for the Cougars as they built an early 5-1 lead only to watch it slip away an end up in a 9-6 loss. Pin-Chieh Chen was 2-for-4 with a walk, a caught stealing, and a run scored. Gioskar Amaya was 2-for-5 with a run scored, but also made an error. Daniel Vogelbach had a productive night at the plate going 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI’s, and a run scored. Marco Hernandez was 2-for-4 with two doubles, and two RBI’s in the loss. Rock Shoulders was finally held without a hit, but did walk three times, and scored a run.
On The Mound – Michael Heesch was solid in his start today, unfortunately the bullpen and the Cougars defense kept him from getting the win. Heesch went six innings giving up two runs on five hits while walking two and striking out five. Brian Smith took the loss out of the pen, while he didn’t pitch well, he didn’t get much help either. Smith went two-thirds of an innings giving up five runs, only one earned, on three hits while walking two and striking out one. Matt Iannazzo was beat up as well, he went 2.1 innings giving up two runs on five hits while walking three.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Minor Matters – April 20, 2013 (Cubs Minor League Recaps)
At The Plate – The Cubs tried to stage a late rally but it wasn’t enough after they fell behind Memphis 8-2 in the fifth inning. Logan Watkins was 1-for-4 with a double, a walk, and a caught stealing. Ty Wright was 1-for-4 with a double, two RBI’s and a run scored. Brian Bogusevic (2-for-4) and Luis Flores (2-for-4) each had two hits in the loss with Bigusevic scoring a run and Flores knocking one in.
On The Mound – Chris Rusin got the start, and got lit up by the Redbirds. Rusin went 4.1 inning giving up seven runs on eight hits while walking two and striking out three, he took the loss, his second of the year. Esmailin Caridad was decent out of the pen going 2.2 innings giving up one run on two hits while walking one ans striking out two. Cory Wade worked a scoreless inning of relief surrendering one hit.
At The Plate – The Smokies are red hot as they easily dispatched the Biscuits, the Biscuits! To win their fifth straight game, and this one was never in doubt. Eight out of the nine Smokies players in the lineup last night had at least one hit. Matt Szczur is out to prove himself this year, and he’s doing it so far, he went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, three RBI’s, and two runs scored from the lead-off spot, he’s now hitting .302 on the season. Arismendy Alcantara was 1-for-4 with a home run, a walk, three RBI’s and a run scored, he also made his 8th error. Johermyn Chavez was 2-for-5 with a double, three RBI’s and a run scored. Christian Villanueva (2-for-5), Rubi Silva (2-for-4), and Rafael Lopez (2-for-3) all had two hits games in the victory.
On The Mound - Dallas Beeler was outstanding in this one to earn his first victory of the season. Beeler went seven innings giving up four runs, two earned, on four hits while walking one and striking out three. Both Zach Rosscup and Frank Batista worked scoreless inning out of the pen with Rosscup striking out two and Batista striking out one.
At The Plate – The top of the order did all the damage in this one, unfortunately that wasn’t enough to knock off the Yankees. Timothy Saunders was 2-for-4 with a stolen base, and a two runs scored from the lead-off spot. John Andreoli, who is red-hot, went 4-for-4 with a walk, an RBI, a stolen base, and two runs scored, he’s now hitting .356 on the season. Javier Baez was 1-for-4 with an RBI, while Jorge Soler went 1-for-4 with a double, a walk, and two RBI’s. The bottom five guys in the D-Cubs order went a combined 1-for-18 and Daytona as a team was 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position.
On The Mound – Ben Wells was okay in this one, but still took the loss, he went six innings giving up four runs on seven hits while walking one and striking out six. Yeiper Castillo was dominant out of the pen working two scoreless, hit-less innings while striking out one. Sheldon McDonald didn’t fare as well in his inning of work, he gave up two runs on two hits while walking two and striking out two.
At The Plate – The Cougars put this one to rest rather early as they jumped all over the River Bandits building a 6-1 lead in the fourth and cruised to a 7-3 win. Five different Cougars had multi-hit games in this one. Marco Hernandez was 2-for-4 with an RBI, and two runs scored. Daniel Vogelbach was 2-for-4 with a run scored, he’s now hitting .309 on the season. Jeimer Candelario was 2-for-4 with a double, two RBI’s, and a run scored. Rock Shoulders continued to pound the ball, he was 2-for-3 with a walk, a home run, his third, an RBI, and two runs scored. The Cougars were an impressive 5-for-13 with runners in scoring position.
On The Mound – Pierce Johnson had himself another strong outing and earned his first win of the season. Johnson went five innings giving up one run, unearned, on three hits while walking one and striking out six. Nathan Dorris was solid out of the pen tossing one scoreless inning while giving up one hit and striking out one. Eddie Orozco had some trouble closing things down, but he did, he worked one inning giving up two runs on three hits while striking out one.
At The Plate – Game two was much closer, but ended the same way, with a Cougars win as they swept the double-header. Daniel Vogelbach was 2-for-3 with a walk, and a run scored. But game two, and really the whole day belonged to Rock Shoulders, he was 3-for-3 in game two with his fourth home run of the season, three RBI’s and a run scored, his average now sits at .418 on the season after going 5-for-6 in the double-header. Marco Hernandez was 1-for-4 with a triple, and a run scored in the victory.
On The Mound – Tayler Scott did most of the work, double-header games are only seven innings in Minor League ball, Scott went six giving up three runs on five hits while walking one and striking out four to get the win. Jeffry Antigua worked a scoreless final inning to earn his first save of the season, quite the day for the Cougars.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Minor Matters – April 19, 2013 (Cubs Minor League Recaps)
At The Plate - The Cubs didn’t do much at the plate in this one, but didn’t need to, as the two runs they got in the first were plenty on their way to a 5-o victory. Logan Watkins had a solid day at the top of the lineup going 2-for-5 with a run scored. Ian Stewart, who is trying to make his way back to the big club was 0-for-2 but did draw two walks and scored a run. Brian Bogusevic was 1-for-2 with two walks, a double and a run scored in the win.
On The Mound - Barret Loux was outstanding in this one as he earned his second win of the season. Loux went five scoreless innings giving up three hits while walking one and striking out six. Casey Coleman, Zach Putnam, Rafael Dolis, and Blake Parker all worked scoreless innings to close the door on Nashville.
At The Plate - The D-Cubs never really had a chance in this one as they fell behind 6-0 in the first and could never catch up. Jorge Soler had another solid game going 1-for-3 with a walk, a double, and a run scored, he’s now hitting .414 on the season. Dustin Geiger continues to pad his stats going 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, he now has fifteen RBI’s in just fourteen games. Chad Noble was 1-for-4 with a double and a run scored in the loss.
On The Mound - Zach Cates didn’t have it tonight, and that might be putting it nicely. He could only last two-thirds of an inning giving up six runs on three hits while walking three and striking out one. Hunter Cervenka did a solid job out of the pen going two scoreless innings, he did walk three and struck out one, and didn’t give up any hits. Luis Liria was good as well going 3.1 innings giving up one run on three hits while walking one and striking out five. Frank Del Valle was effective as he usually is but didn’t have command at all, he worked 2.2 innings giving up one run on three hits while walking five(!) and striking out three. In all D-Cubs pitchers walked twelve men in the loss.
At The Plate - Matt Szczur has had a solid start to the 2013 season and it continues last night as he was 2-for-5 with a triple, and two runs scored, he’s hitting .288 and has a .348 on base percentage. Ronald Torreyes as been a house on fire since his return, he was 1-for-4 with a double, and two runs scored, he’s hitting .353 on the season. Arismendy Alcantara continues to impress everyone associated with the Cubs, even their fans, he was 2-for-3 with a walk, two RBI’s, and a stolen base, his sixth in the last three games. Christian Villanueva was 1-for-4 with a double, two RBI’s, and two runs scored, his average is only at .204 on the season but he already has twelve RBI’s.
On The Mound - Matt Loosen got the start and didn’t get the win but did some solid work, he just couldn’t get through five innings. He went four scoreless innings giving up four hits while walking two and striking out eight. A.J. Morris came on in relief to record the win as he went three innings giving up one run on three hits while walking two and striking out two. Brian Schlitter shut things down over the last two innings, as he didn’t give up a run, he gave up three hits and struck out three. I would also like to thank Born on Third friend Celeste Whiteside @aspenthisyear for sending along the following picture of Trey McNutt from last night, thanks so much Celeste!
NOTES: Kane County doesn’t play games anymore, they were rained out, again.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Minor Matters – April 13, 2013 (Cubs Minor League Recaps)
At The Plate - Logan Watkins showed off his tremendous skill set once again last night. Watkins was 1-for-3 with two walks, a home runs, two RBI’s, and two runs scored. Watkins now had ten walks in ten games so far this season. Darwin Barney made his first rehab start and looked decent at the plate going 1-for-4 with a run scored, and two strikeouts. Brad Nelson was 2-for-4 with an RBI, J.C. Boscan also went 2-for-4 in the loss, he had an RBI and a run scored as well.
On The Mound – Barret Loux got the start and was much better this time out. Loux went five innings giving up one run on six hits while walking two and striking out five to earn his first win of the season. Yoanner Negrin has been outstanding once again as he went three innings only allowing two hits while striking out eight, eight! Blake Parker tossed a scoreless ninth inning, striking out one.
At The Plate – The Smokies jumped out to an 8-1 lead and just barely held on for an 8-6 victory. Ronald Torreyes made his return to the lineup, his first appearance of 2013 and was solid going 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored from the lead-off spot. Arismendy Alcantara was 2-for-5 with a home run, three RBI’s and two runs scored. Rubi Silva also had a breakout game going 3-for-4 with a double, a triple, and two RBI’s, he’s now hitting .320 on the year. Justin Bour only had one hit, but was productive, he finished the day 1-for-4 with three RBI’s.
On The Mound – The Smokies were good, and not so good late. Kyle Hendricks got the start and the win, he went six innings giving up one run, unearned, on five hits while walking three and striking out one. A.J. Morris struggled out of the pen going 1.1 innings giving up five runs on three hits while walking two hits while striking out one. Frank Batista settled things down to earn the save, he went 1.2 innings giving up no runs on one hit while striking out one.
At The Plate – The D-Cubs fell behind early and just couldn’t generate enough offense to get back into this one. Javier Baez is starting to show signs of breaking out as he was 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, and two runs scored. John Andreoli was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored, he’s now hitting .364 on the season. Stephen Bruno was 2-for-4 with two RBI’s and a run scored. Dustin Geiger was 1-for-4 with a double and two RBI’s in the loss.
On The Mound – A rare bad outing from P.J. Francescon, he got the loss going five innings giving up six runs on eight hits while walking none and striking out five. Eduardo Figueroa didn’t get much help from his defense as he worked three innings giving up three runs, all unearned, on two hits while walking four and striking out none.
At The Plate – The Cougars built a 4-0 lead by the top of the third, by the bottom of the fourth it was gone. The Cougars mounted a late comeback, but they ran out of time in game one. Daniel Vogelbach continued his hot start to the season going 1-for-2 with two walks, his first home run, an RBI and two runs scored. Rock Shoulders is even hotter at the plate right now going 1-for-3 with a double, a walk, and two RBI’s, he’s now hitting .455 on the season. Jeimer Candelario finally had a solid game going 1-for-2 with two walks, a double, and a run scored.
On The Mound – Ian Dickson hasn’t had the best start to the 2013 season, that continued in this one. Dickson went five innings giving up seven runs on eights hits while walking none and striking out three. Brian Smith tossed a scoreless inning in relief only giving up one hit.
At The Plate - It took eleven innings but the Cougars were able to split the double-header with the Timer Rattlers. Jeimer Candelario had a solid second game as well going 2-for-3 with two walks and a run scored. Willson Contreras was great coming off the bench and ended up with the game winning home run, he was 2-for-2 with a home run, two RBI’s and a run scored. Wes Darvill was 2-for-4 with a caught stealing, and an error, so a good and bad day for him.
On The Mound – Felix Pena was outstanding in this one going six innings giving up one run, unearned, on five hits while walking one and striking out three. Justin Amlung, who has been roughed up in the early going had an outstanding outing yesterday. Amlung went four scoreless innings out of the pen giving up only two hits while walking one and striking out one. Eduardo Orozco earned his first save of the season tossing a scoreless inning giving up one hit and striking out one.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Minor Matters – April 12, 2013 (Cubs Minor League Recaps)
At The Plate – The I-Cubs were looking pretty good through four innings, then the bottom fell out, and that’s putting it nicely. Logan Watkins continues to embody everything that Theo Epstein wants, as he was 0-for-2 from the lead-off spot but had three walks. Ryan Sweeney was 1-for-4 with his second home run of the season, two RBI’s, and a run scored. Brian Bogusevic, and J.C. Boscan each had two hits in the loss. Edwin Maysonet only had one hit on the night, but he was productive as he had three RBI’s.
On The Mound – Nick Struck did just fine tonight, I know the final score doesn’t indicate that but he was solid. Struck went four innings giving up two runs on five hits while walking one and striking out three. That was the end of the good news for the Iowa pitching. Esmailin Caridad was hung with the loss, he worked one inning giving up five runs, four earned, on three hits while walking three and striking out one. Jaye Chapman was even worse as he gave up five runs on six hits while walking one and striking out one in just two-thirds of an inning. Cory Wade had an odd stat line, he went three innings giving up two runs on NO hits while walking three and striking out five. The I-Cubs are now 1-8 on the season.
At The Plate – The Smokies could only manage four hits and two runs but that was just enough for the victory. Matt Szczur continued his strong start to the season from the lead-off spot going 1-for-3 with a walk, an RBI, two stolen bases, and a run scored. Jae-Hoon Ha was 1-for-3 with the only other RBI for the Smokies. Rubi Silva, and Jonathan Mota tallied the only other hits for the Smokies in the win.
On The Mound – Outstanding work all night for the Smokies pitchers. Eric Jokisch got the start and also the victory as he went six strong innings giving up one run on four hits while walking one and striking out three. Tony Zych, Zach Rosscup, and Trey McNutt all tossed scoreless innings to shut the door on the Lookouts. Trey McNutt earned his first save of the season and has yet to give up a run in 2013.
At The Plate - The D-Cubs didn’t need much in this one, but they were able to score five times on just six hits. Taiwan Easterling had another solid game going 2-for-5 with a double, three RBI’s and a run scored. Javier Baez was 1-for-4 with a walk, and an RBI, much better approach from Baez in this one. Stephen Bruno was 1-for-4 with a double, and a run scored.
On The Mound - Austin Kirk was outstanding despite fighting his command early. Kirk went five scoreless innings giving up two hits while walking four and striking out two, he improves to 1-0 with a 1.13 ERA. Yao-Lin Wang was just as good out of the pen going four scoreless innings giving up one hit while walking one and striking out five to earn the rare four inning save.
NOTES: Kane County was scheduled to play a double header in Wisconsin today but for the second straight day they were snowed out. They are planning on playing a double header tomorrow and Saturday to make up for the last two days. Ronald Torreyes is back! He was a week late in arriving to camp and stayed about a week late to make up for it. He has now been assigned to AA Tennessee.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Minor Matters – April 8, 2013
At The Plate – Things have not gone well for the Iowa Cubs, that is reflected in their now 0-5 record. Logan Watkins led off today as was great going 2-for-4 with a home run, a double, an RBI, and two runs scored, he’s now hitting .368 on the season. Brett Jackson had a solid game going 2-for-4 with a double, and two RBI’s. Newcomer Donnie Murphy went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in the loss.
On The Mound – Really rough go of it for the I-Cubs pitchers. Barret Loux got the start and was beat up giving up six runs on three hits while walking three walks and striking out two in only one inning of work. Jaye Chapman worked 2.2 innings giving up two runs on two hits while walking three without a strike out. Cory Wade got roughed up giving up five runs on eight hits while striking out one in three innings of work. Blake Parker worked 1.1 scoreless innings while walking one and striking out two.
At The Plate – Matt Szczur continued his solid work out of the lead-off spot going 2-for-3 with a run scored, and a stolen base. Arismendy Alcantara who was hitting in the two hole was 2-for-4, but also made two errors. The rest of the Smokies lineup could only manage one hit in the 2-1 loss.
On The Mound – Really solid effort from the Smokies pitchers in this one. Dae-Eun Rhee got the start and was decent, he struggled a bit with his command in 4.1 innings of work giving up one run on two hits while walking three and striking out one. Brian Schlitter was the tough luck loser in this one, he worked 1.2 innings giving up one run, unearned, on two hits while walking one. Zach Rosscup and Trey McNutt each worked a scoreless inning to keep things close.
At The Plate – Finally a win for the Cougars, they did plenty offensively but had to work overtime after a blown save, more on that in a bit. Gioskar Amaya broke out today after a slow start to the season, he was 3-for-5 with a triple, a stolen base, and a run scored. Chadd Krist was 3-for-5 with two doubles, ans two runs scored. Bijan Rademacher did most of the damage today going 3-for-5 with three RBI’s. Rock Shoulders stayed red hot at the plate going 2-for-5 with a run scored, he’s now hitting .455 on the season.
On The Mound – Lendy Castillo who is transitioning to a starting role was fantastic in his 2013 debut. Castillo went five strong innings giving up one run on three hits while walking two and striking out four, unfortunately he had a win snatched from him. Brian Smith was solid out of the pen going two scoreless innings giving up one hit while walking one and striking out one. Justin Amlung blew the save but also got the win, he worked three innings giving up four runs on four hits while walking one and striking out three.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Minor Matters – April 5, 2013
At The Plate – Logan Watkins had an excellent day at the top of the order, he was 3-for-3 with a triple, two runs scored, and two walks. Four different Cubs had two hits in the loss, Brian Bogusevic, Brad Nelson, Luis Flores, and Edwin Maysonet. Brad Nelson supplied the power today, both of his hits left the yard, he added a walk, and had three RBI’s.
On The Mound – Nothing good at all from the Iowa Cubs pitching today. Drew Carpenter got the start and was lit up, giving up five runs on six hits while walking three and striking out one in four innings of work. Jaye Chapman worked one inning giving up two runs on three hits while walking none and striking out one. Cory Wade worked 1.2 innings, he gave up one run on four hits while walking one and striking out one. Blake Parker gave up two runs on two hits while walking one and striking out three in 1.1 innings.
At The Plate – The Smokies did some major work at the plate in this one as eight of the nine starters had at least one hit. Jae-Hoon Ha was 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI, a stolen base, and two runs scored. Christian Villanueva was awfully productive going 3-for-5 with a double and four RBI’s. Justin Bour was 1-for-4 with a double, a walk, an RBI, and two runs scored. The Smokies had six doubles in the victory.
On The Mound – Alberto Cabrera was outstanding tonight, he went six strong innings giving up two runs on four hits, he didn’t walk anyone and struck out nine. Zach Rosscup was inspired by Cabrera and tried to one up him, Rosscup went two innings and only gave up one hit and struck out five. Trey McNutt tossed a scoreless frame to close things out.
At The Plate – The D-Cubs mashed the ball all over the place tonight, something this team most definitely can do. Zeke DeVoss had a big night at the top of the order going 3-for-5 with a double, a triple, a walk, two RBI’s, a stolen base and a run scored. Javier Baez was 2-for-5 with a double, a home run, two RBI’s and a run scored. John Andreoli, and Ben Carhart each had three hits, and Jorge Soler was 1-for-5 in the victory.
On The Mound – Quite the combo on the mound for the D-Cubs tonight. Starling Peralta got the start and went 4.1 scoreless innings, he gave up only one hit while walking three and striking out five. Ryan Searle followed that up with 4.2 scoreless innings, he gave up two hits, walked no one, and struck out six. The final line for D-Cubs pitching, nine innings, three hits, no runs, three walks, and eleven strikeouts.
At The Plate – The Cougars pounded out ten hits, unfortunately they were 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Rock Shoulders was 1-for-4 with a double, and an RBI. Chadd Krist was 2-for-3 with a walk, and Wes Darvill was 3-for-4 with a double. The Cougars made three errors on the night, and all were costly.
On The Mound – I mentioned the costly errors, here’s the proof. Tayler Scott got the start and was really good going six innings giving up one run, unearned on four hits while striking out six. Jeffry Antigua was solid out of the pen in three innings of work, he gave up three runs, all unearned, on three hits while walking two and striking out two.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Cubs Make Second Round of Cuts; McNutt Included
As we inch towards opening day we will be seeing more of these reports, these are both good and bad, good meaning we are finally getting an idea of what the roster might look like, bad because, well, being cut isn’t a bad thing, it’s a developmental step, yeah that’s it. Today the Cubs announced they have sent six players back to various levels of their system, five pitchers and one position player. We will start with the position player, Logan Watkins, a guy I really like, and I think the Cubs do as well as he is versatile in that he can play a number of infield spots. It looks as though he will start the 2013 campaign in Iowa as the starting second baseman, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him at Wrigley at some point this year.
Now let’s discuss the pitchers that were sent packing. Brooks Raley, who started a few games for the Cubs at the end of last year will be headed to Iowa, and most likely be in the rotation there. Raley had 
an opportunity to crack the roster coming out of camp but had a less than memorable Spring up to this point. Alberto Cabrera, who the Cubs are trying to morph back into a starter will also take up residence in Iowa, like Raley, there was an outside shot of Cabrera making the team as he saw time with the Cubs last year, but a bad Spring forced the Cubs hand. The 2012 Minor League Pitcher of the Year in the Cubs organization, Nick Struck, was also sent home from camp today. Struck had a decent Spring and will look to build off an impressive 2012 this year, most likely in Iowa, yes that staff is pretty full already. Robert Whitenack, who spent much of 2012 coming back from Tommy John surgery, was another one of the cuts. Whitenack is intriguing, as many people in the organization like his arm, and ability, it’s now a matter of regaining confidence post surgery and I think that is what is holding him back. Whitenack is someone to pay attention to as he is already on the Cubs 40-man roster, my guess is he starts a AA Tennessee, that might be a little advanced for him, but he has to show the Cubs organization that he belongs.
The final cut is probably the most notable, Trey McNutt, and his beard. McNutt 
was a pitching prospect for the Cubs before they restocked with other pitching prospects, if that makes sense. McNutt, originally a starter has become seemingly more valuable out of the bullpen, that made it realistic for him to break camp with the Cubs and be another solid arm in the pen. With him being cut from camp I would think the Cubs would like to see what he can do strictly as a reliever at AAA Iowa, I think that McNutt has a future with the Cubs, and I think it’s out of the pen, but time and performance will tell. The Cubs roster now stands at 53, as I said, inching closer to that magical 25 number for April 1st.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Edwin Jackson Strong in Cubs Debut
If the Cubs can bottle this Spring pitching and take in North when they break camp they will be more than just an improved team in 2013. The pitching this afternoon 
was fantastic, and it all started with Edwin Jackson making not only his Spring debut, but his Cubs debut. Jackson was stellar, tossing two scoreless innings while pounding the strike zone. He surrendered two hits, didn’t walk anyone and didn’t strike out anyone, you have a defense behind you, use it! Drew Carpenter followed Jackson and was the eventual winning pitcher for the Cubs as he also went two innings giving up one run on two hits while walking one and striking out one. Chris Rusin, Zach Putnam, and Nick Struck combined to closed out the final five innings for the victory. Both Rusin and Struck went two innings, Struck picked up the save giving up one run on two hits, while striking out one. The Cubs didn’t knock out too many hits on the day (6) but they made them count as they were able to push across four runs. Christian Villanueva got the Cubs on the board in the third inning with a solo home run off of Jorge De La Rosa. Dave Sappelt had a strong day at the plate going 2-for-2 with a home run of his own, an RBI, and he scored two runs. Starlin Castro doubled, Javier Baez and Logan Watkins rounded out the hits for the Cubs, and Baez recorded his first stolen base as well.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Cubs Fill Out 40 Man Roster / Sayonara LaHair
Today was the deadline to protect players from the MLB Rule 5 draft, players on a teams 40 man roster are protected, so it comes as no surprise that the Cubs filled out their 40 man roster today. The Cubs purchased the contracts of right-handed pitcher Trey McNutt, infielder Christian Villanueva, minor league player of the year in the Cubs organization Logan Watkins, and right-handed pitcher Robert Whitenack. The other minor league player of the year, Nick Struck was not added to the 40 man and thus left unprotected and available to any team that may want to add him in the Rule 5 Draft. It’s not that much of a surprise that he wasn’t added because the guys that were added have a better shot at sticking with the Cubs, especially McNutt. I think the move to the pen was the right one for McNutt last year and he could have pitched out of a Major League bullpen last year so it was wise for the Cubs to go in that direction.
In addition to filling out the roster the Cubs also designated Bryan LaHair for assignment. The 2012 all-star is said to be looking into an opportunity to sign with a Japan team for next season, if that’s the case I hope he has a great year next year, he was a lot of fun to watch for 51 games last season.
Thanks for reading,
- George
