It took a lot not to write a blog about how this Cubs team is going to absolutely win the division. The next 12 games the Cubs play the White Sox (2), Royals (3), Tigers (3), and Pirates (4), before meeting the Brewers for a critical 3 game series to end the penultimate month of the regular season. Those 4 teams have a combined win percentage of just barely above .400 while the Brewers face-off against the Dodgers, Rangers, Twins, and Padres (combined win % of .547) during that same span. So naturally, I normally would be writing about how I think the Cubs will go 9-3 over this span and be in 1st place in the division on 8/28. But I'm not going to do that because it seems like every time I write a blog about how good this team is they decide to drop the next 7 games straight and make me want to jump in front of the 152 bus.
How Many Games Will The Cubs Win Over The Next 12?
10+ (and on our way to October baseball)
6-9 (and praying the Brewers are also getting eaten up)
3-5 (and asking the same questions about this team)
Less Than 3 (if this happens, check on me)
Instead I'd like to discuss the newest prospect rankings MLB.com released that had 5 Cubs in the Top 100 for the first time in a very long time. This farm system is currently ranked 2nd by fan graphs which is a massive jump from 18th in March of 2022. 5 of the top 10 came via the draft, 1 international signing, and 4 coming via trade. Many of the trades we all hated at the deadline in 2021 have really paid off...as well as 1 trade that nobody even blinked at.
Javy Baez --> PCA (Read More)
Yu Darvish --> Owen Caissie
Anthony Rizzo --> Kevin Alcantara (Read More)
David Robertson --> Ben Brown
I won't go into detail on every guy here because this blog will be 15 minutes long but a few people I'd like to touch on that I haven't discussed in blogs past. See above links to blogs on my top 2 guys in the farm PCA and El Jaguar.
3. Owen Caissie
Caissie, the 21-year old left handed outfielder, has impressed this season in Tennessee (AA) crushing 21 homers and slugging .554. When I wrote about Caissie in 2020 I highlighted that he was going to swing and miss a lot...which has been a little true. However, you absolutely take the swing and miss for the MASSIVE raw power he possesses. He's also reworked his swing a little to focus more on the contact and letting his natural power carry the ball out of the park rather than over swinging. MLB Pipeline recently handed out "best tools" awards to various prospects and Caissie was given 'Best Power'. Jim Callis wrote "The best prospect that the Cubs received in the Yu Darvish trade in December 2020, Caissie creates huge raw power with bat speed and leverage in his left-handed stroke. He's doing a better job of turning on pitches and driving them in the air this summer, challenging for the Double-A Southern League triple crown while batting .293/.394/.554 with 21 homers in 95 games. His exit velocities are exceptional for a 20-year-old and would rank among the best in the Majors." One of the youngest players in the Double-A Southern league, Caissie continues to outmatch his challenges. His 21st birthday is next July, and perhaps it's possible that the Canadian is big-league-ready by then.
5. Ben Brown
Brown came over to the Cubs in a trade that sent David Robertson to the Phillies at the deadline last year. It was one of those trades that just didn't feel splashy. Brown was a 33rd round pick in 2017 and the 26th ranked prospect in the Phillies organization at the time of the trade. However, he has quickly climbed the minor league ranks starting this season in AA posting a 0.45 ERA over 20 IPs before being promoted to Iowa. Brown is a 6' 6" power arm touching 98mph on his fastball. But that's not his best pitch...Jim Callis (from MLB Pipeline) awarded Brown the 'Best Curveball' award. "His outpitch is a breaking ball that he calls a slider but features much more downward than lateral movement and takes the path of a traditional curveball. He throws it with power in the mid-80s and gets swings and misses within the strike zone and chases outside of it. His 12.7 strikeouts per nine innings would rank fourth in the Minors if he weren't a few innings shy of qualifying."
I think Brown could be a solid 3/4 in the rotation a year from now or a super valuable late inning strikeout reliever.
6. Matt Shaw
The newest addition to the Cubs farm system, Shaw was drafted 13th overall this Summer out of the University of Maryland (shoutout Big Ten). He's a natural middle infielder but can probably play 3rd as well. Guy seems like a bit of a freak athlete. His MLB.com ETA is 2025 but I really could see him getting called up before that as the 21 year old has already found himself slashing .378/.410/.703 with High A South Bend. Watch the clip below of him and tell me he doesn't remind you of the current Cubs 2nd baseman...
Stats at Maryland:
A healthy farm system combined with a competitive team is a DANGEROUS thing for the rest of the league. Dansby and Cody Bellinger have helped create a culture of winning and win the young crop of guys ready to come up in 2024, I don't see that winning coming to an end anytime soon. It's been too long since we've had October baseball.
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