The Cubs Took Over the Mesa Solar Sox Yesterday and Other Bullets

mesa solar soxVoodoo freaking magic, man …

  • The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates yesterday in their NLDS, sending the Cardinals to the NLCS, because of course. It was vintage Cardinals, with Adam Wainwright dominating, and guys like David Freese, Matt Adams, and Pete Kozma filling up the box score. The Cards now head on to face the Dodgers in the most can’t-they-both-lose NLCS matchup I can remember. The final American League divisional series is decided today between the A’s and Tigers at 7 pm CT.
  • At least the Cubs saw their future blowing up in Arizona yesterday. Making his first start in the Arizona Fall League (where he’s the second youngest player by a matter of days), Albert Almora led off and went 4-5 with a homer and a double. Kris Bryant was nearly as good, going 2-3 with a homer and a walk. Wes Darvill came in late and got in on the action with a homer of his own. Jorge Soler went 1-5, but at least that one was a bases-clearing double. Between them, Cubs prospects drove in 11 of the 13 runs the Mesa Solar Sox scored yesterday.
  • BN’er RotoChamp was at the Solar Sox’s AFL game last year, and offers an eyes-on report.
  • MiLB.com put together a Cubs prospect All-Star team (and, before you freak out when you don’t see Arismendy Alcantara at second base, scroll down to “utility”), and got thoughts from Cubs Farm Director Brandon Hyde on the players discussed. Really interesting look at some guys whom you might not otherwise hear a lot about.
  • A Tribune piece with thoughts from Jorge Soler and Kris Bryant on their seasons and their plans for the AFL.
  • Speculation in Cincinnati has the Reds possibly considering Cubs third base coach David Bell for their managerial opening (Bell was a manager in the Reds’ minor leagues before coming to the Cubs). Bell is technically under contract through next year, but the Cubs aren’t going to stand in the way of a coach interviewing for a managerial position, especially given their own ongoing managerial search.
  • Jacob Hannemann, the Cubs’ overslot third round pick in 2013, is finally back in game action, playing in the Instructional League in Arizona. Hannemann’s season ended shortly after it began this year when he suffered a slight tear in his non-throwing elbow.
  • written by

    Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

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