NEWSLETTER
The new number nineteen on the midseason Top 40 Jonathan Sierra was recently the focus of a scouting piece from Baseball Census. The video of his at bats is some of the best video we’ve gotten on Sierra and well worth a watch.
The verdict, in short, is that Sierra, the Cubs’ biggest money IFA signing in the 2015-16 class behind Eddy Martinez ($2.5 million bonus), is extremely raw but has some very loud tools. The 19-year-old needs practice, patience, and to make some significant adjustments in his approach at the plate, but the tools are there for Sierra to turn into a pretty good prospect.
After watching the video, it is easy to see why he has a strikeout rate that is scarier than anything Alfred Hitchcock ever dreamt up. Striking out 30%+ of the time in rookie ball is going to happen when you are getting eaten alive by pitches low and away. That’s an adjustment that I have no doubt is already in progress, and is just the next in a long line of adjustments that he’ll have to make if he’s going to move up the prospect rankings as he moves up the system.
Triple A: Iowa Cubs
Iowa 7, Sacramento 3
Double A: Tennessee Smokies
Tennessee had the day off.
High A: Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Potomac 3, Myrtle Beach 2
One rough inning led to all the Potomac scoring, and masked a pretty good day of Pelicans’ pitching.
Low A: South Bend Cubs
South Bend had the day off.
Short Season A: Eugene Emeralds
Boise 10, Eugene 2
Not a lot went well for the Emeralds in this one.
Rookie: AZL Cubs
Athletics 7, Cubs 2
The Cubs were held to just four hits.
Other Notes
Not expecting Victor Caratini to be around for Thursday's I-#Cubs game. Sounds like at the very least, he'll be with Chic., ready if needed.
— Tommy Birch (@TommyBirch) August 10, 2017
.@ThomasHatch27's process and ability to make adjustments means the @Cubs might have something special.
FEATURE ➡️ https://t.co/BzEfr02JM6 pic.twitter.com/vuU74ErZgI
— MyrtleBeachPelicans (@Pelicanbaseball) August 9, 2017
