David Bote came into camp looking like a total beefcake – yeah, I said it – but it is never a guarantee that, just because a guy has achieved TANK status that he’s actually going to rock the ball any more or less than he otherwise would have.
To be sure, I can’t claim to know, on the strength of Spring Training, whether Bote is a new man or not, but I did enjoy watching him crush this one the other way:
Botebomb. @BleacherNation @realcubsinsider pic.twitter.com/4kpQQpK4VS
— Jeff Galus (@TLAM213) March 16, 2019
That was 105.3 mph off the bat, and 379 feet the other way – no cheapy, even in the Spring.
Bote, 25, came into this game already hitting a comical .435/.576/.652 on the Spring, and he’s seeing time all over the infield. With Addison Russell suspended to open the season, Bote was very likely to make the big league club out of the gate regardless of Daniel Descalso’s injury. But with Descalso potentially out, Bote not only will definitely make the club, but he could see a few more starts in April than he otherwise would have.
Of course, if he rakes out of the gate, with his glove, it’ll be hard to sit him regularly in any case.