NEWSLETTER
The Arizona Fall League regular season, which was moved this year to be played at an earlier time, completed yesterday. The Cubs’ Mesa Solar Sox finished two games out of first place, meaning they will not participate in today’s championship game between Salt River and Surprise.
We’ll have more next week about the developmental experience these guys had in Arizona, but for now, I wanted to quickly touch on each of the seven Cubs prospects who participated.
Miguel Amaya
Final numbers: .224/.291/.286, 5 BB, 12 K, 49 AB.
Amaya had a nice start in Arizona, but went into a prolonged slump in the second half, going just two for his last 21. The Panamanian catcher was on a unique schedule, essentially playing once every three days, and he couldn’t find a way to get into a groove. Nonetheless, he made the All-Star Game and drew praise from scouts, The Athletic, and Prospects Live.
[Brett: A note from me, because I remain an enormous Amaya fan, and I’ll take every opportunity I can get to say more words about it. Amaya’s fall did nothing to change his trajectory as one of the best catching prospects in the game, in large part because he wasn’t there to rake when getting erratic starts. Amaya had a full regular season, and instead was in the AFL so that he could get additional instruction, and see what it’s like to work with NEW big-time arms on the fly. It’s a great experience for a young catcher who is going to continue to climb the ladder, and continue to catch better and better pitchers.
Amaya, who won’t even turn 21 until March(!), is sufficiently advanced that the Cubs recognize they need to make sure he’s prepared for the upper levels of the minors in 2020, and then possibly the big leagues as soon as 2021 (figuring out how to make the catching rotation work when it becomes necessary). I get very excited thinking about Amaya’s potential as an impact defensive catcher who also happens to have an above-league-average bat.]
Scott Effross
Final numbers: 10 IP, 12 H, 1.80 ERA, 1 BB, 9 K, 0 HR-A.
Evan Altman at Cubs Insider interviewed Effross during his time in Arizona to talk about the switch that’s been happening for a few months to make Effross a sidearmer. The AFL has to be considered a win on that front, even though opposing hitters did hit .308 against him. Effross’ ability to control the strike zone in such early stages of this experiment is impressive.
Jordan Minch
Final numbers: 10 IP, 8 H, 1.80 ERA, 1 BB, 14 K, 1 HR-A.
Minch reportedly touched 96 or 97 in Arizona, though he was more 93-94 in the All-Star Game. Minch, a lefty reliever, succeeded in the Arizona Fall League mostly due to dominating right-handed hitters. They managed just three hits in 22 tries against him, striking out 10 times against one walk. Minch might have pitched himself to a 2020 Iowa bullpen spot, which at the very least, gives him an outside shot of Major League contribution if injuries break that way.
Zack Short
Final numbers: .234/.359/.325, 15 BB, 26 K, 77 AB.
The AFL offered Short the opportunity to make up for all the lost at-bats this year after breaking his hand in Iowa early in the season. What’s encouraging is that Short didn’t miss a beat bringing his patient approach into the AFL, tying for the league lead in walks. He was 6-for-15 with a .550 OBP against left-handed pitching in a tiny sample, which has always been a strength for him. But the strikeouts remain a problem.
Keegan Thompson
Final numbers: 25.1 IP, 20 H, 4.62 ERA, 6 BB, 26 K, 3 HR-A.
Thompson merely being healthy enough to make all his scheduled starts and get up to five innings by the end was a win in itself. But finishing the AFL like he did, with two dominant appearances (combined: 9 IP, 3 H, o R, 0 BB, 9 K) was icing on the cake. I maintain that Thompson would have had a big year if arm soreness didn’t derail his season, and I look forward to seeing how the AFL helps him get ready to return to Double-A in 2020.
Erich Uelmen
Final numbers: 12 IP, 5 H, 0.75 ERA, 3 BB, 9 K, 0 HR-A.
Uelmen had something like a 57 GB% in the AFL, so his sinker translated to relief and a heightened competition level just fine. I don’t think the Cubs are ready to make Uelmen a reliever full-time yet, but this success is going to be remembered, particularly the .080 average against right-handed hitters. The bullpen is probably ultimately his home, especially if he can keep the sink on the fastball and get it into the mid 90s consistently.
Jared Young
Final numbers: .196/.315/.304, 7 BB, 8 K, 46 AB.
Coming off a disappointing 2019 season, Young obviously didn’t have a ton of success in the AFL. Still, there are a few positives that hopefully he’ll bring into a bounceback in 2020. Young has never showed a double-digit walk rate at any minor league stop, and the sub-20% strikeout rate shows that he didn’t have a lot of batted ball luck. But still, Young is going to have to put himself back on the map with results next year, where he’ll likely return to Tennessee for a second stint.
