NEWSLETTER
A familiar face is putting together quite the day for the Iowa Cubs.
Coming up to the plate in the bottom of the 2nd down 1-0 to Columbus, David Bote gave Iowa the lead. The veteran smashed a high fastball over the center field fence …
Bote Bomb!#iowacubs #milb #onlyindesmoines pic.twitter.com/sjegx5D69F
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) May 9, 2024
… and he wasn’t done there.
Bote only needed to see one more pitch before blasting his second homer of the day in the 4th inning to extend Iowa’s lead to 3-1. The ball traveled 413 ft, which is probably why Bote looked like he knew it was gone from the moment it left the bat.
HAVE A DAY, DAVID BOTE pic.twitter.com/EVdwQ9wFYt
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) May 9, 2024
What’s Next for David Bote?
Michael: Bote came into this game slashing .310/.396/.476 (.872 OPS) with a 10.4% walk rate and a 14.6% strikeout rate. And now, after those two homers, he’s up to a 1.034 OPS. But I don’t really think we’re going to see him back at the big league level anytime soon. Even during that recent rash of injuries at the big league level, Bote was mostly an after-thought — obviously, he’s an infielder, so it didn’t make quite as much sense, but still.
And while those numbers at Triple-A are impressive, he’s a 31-year-old who first reached Triple-A almost a decade ago. He should be putting up video game numbers.
Plus, Bote is no longer even on the 40-man roster, so it’ll really require some serious issues before he’s back up with the Cubs, if he ever is again. His offensive profile has too much overlap with Chris Morel and/or Patrick Wisdom (definitely less impactful than the former and probably the latter, as well), and his defense is behind Nick Madrigal.
But also … don’t feel too bad for him. Remember, Bote SHREWDLY signed a 5-year, $15M deal back in 2020 that has paid him handsomely so far:
2020: $950K
2021: $1M
2022: $2.5M
2023: $4M
2024: $5.5M
And there is a coming club option for 2025 the Cubs will likely buy out for another $1M (… I do not think they will pick up his $7M option). I am sure, of course, that he’d RATHER be in the big leagues. But making $15M over five years playing minor league ball is not a bad consolation prize.
So the bottom line here is these are likely the final months of David Bote in the Cubs org (unless he just wants to stay around the org on a much smaller, minor league deal in the future). So if you’re a fan, enjoy it while it lasts. Bote was exciting player for a time — and his shirt-ripping, two-out, pinch-hit, walk-off grand slam will be forever burned into our memories — but we may be approaching the end of the road for his time as a Chicago Cub.
