Javier Baez, Chicago Cubs Triple-a shortstop and #2 ranked prospect in the system, is coming up to the big leagues. The Cubs announced today he will join the team on Tuesday against the Colorado Rockies.
Baez has been very solid in the minors, as his batting average as of today was .260 in Iowa. He also had a .323 OBP, 24 doubles, 23 home runs, and 80 runs batted in. His batting average isn’t at an incredible number, but it is decent and his other numbers are definitely very good. This young prospect started his minor league career in 2011 and has always played well with solid stats. Take his numbers and combine them with the fact that he hits bombs like this one from the Futures Game a few weeks ago:
…and it’s easy to see why the Cubs think it is a good idea to bring Baez up. It’s definitely a great moment for every minor league prospect who gets brought up to the big show, and it will be fun to watch Baez as he progresses and tries to become a top-flight player for the Cubs in the MLB. With Starlin Castro entrenched at shortstop already, Baez will play second base, while recent callup and fellow top prospect Arismendy Alcantara will most likely move to center field.
Baez is, of course, just one of the many premier prospects in the Cubs system. Third baseman Kris Bryant is knocking on the door at Triple-A, Addison Russell (also a shortstop) was recently acquired in the Jeff Samardzija trade, and outfielders Albert Almora and Jorge Soler are also highly touted. Bryant, Baez, and Russell are ranked by MLB.com as the third, fifth and sixth best prospects in all of baseball, respectively. 2014 4th overall pick Kyle Schwarber, a catcher, is already raking and could find himself in top prospect lists very soon.
Baez gives Cubs fans another young player to track in the second half of the season. Following the future of the club is probably the most exciting thing they have as they are well out of playoff contention this year, but with players like Baez on the way, the future is certainly more promising.
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