The 2016 Iowa Cubs season kicks off this Thursday when Round Rock visits Principle Park during the first half of an eight-game homestand. LWOS breaks down what to look for during this year’s season.
Players to Watch during the 2016 Iowa Cubs Season
Matt Murton
Matt Murton was once one of the hottest players in the Chicago Cubs organization, and now he’s back with the team. After being traded by the Boston Red Sox in 2004, Murton knew his career would have to be launched in a team’s farm system. He took the message and ran with it. Murton started off the next season in AA West Tennessee, and was called up to the majors halfway through the season. He hit .321 at the back end of that season and .297 the next. However, in 2007, Murton faced injury issues and the arrival of Alfonso Soriano to the Cubs, and was phased out of the club. He played for both the Colorado Rockies and the Oakland Athletics before heading to Japan, where he set record, after record, after record. Now, Murton returns to try and relaunch his career, and I-Cubs fans will have a front row seat.
Logan Watkins
There is not a single player in the Cubs farm system currently that will fit the definition of “underrated” better than Logan Watkins. The 26-year-old infielder is back from a year off following an Achilles injury, and looks to join the Cubs for the third time in his young career.
Wilson Contreras
The Cubs’ second-rated prospect will start the season in Iowa. After hitting .333 as a catcher last season, Contreras looks to add to the wide array of backstop talent that currently calls the Windy City home.
Gleyber Torres and Ian Happ
Cubs officials will deny that Iowa will get a glimpse of these two in 2016; however, they are both on pace to see time at Principle Park. They will both start the year off in Myrtle Beach, and will only need to go through Florida and Tennessee to earn a gig in Iowa. Torres hit .293 in South Bend, fifty points over Happ’s .241 during the back half of the season when he too was in Indiana. With the right numbers, the next round of prospects will be in Iowa in a jiffy.
Munenori Kawaski
After Starlin Castro departed from Chicago during the off-season, the Cubs lost a big role-player on the team: that out-of-the box player that can always make the team and the fans laugh (while still being a talent on the field). Munenori Kawaski can fill that role, although many Cubs fans will say that it won’t be the same. Keep an eye on Kawasaki; he will be a treat to watch.
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