Chicago Cubs prospects: Arizona Fall League Update

The Mesa Solar Sox will play their final game today before the Arizona Fall League “Fall Stars” Game on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT on the MLB Network. The Solar Sox remain in first place in their division with a 11-7-1 record, two and a half games ahead of the Salt River Rafters.

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Kris Bryant, Albert Almora, and Jorge Soler were named to the “Fall Stars Game” on Tuesday. Tune in on Saturday to see how the future of the Cubs are developing and shining against other upcoming talent from around the MLB. Below is a breakdown of the Cubs prospects so far in the AFL.

Albert Almora: The 19-year-old is one of the youngest players in the AFL and is doing quite well against older players. He is hitting .293 with one home run, nine RBIs, .341 on-base percentage, and .512 slugging. In 41 at-bats he has three walks and three strikeouts. Recently he is three for his last 23 at the plate.

Kris Bryant: MVP chants are not happening in Mesa for Bryant but they should be. He has six doubles, one triple, six home runs for 13 of his 20 hits being extra base knocks. His 17 RBIs, .446 OBP, and an insane .930 SLG shows why he is running away with league MVP title.

The Cubs could possibly move him to a corner outfield position to get him into the majors quickly. Doing this would put Mike Olt at third base and Junior Lake, Nate Schierholtz, and Bryant in the outfield. Donnie Murphy, Ryan Sweeney, and Darnell McDonald would likely be part-time or traded for prospects.

Wes Darvill: The third baseman has seen a limited role, he has six hits in 24 at-bats for a .250 average, .308 OBP, and .417 SLG. He also has one double and one home run for five RBIs.

Jorge Soler: Soler is hitting .278, .304 OBP, .407 SLG in twelve games and 50 at-bats. His nine-game hitting streak was snapped on Tuesday at Salt River. He has been slow out of the box with a 2:12 walk-to-strikeout ratio but many are attributing this to time off.

Pitching prospects

Dallas Beeler: Beeler leads the AFL in winning percentage and is tied for the lead with three wins (3-0). He has a 3.86 ERA, walked three and struck out six, and no earned runs in over 14 innings.

Lendy Castillo: The relief pitcher has made four straight appearances without allowing a run. On Tuesday, he saw that streak snapped when he walked three batters and gave up a run. His walk-to-strikeout is 8:5 and 2.84 ERA over 6 1/3 innings.

Matt Loosen: The starting pitcher turned relief pitcher during the AFL has a 2.89 ERA over 9 1/3 innings. He has struck out 10 and walked one, giving him more than a strikeout an inning on average.

Armando Rivero: Rivero has been the black eye for the Cubs during the AFL. In his last five appearances he has allowed at least one run. He has struck out five and walked three, and posted a 7.71 ERA over seven innings.

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