Chicago Cubs: Can they compete with a homegrown lineup?

The Chicago Cubs have had an excellent offseason in which they have added several pieces to their roster in order to complement the young position players that are graduating from the minors.

Names like Jon Lester, Miguel Montero and Jason Hammel figure to be important pieces this coming year while guys like Dexter Fowler and Chris Denorfia could be role models for the youngsters, teaching them how to behave properly as Major Leaguers.

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That being said, the position players figure to be nothing more than stop-gap measures. Chicago has several notable position player prospects making their way up through the farm system and in the next few years, it’s not hard to imagine a lineup containing nothing but homegrown talent (with some young prospects acquired through trade).

It would look something like this:

C Kyle Schwarber
1B Anthony Rizzo
2B Javier Baez
SS Starlin Castro
3B Addison Russell
LF Kris Bryant
CF Dexter Fowler
RF Jorge Soler

Bench: Tommy La Stella, Mike Olt, Miguel Montero, Arismendy Alcantara

Fowler would be the only veteran in the lineup but he would be an insurance policy until Albert Almora is ready – and that might not happen until late 2016 or early 2017. The rest of these names are mostly on the big league roster right now and only Bryant, Russell and Schwarber are still in the Minors.

Bryant is expected to be ready by early May and Russell might only need less than a full season at the Triple-A level. Schwarber needs to improve on his catching abilities but with the proper coaching he might be able to do it sooner than expected. After all, make-up is one of his biggest traits.

The bench would feature another veteran in Montero as the backup catcher and a lot of versatility – Olt could handle the four corner spots, La Stella can move all over the infield and Alcantara would fit perfectly as a super sub.

That lineup would have a high OBP, tons of power and an elite offensive potential. While it’s a longshot to make it happen in real life, there’s no question it would be a dream come true for most Chicago Cubs fans.

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