Chicago Cubs: Jerrick Suiter has chance to live out his dream

Chicago Cubs: Up and down

During his first year in professional baseball, Suiter dominated the rookie league. The big right-hander slashed .279/.403/.358 with a .369 wOBA and 127 wRC+, posting a higher walk rate than strikeout rate.

More from Cubbies Crib

• Cubs starting pitching has been thriving on the North Side
• Make no mistake: the Cubs are very much about power hitters
• Cubs are giving pitcher Javier Assad a deserved shot
• Cubs: It’s time to start thinking about potential September call-ups
• Cubs: P.J. Higgins deserves to be in the lineup on a daily basis

The Pirates decided to promote Suiter to Class-A West Virginia Power in 2015. Suiter showed off even more for the Power, slashing .299/.382/.394 with a .364 wOBA and 126 wRC+. The first baseman stayed consistent with his patience working a double-digit walk rate and lowered his strikeout rate from 15.5 percent to 13.4 percent.

The following season, Suiter was promoted again this time to Class-A Advanced Bradenton. While Suiter still saw the ball well, his numbers did drop, and his wRC+ dropped slightly below league average. In 2017, Suiter spent time between Class-A Advanced and Double-A. He rebounded mightily with a .285/.372/.447 line.

Suiter struggled in Triple-A in 2018, slashing .204/.283/.314 with just four home runs and a 67 wRC+. He had the opportunity to pitch last season as well. His debut on the mound came on August 15, where Suitor threw 1/3 of an inning, giving up a hit. Two weeks later, Suiter faced four batters over 1 1/3 innings, giving up a run and striking a guy out.