Chicago Cubs: Three Arizona League prospects fans should come to know

Chicago Cubs: Raymond Pena, C, Age – 22

Another catcher?! It is the case for Raymond Pena, who is now considered a veteran of sorts in the pipeline, despite being just 22 years old. The right-handed hitting backstop has been with the organization since 2015 and now has five seasons of professional baseball under his wings.

Pena is another guy who has steadily improved over the last few years, having spent his first three years in the DSL before making the jump to the AZL where he has been the past two seasons. Pena began his career by slashing .109/.238/.127 with a 25 wRC+ and a 28.5 percent strikeout rate.

After seeing his numbers steadily rise in the seasons following, Pena went bonkers in the AZL in 2018. Across a 20-game span, Pena slashed .365/.462/.481 with a 167 wRC+ and a colossal 16.9 percent walk rate. This past year, the strikeouts did rise once again. However, Pena still managed a robust .281/.382/.368 line and a 113 wRC+. He also improved his overall speed and, like our other two guys, can drive the ball to all parts of the field.

It is insane to see the catching talent which exists in the organization as well as the extensive depth at the position. Each week it feels like a new catcher emerges in the system, which should give fans a tremendous amount of relief, especially with the future of Willson Contreras up in the air. Fans should come to know Pena as he looks to continue to improve in 2020 and continues working his way through the pipeline.