Chicago Cubs: A get-to-know-you of the minor league affiliates

Chicago Cubs Minors: The beginning of the journey

The Arizona Complex League, or ACL for short, operates from the middle of summer until the early stages of fall. It is a 60-game league set in, you guessed it, Arizona, where teams send a lot of international talent and younger prospects in hopes of gaining added valuable experience to pad the resume.

There are many guys I am still getting accustomed to on this roster as you have a handful of players born after 2001, which is still an odd cutoff point for me as someone born in 1990. Most of these guys are multiple years away from any significant impact. However, it is essential to highlight some of the names on the roster quickly.

Shendrik Apostel is the first name you should come to recognize. Shipped to Chicago in March of this year from the Pittsburgh Pirates for reliever Duane Underwood, Apostel is the younger brother of Sherten Apostel, a top prospect in the Texas Rangers organization. In his first two years in pro baseball, the younger Apostel posted a back-to-back wRC+ of 135 and 146, respectively. In his debut stint with the Cubs, he worked to a 94 wRC+.

The strikeouts killed any production. However, Apostel is still 21 years old and provides first base depth, so there could be something in a few years. The second name is shortstop Yeison Santana. He was a part of the return for Yu Darvish this past winter and had previously been with the San Diego Padres since 2017.

Again, at just 20 years old, there have been some nice numbers so far. In his second season, in 2019, Santana posted a 150 wRC+ in rookie ball and displayed some power in his game.

His strikeouts have been manageable, and hopefully, that number stays relatively low for his case and the Cubs. Santana struggled at Low-A this year in 20 games, but there is time for growth with such a small sample.