Chicago Cubs hitter Miles Mastrobuoni off to a sizzling start in WBC

Checking back in with Chicago Cubs players in the World Baseball Classic, another Cubs player off to a fantastic starting is utility man Miles Mastrobuoni. After two games, he owns a slash line of .375/.375/625 with two RBIs; the most recent came off a perfectly sliced ball the other way to left-center on a lefty vs. lefty matchup. The night prior vs. Cuba, he started by taking Cubs pitcher Roenis Elias deep into the left-field gap with a double and cashed in with another double later in the ball game, which drove in a run.

After being DFAed by the Tampa Bay Rays mainly due to their overload of depth, the Cubs swiftly swooped in and traded for Mastrobuoni. Hitting a career of .295/.375/.445 in Triple-A, Mastrobuoni provides decent pop, hammering 16 homers and 78 RBIs in 679 ABs in the highest level before the show. Defensively, he has registered an impressive 0.985 FPCT over the course of six seasons.

In his nine games in the big leagues in 2022, Mastrobuoni spent time between 2B and RF without giving up one error. He has also spent time at LF, CF, SS, and 3B in the minors, giving him the perfect versatility the Cubs can utilize if necessary. He is another jack of all trades and is very similar to Zach McKinstry in that respect.

What Mastrobuoni has always needed, like so many prospects before him in a loaded farm system, is consistent playing time at the big league level. In Spring training, he hit .286 in seven at-bats before parting for the WBC, but the Cubs are eyeing Trey Mancini for RF to replace Seiya Suzuki. With Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson up the middle, the same problems for Mastrobuoni regarding playing time will arise. He may be worth a look at third base if he continues to hit well, but either way, there are players in the food chain before him. Nevertheless, the talent is there, and it would be nice to see him get some solid playing time to see what he can do.