Chicago Cubs Prospects of the Week: Ben Brown and Rafael Morel give a glimpse of the future

Chicago Cubs AAA Pitcher of the Week: RHP Ben Brown (23 Years Old)

1 G, 6 IP, 0.00 ERA, 6 H, 0 BB, 11 K

I’m not sure what there is left to say for Brown. His performance this year is the only thing that makes me not totally hate the idea of a sell-off at the deadline, because if the front office was able to steal him away for a half-season of David Robertson then I’m at least curious to see what they can do this year as well.

That being said, Brown will be interesting for the Cubs yet again at the deadline this year because when (or hopefully, if) Marcus Stroman, Drew Smyly, or even Kyle Hendricks are dealt, you’d have to assume Brown is on the short-list in line to receive some seasoning at the major league level.

This week he limited the walks and was dominant. Last week he was unable to do so and was lit up. Major league hitters are better at laying off pitches and so he could get himself into some predicaments but I’d much rather him learn that at the big league level than continue to be an extremely big fish in the small pond that is Iowa.

Calling guys up doesn’t always lead to instant results (see Matt Mervis), but that isn’t a good enough reason to keep a guy down. If the Cubs end up selling, Brown should be up by mid-July as a starter. If they manage to stay hot and contend, then he should still be up by mid-July as a relief option to offer internal reinforcements rather than a costly arm from another team.