Ranking the best-hitting Cubs prospects halfway through the season

Cubs Double-A Hitter of the First Half: Owen Caissie OF (21 Years Old)

.275/.377/.519 52 RBI, 44 R, 15 HR, 17 2B, 40/105 K/BB 6-for-12 SB

Trading Kris Bryant hurt me and I refuse to believe that I’m alone in that pain. We’re talking about a player that is more synonymous with the Cubs World Series rebuild than anyone else. The former number two overall pick, NL Rookie of the Year, NL MVP and #Bryzzo co-founder. 

Owen Caissie makes that pain a little more manageable. Let’s get it out of the way early: the man strikes out a lot. It's as if getting one-on-one instruction from notorious free-swingers Javy Baez and Morel might actually help him strike out less.

However, he also punishes baseballs with great regularity. He has 15 homers in the first half as well as another 17 doubles and in a world where the National League now employs a designated hitter, he becomes an extremely usable piece moving forward. Even if MLB Pipeline is correct in their assessment of his defensive skills, the bat should play.

"While Caissie has flashed plus straight-line speed in the past, he's more of an average runner on the diamond and may lose a step as he fills out his build. He's athletic for his size, but his reads and routes in the outfield need work, and he could wind up as a fringy defender in left field."

MLB.com

Triple-A Iowa lacks a little bit of star power right now with the promotion of Morel and Miguel Amaya. If the Cubs want to aggressively compete next season, a promotion of Caissie and Crow-Armstrong makes too much sense to not happen as the 2023 campaign winds down.

If we were to see Caissie and Crow-Armstrong at the Triple-A level after the break it becomes conceivable that they could be mid-season call-ups next year and even possibilities out of the gate on the Opening Day roster depending on how the offseason plays out.

The thing that Caissie has that Young (and honestly just about everyone else in the system) lacks is extreme raw power. If he can tap into that and limit the strikeouts to provide a little bit of pop in the middle of the lineup then he could quickly find himself being a fixture at Wrigley Field.