The last article I wrote evaluating the Iowa Cubs' roster, I analyzed the pitching depth. This article we'll discuss the infield depth of the Iowa Cubs including catcher, first, second, shortstop and third. If you are unfamiliar with the minor league system, here is my explanation from my previous article: "Players are drafted by a team from high school or college, and when that team drafts them, they start training in that team's farm system, starting with the bottom, usually a complex league or rookie league. Then they jump to the official minor leagues, starting with Low A, and they work their way up to the Triple-A level from which it is one step to reach MLB."
That's just a simplified explanation, but it'll give you an idea if you are unfamiliar with the topic. Anyway, as a precursor to my evaluation, I do want to say that infield prospects do a lot of shifting around the infield instead of strictly staying with one position. While some shift around more than others, each move around at least some. So, if I put "INF" as a player's position, it'll be because they move around the infield a lot.
Catchers
- Erick Castillo. Castillo has been in the Cubs' system since 2012 and made his MLB debut in 2021, batting .250/.333/.250 in 9 PA with the Cubs. In Triple A in 2021 he batted .184/.291/.219 in 136 PA. He is a career below-average hitter, but is an overall solid defender behind the plate, and with the Cubs resigning him to a MiLB deal this offseason, it appears they are giving him another chance to develop his skills.
- Caleb Knight. Knight has been with the Cubs since 2018 and moved up from Double A to Triple A during the 2021 season. In Triple A he batted .231/.439/.538 with a 161 wRC, which shows his solid ability to hit the ball for power (6 HR in 36 PA). He'll definitely be one of the Iowa Cubs' starting catchers in 2022.
- Casey Opitz. The Cubs signed Opitz to a minor league deal in July, and he bounced around quite a bit from Low A to Triple A. Currently he is on the Iowa Cubs' roster, but he might spend most of the season with Double A or High A. With Triple A he went 1 for 8 with 4 walks, thus showing some good zone control.
- Tyler Payne. He's been with the Cubs since 2015 and made his MLB debut this past season, going 0 for 2 in his limited game with the Cubs. He mostly played in Double A this past season, batting .231/.291/.363 with a 81 wRC in 234 PA. He's had a couple above-average seasons in his career, but he's mostly an average catcher.
- PJ Higgins. The Cubs invited him to Spring Training, and in my previous article I made this statement about him: "Higgins made his MLB debut this past season but couldn't quite translate the same success he found in the minor leagues. in Triple A he hit .333/.458/.513 with a 167 wRC, but hit a bad .043/.120/.043 with a -51 wRC in 25 PA. The Cubs are going to give him another shot, it seems, and with catching depth thin, it's good to have solid back-up in the minor leagues"
Overall, after the Cubs signed back Higgins and Castillo, the catching depth is now pretty solid. I really don't expect Opitz to stay with Triple A all season, so four main catchers will provide good depth.
Infielders
- Trent Giambrone, 2B/3B. Giambrone did not have the best season in 2021, having dealt with personal and family issues in the beginning of the season and batting .174/.274/.255 in 271 PA the rest of the season. He made his MLB debut this past season and went 2 for 13 in 5 games. The Cubs will give him another chance this season to get past previous issues.
- Levi Jordan, 2B/3B. Jordan had a great season between Double-A and Triple A, batting .267/.328/.433 with a 111 wRC with Double A and .236/.331/.378 and a 93 wRC with Triple A. He'll be a solid piece of the Iowa Cubs' infield in 2022.
- Matt Mervis, 1B. The Cubs signed Mervis to a MiLB deal back in 2020, and he played his first season with the Cubs org, batting .204/.309/.367 with a 85 wRC in 289 PA in Low A before moving to Triple A and batting .286/.333/.357 with a 88 wRC in 15 PA. Currently, he is on the Iowa Cubs roster, but I'm not sure if he'll stay all season long.
- Bryan Serra, 2B. Serra bounced around the Cubs org in 2021, having a total of 21 AB between 5 different levels. He's on the Iowa Cubs roster right now, so we'll see where he ends up in 2022.
- Liam Spence, SS. Spence spent time in 3 different levels in the Cubs system, making a total of 63 AB and batting .175/.243/.175. While I'm not sure which level he'll be on for most of the season, he might provide good depth for shortstop with the Iowa Cubs.
- Jared Young, 1B. Young has been with the Cubs since 2017 and has progressed steadily, batting .254/.326/.421 with a 100 wRC in 141 PA with Triple A in 2021, after batting .326/.396/.519 with a 155 wRC in 144 PA with Double A in the first half of the season. He'll definitely be one of the Iowa Cubs main first basemen in 2022.
- Christopher Morel, 3B/SS. Morel hit very well with Double A in 2021, posting a .220/.300/.432 with a 101 wRC in 417 PA, and was moved up to Triple A where he hit .257/.333/.371 with a 93 wRC in 39 PA. Morel will likely be one of the Iowa Cubs' main third baseman in 2022.
- Alfonso Rivas, 1B/OF. He made his MLB debut in 2021 and hit a solid .318/.388/.409 with a 119 wRC in 49 PA. He's a career above-average hitter (100-plus wRC every level), and while he'll definitely be a part of the Cubs MLB roster in 2022, he'll probably start the year with Triple A.
- Dixon Machado, INF. I made this comment on him when the Cubs announced they were inviting him to Spring Training: "He's played for Korea (KBO) in 2020 and 2021 after spending 4 years with the Tigers. He did not hit well with them, with his best year hitting .259/.302/.319 with a 65 wRC. However, in KBO he put up a .279/.359/.361 with a 100 wRC in 2021. Excited to see how he does with the Cubs."
- Ildemaro Vargas, INF. He was also invited to ST and I made this comment on him: "An old face, having played for the Cubs some in both 2020 and 2021, back apparently on a deal. He's had a rough last couple years, posting a .156/.217/.221 with a 15 wRC in 2021. However, the Cubs have decided to give him another chance so we shall see how he does."
These are the main pieces that will be on the Iowa Cubs infield. While some might move down (Mervis, Serra, Spence) and some might be a part of the Cubs (Rivas, Vargas, Machado, Morel), this is a rough outline of what the infield will look like.
I see some pretty good depth at 1B, 2B, and 3B, but shortstop is lacking slightly in depth. Some shortstops from Double A might move up, and with Machado and Spence both shortstops, plus Sergio Alcantara might be a piece at shortstop if the Cubs don't need him.
This is pretty much all for now, though if I missed anything or you have any thoughts or questions, make sure you leave them down below.
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