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The Chicago Cubs made a rather surprising move on Thursday’s off-day.
According to the Cubs' transaction page, they have optioned rookie Moises Ballesteros down to Triple-A Iowa.
Ballesteros made the Cubs’ Opening Day roster and came out of the gate red hot. The 22-year-old slashed .387/.435/.710 with five home runs, five doubles, and 16 RBI in his first 25 games this season.
But since the end of April, he hadn’t provided much at the plate. Ballesteros batted a mere .128 (12-for-94) with one home run, one double, seven RBI, and one stolen base over his last 34 games. He had a .170 slugging percentage and a 22.6% strikeout rate during this stretch.
Ballesteros’ recent offensive numbers were obviously a major concern. Pitchers seemed to have adjusted to the rookie’s bat, and the lefty really had a hard time hitting both fastball and breaking ball pitches. He had a .196 batting average with a 28% whiff rate against fastball-type pitches and a .159 batting average with a 29.6% whiff rate against breaking-type pitches.
Those struggles resulted in fewer plate appearances for him over the past few weeks. Although he still started a handful of games, his timing was a bit off when he was in the lineup. He had just seven hits in his last 41 plate appearances since May 26.
It’s the right move to option Ballesteros down amid a rough offensive stretch early in his career. He’ll regain his confidence at Triple-A and work on adjusting his timing a bit. Most importantly, he will see consistent at-bats.
Ballesteros is still developing as a hitter, so ensuring he gets consistent at-bats is pivotal. There’s no benefit in letting a struggling 22-year-old just sit on the bench and not fix what he needs to fix.
There have been plenty of instances over the years of teams optioning top prospects to the minors to refine their skills. The Angels did it with Mike Trout in 2011. The Red Sox did it with Mookie Betts in 2014.
Sometimes, young hitters need to make some mechanical adjustments or just simply get consistent at-bats to get back into a groove offensively.
Ballesteros will now get those consistent plate appearances at Triple-A. This is likely a short-term move to help the young hitter regain his confidence and work on what he needs to before getting another shot in the big leagues.
In his place, the Cubs are expected to call up outfielder Justin Dean, according to Michael Cerami of Bleacher Nation.
The North Siders claimed Dean off waivers this past winter, and he has spent the entire season with the Iowa Cubs. He batted .238 with three home runs, eight doubles, and 25 RBI in 56 games down at Triple-A.
While Dean won’t see many starts, he will likely see most of his opportunities on the basepaths as a pinch runner in the later innings. He stole 14 bases with the Iowa Cubs to begin the year.
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According to the Cubs' transaction page, they have optioned rookie Moises Ballesteros down to Triple-A Iowa.
Ballesteros made the Cubs’ Opening Day roster and came out of the gate red hot. The 22-year-old slashed .387/.435/.710 with five home runs, five doubles, and 16 RBI in his first 25 games this season.
But since the end of April, he hadn’t provided much at the plate. Ballesteros batted a mere .128 (12-for-94) with one home run, one double, seven RBI, and one stolen base over his last 34 games. He had a .170 slugging percentage and a 22.6% strikeout rate during this stretch.
Ballesteros’ recent offensive numbers were obviously a major concern. Pitchers seemed to have adjusted to the rookie’s bat, and the lefty really had a hard time hitting both fastball and breaking ball pitches. He had a .196 batting average with a 28% whiff rate against fastball-type pitches and a .159 batting average with a 29.6% whiff rate against breaking-type pitches.
Those struggles resulted in fewer plate appearances for him over the past few weeks. Although he still started a handful of games, his timing was a bit off when he was in the lineup. He had just seven hits in his last 41 plate appearances since May 26.
It’s the right move to option Ballesteros down amid a rough offensive stretch early in his career. He’ll regain his confidence at Triple-A and work on adjusting his timing a bit. Most importantly, he will see consistent at-bats.
Ballesteros is still developing as a hitter, so ensuring he gets consistent at-bats is pivotal. There’s no benefit in letting a struggling 22-year-old just sit on the bench and not fix what he needs to fix.
There have been plenty of instances over the years of teams optioning top prospects to the minors to refine their skills. The Angels did it with Mike Trout in 2011. The Red Sox did it with Mookie Betts in 2014.
Sometimes, young hitters need to make some mechanical adjustments or just simply get consistent at-bats to get back into a groove offensively.
Ballesteros will now get those consistent plate appearances at Triple-A. This is likely a short-term move to help the young hitter regain his confidence and work on what he needs to before getting another shot in the big leagues.
In his place, the Cubs are expected to call up outfielder Justin Dean, according to Michael Cerami of Bleacher Nation.
The North Siders claimed Dean off waivers this past winter, and he has spent the entire season with the Iowa Cubs. He batted .238 with three home runs, eight doubles, and 25 RBI in 56 games down at Triple-A.
While Dean won’t see many starts, he will likely see most of his opportunities on the basepaths as a pinch runner in the later innings. He stole 14 bases with the Iowa Cubs to begin the year.
Continue reading...
