The Beer List: Prospect You’re Watching Out of the Top 10

This is The Beer List. It has nothing to do with beer, it’s just a list. But I like beer, and I hear that every once in a while, the folks who frequent Wrigley Field may take a sip as well. What we’re doing here is throwing out a question to the staff each week and they’ll share their thoughts. This week we ask: Which Cubs prospect outside of the BP Top 10 are you keeping an eye on?

Duane Underwood, RHP

Though he may have only just landed himself a spot in Myrtle Beach for 2015, Underwood is definitely a pitcher in this organization that you should be keeping under your watchful eye. Underwood, who is now 20, was taken in the second round of the 2012 draft (67th pick overall), and had a heck of a 2014 in Kane County. The young right hander pitched in a total of 100 innings in 2014, with an impressive 84 strikeouts and just a 1.202 WHIP. Underwood has a fastball in the mid to high 90s (it’s been clocked at as high as 97), a plus curveball with a great late break ,and a changeup that is a work in progress but shows major-league potential. Don’t sleep on Underwood, because he’s sure to move up through the system pretty quickly. –Cat Garcia

Daury Torrez, RHP

Torrez is a right-handed pitcher who was signed for $25,000 in 2010 as a 17-year-old skinny guy projected to grow into major-league talent. He had a decent year at Low-A Kane County with good numbers and a sub-1 WHIP, but struggled in his only start at High-A Myrtle Beach. He turns 22 in June, and even on a team that doesn’t have a wealth of pitching talent in their minor-league system, he’s falling behind his peers. Players wh put up pedestrian numbers in three seasons of rookie ball rarely rise to the top of prospect lists, and Baseball America rates him as the 30th-best Cubs prospect. Another way of putting this is that if the Cubs were to create a big-league team from their minor leaguers, Torrez would still be a minor leaguer, which isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement. But I had to pick someone. –Scott Lindholm

Mark Zagunis, C/OF

Remember Jeremy Brown? Thanks to Moneyball, you might, though it’s only in that pop-culture context that you’re likely to know him. Brown was the 35^th overall pick of the 2002 Draft, thanks to Billy Beane and the A’s. That summer, he got 275 plate appearances at two levels of the Oakland system, and had 54 strikeouts and 54 walks—roughly 20 percent rates, each. He would carry the skill set that that implies slowly up the ladder, and get a cup of coffee in 2006. He could always walk, and hit a little (sometimes with enough power, sometimes without it). He never could do it well enough to support a DH profile, though, and while he stayed behind the plate for pretty much his whole career, he was never going to cut it as a backstop.

Beane’s thing was that the A’s weren’t selling jeans. Brown was available because he was soft-bodied, even fat on his bad days. It was what made him appealing; it was also one major reason his career stalled in Sacramento.

So imagine Brown, but with athleticism. I’ve never seen Zagunis in a pair of jeans, but I’ll bet you could sell them off of him. He’s taller and trimmer than Brown was. He can run. (He stole 16 bases in 18 tries in his pro debut last year.) He’s an athlete, damn it, even if it looks like he’s done being a catcher. The Cubs found Zagunis in the third round of the 2014 Draft, grabbed him, and gave him 262 plate appearances across three levels before the year was out. He struck out and walked 42 times apiece.

Primarily an outfielder in Myrtle Beach this season, Zagunis and his oh-so-sexy plate discipline are being groomed for a quick rise to the majors. Brown was weighed down by his fame (or infamy), his devotion to catching and, well, his weight. Zagunis has none of those problems, so, as so many thin and beautiful people do, he will get to live a fat guy’s unfulfilled dream. (As long as he keeps drawing those walks.) –Matt Truebood

Jake Stinnett, RHP

Stinnett turned a lot of heads with a plus sinker-slider combo that made him a pitcher to watch in the ACC for the Terps.  When he debuted for the Cubs organization, his velocity was predictably down after a long college season.  However, he has all the tools to be as high as a no. 2 starter in the big leagues someday and the Cubs will give him a chance to move quickly through the system. –David Blumberg

Jeffery Baez, OF

Baez hit well last year in his first full season above rookie ball, to the tune of a .286 TAv at Boise and .276 at Kane County. His ISO grew a bit as he made the jump to the Cougars, and the 21-year-old has consistently hit about 20 percent better than the league in which he’s played. While his home run totals don’t scream big-time power hitter, he’s capable of things like this, and scouts like his raw power. His walk percentage fell to a mere 5.6 percent in Kane County—a factor to keep an eye on—but his developing bat, high percentage base stealing, and above-average fielding make him a candidate for a breakout year in South Bend’s intriguing lineup. –Zack Moser

Kevonte Mitchell, OF

Raw athleticism is probably the best way to describe Mitchell’s game. When this 19-year-old was drafted in the 13th round last year, many praised his quick hands and projectable 6-foot-4, 185-pound frame. This would usually suggest power—and it still might in the future—but in his 39-game audition in the Arizona Rookie League last year Mitchell most impressed with his speed. He only slugged .371 and didn’t hit any homers, but he did steal 19 of 20 bases. He hit for a promising .294 average and had an 8.9 percent walk rate that led to a solid .374 OBP. If he could show that these sorts of contact and approach skills are sustainable while adding more power to his repertoire, he would suddenly become an extremely intriguing prospect with a very high upside, especially if he can stick in center field. I’d expect Mitchell to begin the year with the Eugene Emeralds when short-season ball gets going, with a small possibility that he could see time in South Bend if his development progresses quickly. –Nate Greabe

Jacob Hannemann, OF

When you’re at, say, Trader Joe’s, you’re faced with a choice: do I buy the ready-made, and clearly reasonably tasty, cheese they have available to me? Or, alternately, do I venture down the DIY aisle and buy rennet, culture, and other cheese making ingredients that, with effort, might turn into a spectacular cheese but might also turn into a soggy mess and a wave of regret? In a sense, by picking Hannemann in the third round of the 2013 draft, the Cubs chose the DIY option. They were wowed by Hannemann’s tools, which had always stood out, but knew that they were getting a raw product who hadn’t played competitive baseball in two years thanks to participation in a Mormon mission. That’s why nobody is all that concerned about Hannemann’s .251/.315/.368 line at two A-ball levels as a 23-year-old. He was getting back into the game. This year, he’ll start to show whether he’s a second-division starter at center field in the majors or another DIY project that didn’t quite work out. –Rian Watt

Gioskar Amaya, C

Amaya dramatically improved his walk rate last year in High-A compared to Low-A in 2013 (12 percent compared to 8 percent). This improvement coupled with his .024 bump in AVG led to a suddenly intriguing .777 OPS in a tough hitter’s environment in Daytona. If Amaya can maintain his stellar career .370 OBP as he transitions to catcher, he should be able to overcome a relative lack of power (.120 career ISO) to emerge as a very interesting name to watch in 2016. It remains to be seen, but I doubt the Cubs front office would have made the positional switch without a high probability of defensive success for Amaya. —Isaac Bennett

Eloy Jimenez, OF

Jimenez was the Cubs’ biggest signing in the blowout 2013 IFA class, but it is fellow signee Gleyber Torres who is getting the early jump to full-season ball, and most of the hype. Torres deserves it, of course, but I can’t wait to see how Jimenez looks when he joins Torres, perhaps as soon as this summer. Although his debut in 2014 was marred by injuries and he lacks Torres’ polish, Jimenez is a physical specimen who showed the easy power his swing can generate this spring when I gawked at the back fields. Jimenez, 18, is currently gearing up at extended spring training, and will likely make his 2015 debut at short-season Eugene when the Northwest League kicks off in June. The upside is very real, even if it may take Jimenez some time to get in range of it. –Brett Taylor

Justin Steele, LHP

Steele is a 19-year-old left hander drafted out of high school in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. It took an above-slot bonus to lure the pitcher away from UCLA, and 2015 looks to be an opportunity to find out whether he can develop his curveball and changeup to consistently complement a low- to mid-90s fastball. Consistency of control and further developing his off-speed pitches will be developmental goals for this season.

Steele has flashed elite ability, striking out 25 in his first 18 innings of rookie-league ball, but he has struggled with control at times, particularly on his complementary pitches. The plus fastball gives him high upside, particularly given the capacity to bulk up and add additional arm strength.

Steele looks to have a very high ceiling, though inconsistency and youth make it extremely difficult to project with any degree of certainty what he can be in the future. I hope to have a better idea by the end of this season. –Jeff Lamb

Victor Caratini, C/3B

Caratini played the vast majority of 2014 at just 20 years old, and he hit .277/.346/.402. Despite being in the early stages of his professional development, Caratini has demonstrated pretty strong on-base skills. In 2013, he posted a .415 on-base percentage for the Danville Braves in the Appalachian League. Caratini opened 2015 at High-A Myrtle Beach, and has already reached base safely seven times in his 15 plate appearances. –Andrew Felper

Jeimer Candelario, 3B

Once a top pudgy Cubs prospect, Candelario got into great shape, but played poorly in the Florida State League and didn’t rebound well during a demotion to Kane County. Candelario started dropping the shoulder and selling out for power in 2014, but in a quick spring training look he seems to be back to staying inside the ball and using a more even swing. The ceiling isn’t much here, but he is a player I am keeping my eye on in 2015. –Mauricio Rubio

Ryan McNeil, RHP

After having Tommy John surgery in 2013, McNeil appears to be fully healthy and poised to make a name for himself within the organization. Standing tall at 6-foot-3 and weighing 210 pounds, McNeil possesses a free and loose arm that generates a low-90s fastball with heavy sink. Showing a good feel for his secondaries, I believe that McNeil has the ability to become a mid-rotation starter. I’m looking for him to log a full season of innings this year in South Bend and flash enough of his pure talent to lay the groundwork for shooting up the minor-league ladder in 2016. –Leo Martinic

Corey Black, RHP

Yankees GM Brian Cashman was hesitant to deal Black in the deal to the Cubs for Alfonso Soriano in 2013, and for good reason. He’s been a starter throughout his career, but profiles to be a solid reliever with spot starter potential. He has a plus fastball that sits 92-95 consistently, but has hit 100 mph. He also has a slider, curve, and change that profile as average, with his slider being his second best pitch. He’s had command issues with a high walk rate in the minors, including a 5.14 BB/9 in 25 starts last season. With better command, and a solid fastball-slider combination, I’m really interested in seeing if Black can become a closer in the future. –Brandon Decker

Christian Villanueva, 3B

In the past, Villanueva would have been much more visible in the Cubs system. A top-ten talent, to be sure. The Cubs nabbed the slick-fielding third baseman in the 2012 Ryan Dempster/Rangers trade, and he’s widely accepted as one of the top defensive players in the Cubs’ system.

At times, his bat has almost matched his glove… but at other times, not. In 2011, Villanueva posted a respectable .803 OPS for the Rangers’ Low-A team. Pair that with a solid 16.3 K% and 32 stolen bases, and you can see why he raised some eyebrows among hardcore Rangers fans.

Villanueva opened more eyes among Cubs fans when he continued his stellar glove-work, then hit 41 doubles and 19 home runs at Double-A in 2013. However, last season’s bleh .283 OBP in a 64-game stint in Iowa had many wondering if his bat would really be enough for him to find a regular spot in a major-league lineup. Villanueva’s off to a great start this season, back down in Tennessee, hitting two homers in a recent game and posting an OPS of .857. (Small sample size alert!)

Even if Villanueva puts it together, though, there’s this daunting fact: he’s a member of baseball’s top farm system, and there are several players ahead of him at the hot corner—Mike Olt, possibly one of the Baez/Castro/Russell trio, and some other guy whose name escapes me. (Chris Brian or something like that?)

So the Cubs are left with a great glove, potentially decent bat at third base. What will they do with him? Trade him? Trade Olt? What would they get for either? That’s what we’ll find out this year, and it’s why I’ll be keeping my eye on Christian Villanueva. –Joel Reese