This has been a really strange week.
It began with a flurry of moves between Tennessee, South Bend, and Myrtle Beach on Tuesday. Iowa joined in a couple days later and the rosters for each affiliate changed quite a bit. We also saw several players go on the IL including Ed Howard after a horrific tumble at first base. I would not be surprised if he is out the rest of the year. After the incident, he pointed at his hip as the issue. Unfortunately, minor league clubs do not release any information on injured prospects.
Jim Callis Week
JIm Callis of MLB Pipeline was everywhere this week talking about baseball. He stopped by the Marquee Sports Network to talk shop with Lance Brodzowski about Cubs prospects. Check out that fun interview!
My favorite Callis discussion of the week was when he put out his own full first round mock draft. I loved that Callis had Termarr Johnson going to the Cubs at 7. Jace Jung was right behind at 8 and Callis also hinted that the Cubs were interested in Cam Collier. With two months to go until the draft, the draft is shaping up to be a thrill ride!
So, how are those trades going
Poll of the Week
Yesterday, I did a poll about about which trade was the best deal on from last summer.
Let’s take a little closer look and see just exactly how those players are doing. I made a little table because I like tables. I like things to be organized.
| Player | Status |
| Greg Deichmann | It has not been a good transition for Deichmann from the A’s to the Cubs. He struggled last year and he is struggling this year, even losing his 40-man spot. |
| Daniel Palencia | Palencia looks like a lottery ticket as he can throw in the upper 90s and sometimes trip 100. He got off to a rought start in April at High-A but his last start saw him go four scoreless. |
| Bryce Ball | Yeah, he’s breaking out this year. |
| Anderson Espinoza | He was dynamite last year as he pitched for the first time in four years and flashed some nasty stuff. Still just 24, he got off to a bumpy start but looks to be smoothing some things out as he had his best start of the year Friday getting through 4 innings and allowing just one unearned run. |
| Alexander Canario | He’s been a stud this year already getting promoted from South Bend to Tennessee where he looks to belong. |
| Caleb Kilian | He is very close to MLB ready. After being the star of the AFL Championship last year, he’s only allowed 1 ER at most in any start this year. |
| Pete Crow-Armstrong | Once he got in a game, he showed how electric he was with his hit tool, speed, defense, arm, and that he can actually hit for power. In addition, he also is now in Baseball America’s Top 100 prospects. |
| Kevin Alcantara | I just love this kid’s swing! He generates easy power and has already improved on his April numbers in just half a month in May. |
| Alexander Vizcaino | After suffering shoulder issues in September last year, I was unsure of what would happen with Vizcaino this year. Come to think of it, so were the Cubs who placed him on the restricted list. No one has said anything about his whereabouts or why. |
| Bailey Horn | The Cubs used him as a starter last fall and this year they have him coming out of the pen. He has yet to allow a run this month after spending all of April on the IL. I like him better as a reliever. |
| Codi Heuer | TJS |
| Nick Madrigal | He’s been a disappointment as he’s barely hitting at .203. |
ACL Info
Arizona Phil dropped some serious deets about the ACL for 2022 which begins play three weeks from tomorrow. Wow! That is coming fast!
Cards of the Week
I’m starting to get in a routine when it comes to making cards. I’ve got my links all set up and bookmarked It’s just a matter of going through them on Saturday mornings for right now. That’s probably going to change here in a couple weeks when school ends, but for now I have over 100 cards this month and next weekend I’ll be in Appleton to get some more pictures of some more guys who are new to South Bend. In the meantime, check out these wonderful cards made from pics by Rikk Carlson, Micah Manuel, and Dylan Heuer.
Jam of the Week
Getting through a school day at the end of the year is sometimes just about surviving. I’ve been cranking out a lot of 90s tunes on the iPod the past two weeks and it seems to help me get through the day. So, this week’s jam is “Lithium” by Nirvana. At one point, I had a guitar in my classroom and I was playing along with it and my students kind of freaked out.
