Cubs Minor League News: Moises Ballesteros one triple shy of a cycle |
The Arizona Fall League rolled along Wednesday night as the Mesa Solar Sox returned to the Diamond against the Scottsdale Scorpions. As was the case in their first game of the season, the Cubs continued to showcase some of their top prospects as Moises Ballesteros and Jonathon Long were in the lineup for the second game of the season.
Unlike the first game, where Ballesteros and Ben Cowles both went hitless in the Solar Sox's 1-0 walk-off win, the bats came to life in this one. An eight-run third inning anchored the Solar Sox's dominating 19-3 victory. Ballesteros and Long played a massive role in that. The duo combined for five hits and seven RBIs, and they single-handedly outscored the Scorpions on their own. Ballesteros is expected to see a ton of action this fall and could be in the running for the AFL MVP if all goes according to plan. He got off to a great start with an RBI single in the top of the first to open the scoring as the Solar Sox jumped in front 1-0 and never looked back. He would then add an RBI double as part of a four-run ninth inning for his second RBI of the night as he continues to make plenty of hard contact. While Ballesteros got tons of recognition this season based on the year he had, Long was one of those players who had a great year and wasn't talked about enough. Across High-A and AAA this season, Long combined to .283 with 17 homers and 70 RBIs and has put himself on the map for potential breakout stars in the Cubs Minor league system. What stood out the most about him was that he got better as the season went on, hitting .340 in his 46 games in AA and adding seven homers and 25 RBIs. Those types of numbers are going to get you noticed, and that is a big reason why the Cubs selected him to head to Arizona for some extra work. This is one of those cases where the Cubs are banking on a player coming off a great season and wanting them to continue to build off that so they can enter the next season full of confidence. In just one AFL game, Long has already left a lasting impression as he collected three hits in his six at-bats and drove in a game-high five RBIs. He played a role in the Solar Sox's massive eight-run third inning as he broke the game open with a bases-loaded RBI double to bring home three runs and extend the Solar Sox lead to 9-2 through three. Long followed that up with a flyout in the sixth before connecting for his first AFL homer in the seventh as part of the Solar Sox five-run inning to push their lead to 15-2 and closed out what was a five-RBI night for the kid. Throw in his single, and he was just a triple shy of the Cycle, as his performance is going to have plenty of scouts taking notes on him the rest of the way. With their win, the Solar Sox improved to 2-0 on the season, and guys like Grant Kipp, Sam Thoreson, and several of the other Cubs' arms are getting set to pitch later this week as they continue to get their work in down in the desert.
