Cubs announce their minor league player and pitcher of the month |
CHICAGO – The Chicago Cubs today named Triple-A Iowa outfielder Michael Hermosillo as the organization’s minor league player of the month for June, while Iowa right-handed pitcher Ben Leeper was named the club’s minor league pitcher of the month.
Hermosillo, 26, hit .324 (24-for-74) with five doubles, four homers and 15 RBI in 22 games in June, and is batting .333 (29-for-87) with seven doubles, four homers and 18 RBI in 24 games for Iowa this season. The right-handed hitter is batting .419 (13-for-31) with four home runs vs. left-handed pitching, seeing time at all three outfield spots. Hermosillo collected hits in eight of nine games from June 9-17, batting .480 (12-for-25) with two homers and nine RBI during that stretch, including a season-high four RBI game, June 9 vs. Columbus. Selected in the 28th round of the 2013 draft by the Angels, Hermosillo signed a minor league contract with the Cubs on November 12, 2020. Hermosillo owns a .267 (499-for-1,867) average with 49 homers and 238 RBI in 511 career minor league games and has hit .188 (19-for-101) with one homer and six RBI in 56 career major league games with the Angels from 2018-20. Leeper, 24, went 1-0 with a 1.32 ERA (2 ER/13.2 IP), with five walks, 26 strikeouts and one save in 10 outings between Double-A Tennessee and Iowa in the month of June, holding the opponent to a .089 batting average (4-for-45) and a .285 OPS. He is 2-2 with a 1.09 ERA (3 ER/24.2 IP) and one save in 18 relief appearances this season. The righthander has held opponents to a .106 average (9-for-54) and did not allow a hit (0-for-31) in eight appearances for Tennessee before being promoted to Iowa on June 8. Leeper singed with the Cubs as a non-drafted free agent, July 21, 2020, after pitching four seasons for Oklahoma State University. The Bedford, Tex., native made his professional debut this season.
