Cubs announce Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Month |
CHICAGO – The Chicago Cubs today named Single-A South Bend outfielder Owen Caissie as the organization’s minor league player of the month for May, while Single-A Myrtle Beach right-handed pitcher Luis Devers was named the club’s minor league pitcher of the month.
Caissie, 19, hit .313 (26-for-83) with six doubles, four homers, 26 RBI, seven walks and a .910 OPS in 23 games for South Bend in May. His 26 RBI were the most among Cubs minor leaguers during the month, while his .313 average ranked third (min. 80 AB). The left-handed hitting outfielder hit safely in 14 of 16 games from May 13-31, batting .355 (22-for-62) with six doubles, three homers and 21 RBI during that stretch. He notched his first career multi-homer game and a career-high four RBI, May 20 at Wisconsin. Ranked as the Cubs’ No. 8 prospect entering the season by MLB Pipeline, the six-foot, four-inch Caissie was acquired by the Cubs from the Padres, December 29, 2020, with right-handed pitcher Zach Davies, outfielder Ismael Mena and infielders Reginald Preciado and Yeison Santana for right-handed pitcher Yu Darvish, catcher Victor Caratini and cash. Originally selected by the Padres in the second round of the 2020 Draft out of Notre Dame Catholic High School in Burlington, Ontario, Canada, Caissie has played in 93 career minor league games, totaling a .267 average (87-for-326) with 19 doubles, one triple, 11 homers, 58 RBI and 52 walks, contributing to an .804 OPS. Devers, 22, went 4-1 with a 1.48 ERA (4 ER/24.1 IP), 28 strikeouts and a 0.90 WHIP, while holding opponents to a .176 average (15-for-85) in five starts in May for Myrtle Beach. The righthander allowed three-or-fewer runs in all five starts during the month, two-or-fewer runs in four and finished the month with 15.0-straight scoreless innings in his last three starts. Devers posted a season high-tying seven strikeouts twice, May 8 at Salem and May 25 at Augusta. The six-foot, three-inch Devers owns a career 13-17 record with a 2.80 ERA (68 ER/218.1 IP) with 213 strikeouts in 53 minor league games (48 starts) in parts of five professional seasons, all with the Cubs organization. In 2021, he ranked among the Arizona Complex League leaders in ERA (2nd, 3.33), WHIP (2nd, 1.21), BAA (3rd, .245), starts (4th, 11) and innings pitched (6th, 51.1). The Samaná, D.R., native signed with the Cubs as a non-drafted free agent, July 20, 2017. Congratulations to Owen Caissie (@SBCubs OF) and Luis Devers (@Pelicanbaseball RHP), our minor league player and pitcher of the month for May! pic.twitter.com/qaX8x00eEl
