With the offseason in full swing, players and prospects coming and going, it’s time to start putting together Cubs’ Top 10 Prospects. With the graduation of Soto and Samardzija, the trades of Gallagher, Josh Donaldson, Jose Ceda along with the Rule V draft plucking of Donny Veal, the Cubs have several new names on the list. Still the number one prospect is the same…

1. Josh Vitters 3B, 6′3 210lbs Boise SS-A-19 years old

Vitters has started to show the skills why the Cubs took him as the third overall pick. After starting his season in Peoria, Josh hit well in his first few games before injuring his left wrist during the first week and struggled. He was sent back to Mesa to rehab and work in extended spring ball. Vitters was named to the Boise Hawks roster which started midseason, and he hit very well in the league (259AB .328/.365/.498/.863). Defensively, Vitters will stay at 3B as long as the organization can keep him there as he has all the skills to be an average big league third baseman. His bat will be ready for the show before his glove though and that could cause him to switch to first base or a corner outfield position just in time for some older veteran contracts expire. Vitters’ looks to start the 2009 season in Low A Peoria and could work his way up to AA Tennessee if he plays up to his potential. If everything stays on track, Vitters could be playing for a big league starting role in 2011.

2. Andrew Cashner RHP, 6′6 185lbs Daytona A+ 21 years old

The 2008 first round draft pick doesn’t knock out Vitters as the teams top prospect, but Cashner is expected to be a big contributor in the near future. Andrew signed a few weeks for slightly above slot money at 1.54 million, he reported to Arizona where he worked on refining his delivery and was assigned to the Rookie League. In his first professional game (and only in Arizona) he started, going one inning, striking out the first batter he faced looking at a nasty breaking slider and the last hitter swinging on a 96 mph high fastball. Then he went to Boise and finished the season in Daytona yet was very erratic with his control and was lite up. No matter what though, Cashner will be invited to Spring Training 2009 due to a stipulation in his contract. If he wows Piniella enough, Andrew could be considered for a quick answer in the bullpen. Most likely though the pen has enough arms and he’ll start the 2009 season in Tennessee and be an injury callup or at least a September callup.

3. Wellington Castillo C, 6′1 205lbs Iowa AAA 21 years old

The Cubs have had a significant lack of catching prospects in their system over the past decade or two but all that’s in the process of changing. Soto has emerged as a bonafide star with his glove and his bat. The Cubs have another star catching prospect on the rise in the very young Welington Castillo. In 2006, Castillo suffered a knee injury that needed surgery and cost him his entire season. Last year, he rebounded and played the entire season behind the plate and showed off a little leather plus a very strong accurate arm. Castillo is on the fast track as he finished the season in AAA after tearing up AA with his bat, Weligton also shared time in the AAA playoffs with veteran catcher Tony Ritchie. Welington’s bat is advanced and could be ready for the show next year especially if he shows more defensive blocking skills of pitchers with hard breaking offspeed pitches. Castillo should start the season in AAA but most likely will split time defensively with Koyie Hill, while still playing everyday as a DH/1B on his days off due to his bat. Even still, I don’t expect to see Welington up in the majors til September at that due to Hill’s presence.

4. Jay Jackson, RHP, 6′1 200lbs, High A Daytona

If Jose Ceda wasn’t traded to the Marlins for Kevin Gregg, he’d be nicely here and have the quickest MLB impact of any Cub prospect. Instead Hendry traded him for an experienced pitcher with established consistent stuff in Gregg, in place for a much younger pitcher who has the ability and potential to be a dominant setup man or closer for an MLB club for the next 10 years. Instead of Ceda, the Cubs’ next best pitching prospect, is Jay Jackson the 2008 9th round draft pick. He started the year off in Boise and was extremely impressive before getting an early promotion to Peoria where he was as equally as dominanting in SS-A. Jay finished the season in Daytona mainly as a starter and was still equalizing his opponents. His total season stat plus playoffs was 13G/5GS going 53 IP, 41 H, 14 BB, 78 K, 2.72 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, .216 BAA. Jackson has a decent fastball that has some life and sits around 90-92 mph in the pen that tops at 94 mph. His best pitch is a great dropping slider that moves across the plate. Beyond that he still has a change and curveball that he’s still working on which could both turn into average MLB pitches. His natural athleticism along with his smooth delivery and mechanics should lessen the burden on his shoulder in the long haul. Outside of minor mechanic alterations to make his deliveries more consistent, he seems streamlined to be one of the Cubs better starting arms in the future. Jackson will start the 2009 season in Daytona and if he impresses by midseason, he could be pitching in AA by season’s end. In future, Jay has alot of scouts split on his future ability, as most scouts see him as a future pen arm in the next year or so while a few advanced scouts think Jackson could fight for a rotation spot in 2011 or 2012 if his development goes proper.

5. Ryan Flaherty SS 6′3 210lbs Short Season A Boise

Ryan was drafted this year in the 1st supplemental round thanks to the Brewers signing Jason Kendall. Without question, Ryan Flaherty is one of the more developed well rounded college players the Cubs have drafted in quite a while. He’s got a smooth lefthanded swing that aids in his plus contact ability but it’s definitely not power orientated. His longballs will come but more in the sense of liners, hardhit double, and pitcher mistakes up in the zone. Not lacking either is his skill in working counts, leading to walks but also a high number of strikeouts. This year in Short Season Boise, he hit .297/.369/.511/.880 in 219 at bat with 19 doubles, 2 triples, 8 homeruns, 24 walks, and 51 strikeouts. Defensively, he has a strong arm at short with soft hands. Too bad his range is meant for a 2B or 3B, as at SS he’s lacking with his footwork. The organization could go in two different routes with Ryan since his bat is pretty developed but needs work to stay a shortstop in higher levels. For one, he could start in High A Daytona as the starting second baseman OR he could start the season in Low A Peoria working on his footwork as the starting shortstop. Flaherty could push a big league callup in late 2011 yet is more likely not to be a contributor to the big league roster until 2012.

6. Hak Ju Lee SS 6′2 180lbs Instructional League

The Cubs big splash on the international signing front came in signing the 17 year old South Korean shortstop to .525 million. The left-handed hitting Hak Ju has a nice level swing with very little loft. He uses the entire field while hitting alot of line drives and grounders enabling one of his best assets, his speed. On a scouting scale, Lee’s speed is a 80 on a 20-80 scale, he runs a 3.9 from home to first, making him exceptionally fast. In the field, he’s quite nimble with his feet covering great lateral ground while featuring a strong arm and good hands. Beyond his pure athleticism, Lee is very raw offensively and will need time to adjust to professional ball. Still the Cubs scouting department sees Lee as a future tablesetter and starting shortstop if his development goes as planned, as you can’t teach speed like that. Lee will likely start the 2009 season still working on some refinements at the Mesa Complex but could see some action in the Arizona Rookie League. The time frame for Lee to reach the MLB is 2013 or 2014, so he’s got awhile to develop and season.

7. Mitch Atkins RHP 6′3 225lbs AAA Iowa

The now 23 year old Atkins was the Cubs’ pitcher of the year in 2008 going 17-7 between AA and AAA. Mitch was drafted in the 7th round of the 2004 draft out of high school. Basically, he’s gone through the system unnoticed because he’s not a strikeout artist and doesn’t make alot of noise. Instead, Atkins mixes his lively 90-92 fastball, with a good curve and changeup while spotting them effectively. Mitch is a gamer, he has a knack for pitching out of jams, and getting hitters to beat themselves. This season, Mitch went 167 2/3 IP in 29 starts, giving up 155 H, 50 BB, 132 K with a total line of 3.91 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, .244 BAA. Because of Mitch’s lower K rate and tendency to let hitters work themselves into problems, he’s pegged as a #4/5 starter or longman in the MLB. With the Cubs having Harden in the rotation and not much starting pitching depth, Mitch has a good chance at breaking into the majors this season for a few starts or as a mopup man. He has even a better chance in 2010 at joining the rotation or starting in an extended relief role.

8. Esmailan Caridad 5′11 185lbs AA Tennessee

Caridad was one of the Cubs’ few international signings from 2007, coming over from Japan as a 24 year old. Esmailan has very deceptive secondary pitches, a curve and change, which both grade as plus pitches. He often uses his 88-91 mph fastball to setup his secondary stuff that he seems more comfortable with throwing. Caridad, like Atkins is a gamer, he has no problem challenging hitters or throwing them inside. Esmailan is also a very intelligent pitcher who works his spots.   With a little more seasoning, Esmailan could appear in the big leagues this September or as an injury replacement but should definitely challenge for a pen role in 2010, where I think he fits more long term anyway.  For more on Esmailan read my scouting report on him from two months ago.

9. Tyler Colvin OF 6′3 190lbs AA Tennessee

Colvin, the Cubs 13th pick overall in 2006 came close to falling off the Top 10 chart but I gave him the benefit of the doubt, as he had Tommy John surgery midway throw the Arizona Fall League. Tyler had been fighting elbow problems before the 2008 season and even more so during, yet he still went ahead and played through the pain. Colvin is as hardnosed as they come, if something is wrong with him physically, no one would notice due to his grin and bear it attitude. Still offensively, the injury took it’s toll on him with a line .257/.313/.425/.738 in 541 at bats. Taking the obvious lumps were his contact and power, which hampered his usual 5-tool showing and the reason our scouting director Wilken took him so high. Colvin’s saving grace for his slugging were the 11 triples he acquired with his gap power and great speed. Defensively, he covers good ground and has a plus arm but is definitely not a centerfielder, yet still could play rightfield adequately. With surgery, he’ll miss spring training but should be ready to start the 2009 season with one of the farm clubs. Odds are that Colvin starts the year in warm weathered Florida with High A Daytona as a DH and ends the year off in AA or if he’s hitting then AAA. Worst case and most likely, Colvin is trade fodder for a midseason upgrade either in the field or on the mound.

10. Dae-Eun Rhee, LHP 6′2 190lbs Low A Peoria

Rhee was the Cubs’ 2007 South Korean find and top signing before his Tommy John surgery halfway through his first professional seaso. The 19 year old Rhee features three plus pitches when he’s healthy with plus command and movement. Dae Eun’s fastball is around 88-92 mph with strong sinking action. His additional secondary features a slow breaking curveball while his equalizer is his changeup that basically mimics a splitter due to it’s dramatic drop. When Rhee isn’t striking out hitters, he’s forcing them to hit the ball on the ground and get themselves out. The young Rhee posted strong numbers in Peoria before his injury, in 10 GS, he went 40 1/3, giving up 28 H, 16 BB, 33 K, with a line of 1.80ERA/1.04WHIP/.194BAA. If it wasn’t for his injury and subsequent surgery, Rhee would have ranked at the 4th best prospect in the system. With his surgery, Rhee is likely to miss the entire 2009 season yet could see some late season reliever action just to get his feet wet. When he fully recovers in 2010, he’ll likely start in Peoria again but could finish the season in AA Tennesee due to his plus command.

If one didn’t notice my Top 10 was based upon highside potential of the prospect. Of the prospects missing the list but were in the Top 20: (in no particular order) Starlin Castro, SS; Junior Lake, 2B; Dan McDaniel, RHP; Jeff Stevens, RHP; Nate Spears, 2B/SS; Randy Wells, RHP; Larry Suarez, LHP; Chris Carpenter, RHP; Joven Rosa, 1B/DH; Aaron Schafer, RHP. The system is noticeably very weak across the board with the most talent coming as relievers or as utility players, as the current trend runs.