Northside Soundtrack

From Myrtle Beach to Wrigley Field

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

FRV vs wRC+ (Qualified OFs)

Observations:

- Truly All-Time Szn from PCA
- Cubs pretty easily have the best all-around OF in baseball (BOS probably follows)
- Seiya Suzuki quietly having a monster contract year
- Rest of NL Central hates OF defense

[MLB's Arizona Fall League @MLBazFallLeague]

Useche to the berm!

@cubs prospect Miguel Useche cuts into Scottsdale’s lead with a two-run shot in the bottom of the 5th! Useche had 19 in 2026.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

Owen Ayers was arguably the premiere breakout hitter in all of Minor League baseball.

From a 19th Rd draft pick in 2024 to climbing 3 levels in one season, and being the best hitter in AA by wRC+!

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

Unsure what’s being used to here to denote a top 15 bullpen, but the Cubs have been top 15 in RP ERA 6/8 seasons since 2019. (‘21/‘22 were bottom 15).

Not one time in which they were t15 in ERA were they t15 in RP fWAR. Would say that’s more of a compliment to Hottovy’s job. 🤷‍♂️

[Wrigley Pipeline @WrigleyPipeline]

#Cubs notable pitching statistics since Tommy Hottovy took over as the pitching coach

- Cubs have never finished Top 10 in the league in strikeouts.

- Early on, the pitching staff had strikeout rates near or above 9.0, recent years have been in the 7s to low 8s.

- The bullpen hasn’t been ranked as a “top 15 bullpen” since his first season in 2019.

- 2026 was one of his worst seasons (injuries were a huge problem, but then again previous years have seen the same issues) ranking near or at the bottom of every pitching stat.

This season, the main problems were injuries and not the right guys on the staff. Hoyer should really focus on bringing in power arms & ground ball guys to fix the lack of velocity and ground-ball rates.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

At just 19 years old, Josiah Hartshorn had one of the very best hit / power seasons of anyone in High-A.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

First AFL XBH for Juan Cabada last night, and it came on an absolute rocket 109 mph EV down the RF line.

He’s definitely being challenged with older competition, but it’s been fun to see him battle.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

@Brett_A_Taylor @PastTheEyeTest

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

The Cubs may really have something with Jhon Cabral. Another insane AFL outing last night.

2 batters faced - 2 Ks
12 pitches
9 Strikes (All Swinging)
5 Whiffs

Fastball up to 100
Crazy sharp slider
Upper 80s cutter (117 Stuff+)

Excellent graphic from @PastTheEyeTest’s site!

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

@PastTheEyeTest Ah, that makes a ton of sense, thanks! I was a bit weary from those plot locations (really couldn’t see anything in the video), and I had not seen a cutter out of him in his brief stint in Low-A this year.

Appreciate the tip, will utilize that moving forward! Love your site 🤝

[Francys Romero @FrancysRomero]

Sources: The Chicago Cubs have named Steve Miller their new VP, overseeing the International Scouting department.

Miller comes over after serving as the Rays’ Director of International Scouting since 2019, where he played a key role in several notable international signings.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

Jared Banner masterclass

[Todd ⚾️🐻🦌 @CubsCentral08]

The Weekly - A Light Week for a Change, but Reid, Kepley, and Martinez Make Some Buzz https://t.co/7Fch6lIRVP

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

His first stint in pro ball (after nearly 1.5 years without playing) didn’t yield overly impressive numbers on the surface, but underneath the hood it was pretty great.

16.5% Whiff
88.4% Z-Con
105.1 mph EV90
24% Barrel%

A chance to be a true 50-55+ tools across the board.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

His first stint in pro ball (after nearly 1.5 years without playing) didn’t yield overly impressive numbers on the surface, but underneath the hood it was pretty great.

16.5% Whiff
88.4% Z-Con
105.1 mph EV90
24% Barrel%

A chance to be a true 50-55+ tools across the board.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

Ethan Conrad. Crazy power

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

For reference, he went from 17th %tile bat speed to 10th %tile. It’s not like he had much room to give in that department to begin with.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

Michael Busch lost almost a full mph of bat speed from 2025-2026 (69.6 mph - 68.7 mph) and in turn he saw the 3rd highest drop in barrel% among qualified MLB hitters. (-8.0% 17.1% - 9.1%).

A little nervous on how his profile progresses if this trend isn’t bucked.

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

Something so simple yet so effective that the Guardians nailed at the deadline was diversifying their lineup with very different hitters than they normally present

Jo Adell and Nathaniel Lowe:
- Above avg bat speed / barrel rate

Rest of Guards lineup:
- Super contact-oriented

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

@EricCrossMLB Payne has a long ways to go before he’s in the realm of call up territory, let alone the guys who he’s got to theoretically leap to get MLB PAs, in terms of 2027, imo.

[Baseball America @BaseballAmerica]

Astros righty Juan Bello is a whiff machine 😮‍💨

The 22-year-old prospect threw three scoreless innings in his Arizona Fall League debut, striking out four and inducing a 50% whiff rate on 16 swings.

For more AFL pitching standouts:
https://t.co/6y5WS1eL2B

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

@natebbstats Yes

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

Ethan Conrad. Crazy power

[Northside Soundtrack @CHC_DataDrive]

@Brett_A_Taylor I’m probably the high guy on him, but despite thinking it over and over and taking into account the injury, I can’t put anybody but Hartshorn over him when it comes to ranking the system. (That can change if injuries persist), but it’s way too good of a hit/power profile for me.