2018 Arizona Fall League Schedule Released
UPDATED 9/10
The 2018 Arizona Fall League schedule has been released. Rosters will probably be announced later this month.
The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an MLB developmental league (approximately equivalent to "AA") that operates in the Phoenix metropolitan area for six weeks after the conclusion of the MLB regular season. It was founded in 1992 (it was the "brain-child" of long-time MLB executive Roland Hemond) and has operated continuously for 27 seasons. Games are played in MLB Spring Training stadiums.
In its present format, the AFL schedule features a 30-game "regular season," plus the "Bowman Hitting Challenge" held at Sloan Park in Mesa on the Saturday at the end of the first week, an All-Star Game (formerly called the "Rising Stars Game," but now known as the "Fall Stars Game") played at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on the Saturday at the end of the fourth week, and the AFL Championship Game (pitting the winner of the East Division against the winner of the West Division) played at Scottsdale Stadium on the Saturday at the end of the sixth week. There are no games played on Sundays or on the day of the Bowman Hitting Challenge and on the day of the Fall Stars Game, but otherwise there are usually three games scheduled every day Monday through Saturday, beginning with AFL Opening Day on the second Tuesday after the conclusion of the MLB regular season and extending up through the Thursday of the sixth week.
The Cubs (as well as the other 29 MLB clubs) usually assign some of their better prospects to the Arizona Fall League, and sometimes minor leaguers who are eligible for selection in the MLB Rule 5 Draft might be sent to the AFL to give them a chance to play their way onto the MLB 40-man roster. Depending on what positions they are asked to fill on the Mesa squad, I would not be surprised to see the Cubs assign some combination of position players and pitchers such as catchers Miguel Amaya or Jhonny Pereda, C-INF P. J. Higgins, SS Aramis Ademan, INF Trent Giambrone, INF Vimael Machin, SS Zack Short, INF Jared Young, OF Eddy Julio Martinez, D. J. Wilson, and/or Zach Davis, starting pitchers Justin Steele, Adbert Alzolay, Erling Moreno, Ryan Williams, and/or Bailey Clark (SP assigned to the AFL are usually pitchers who didn't throw a whole lot of innings in the minor league regular season either because of injury, rehab, or because they spent part of the season working out of the bullpen), and relief pitchers Dakota Mekkes, Craig Brooks, Wyatt Short, Jordan Minch, Tyler Peyton, Scott Effross, and/or Brian Glowicki (Higgins, Pereda, Steele, Moreno, Williams, Brooks, Effross, and Minch are Rule 5 Draft-eligible post-2018). Cubs 2018 1st round draft pick SS Nico Hoerner was a candidate to go to the AFL post-2018 prior to suffering what appears to be a season-ending left elbow UCL injury (incurred while diving for a ball in the infield on July 15th). NOTE: Post-2018 Cubs minor league free-agents like OF Jeffrey Baez, RHP Erick Leal, RHP Daury Torrez, C-1B Taylor Davis, OF Bijan Rademacher, and CF Trey Martin can be assigned to the AFL - ONLY - if the player signs a 2019 Minor League successor contract or is added to an MLB 40-man roster.prior to becoming a free-agent. (RHP Pedro Araujo was eligible to be a minor league 6YFA post-2017, but he signed a 2018 minor league successor and was assigned to the AFL, and then after performing well in the AFL, he was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in last December's Rule 5 Draft).
Here are the current AFL eligibility rules & restrictions. NOTE: Some of the original eligibility rules & restrictions have been changed (relaxed) over the past few years...
1. There are six AFL teams, and each AFL team is affiliated with five MLB clubs. SEA & SD (Peoria Javelinas), KC & TEX (Surprise Saguaros), LAD & CHW (Glendale Desert Dogs), AZ & COL (Salt River Rafters), CUBS (Mesa Solar Sox), and SF (Scottsdale Scorpions) are the "host organizations" for the six AFL teams, but the affiliations of the other twenty MLB clubs can vary from year-to-year. NOTE: Besides the Cubs, BOS, DET, LAA, and OAK will be affiliated with the Mesa Solar Sox in 2018. (DET, HOU, OAK, and WAS were the other four MLB organizations affiliated with the Mesa Solar Sox in 2017, and BAL, CLE, MIA, and OAK were the other four MLB organizations affiliated with the Solar Sox in 2016).
2. Each MLB organization must assign a minimum of seven players under its control to its AFL affiliate (free-agents are not permitted to participate), including a minimum of four pitchers (preferably one pitcher capable of starting plus three relievers) and a minimum of three position players (specific positions needed to be filled by each organization TBD by a conference call "position draft" between the Player Development Directors of the five MLB organizations affiliated with that particular AFL team). NOTE: RHSP Adbert Alzolay, RHRP Pedro Araujo, INF David Bote, OF Charcer Burks, RHSP Alec Mills, C-1B Ian Rice, RHRP Jake Stinnett, and 3B-1B Jason Vosler were the Cubs players assigned to the Mesa Solar Sox in 2017 (RHSP Oscar de las Cruz was removed from the Mesa Solar Sox roster on 9/18 due to injury and was replaced Alzolay), and C-1B Victor Caratini, RHRP James Farris, 2B-OF Ian Happ, LF Eloy Jimenez, RHRP Ryan McNeil, RHRP Steve Perakslis, and RHSP Duane Underwood Jr were the Cubs players assigned to the Mesa Solar Sox in 2016.
3. An MLB organization can assign additional position-players to its AFL team's "Taxi Squad." Players assigned to an AFL team's "Taxi Squad" can play in no more than two games per week (it used to be Wednesday and Saturday games only, but now it's just no more than two games per week regardless of the day), but a player can be transferred from the Taxi Squad to the 35-man Active Roster to replace an injured or inactive player. NOTE: C-1B Ian Rice was assigned to the Mesa Solar Sox Taxi Squad in 2017 and he replaced David Bote on the MSS Active Roster with about two weeks left in the AFL season after Bote left the team to attend to a personal matter, and while the Cubs initially did not assign any players to the Solar Sox Taxi Squad in 2016, OF-DH Kyle Schwarber was briefly assigned to the MSS Taxi Squad 10/22-10/25 while preparing to play in the World Series.
4. A player can be selected to play in the AFL more than once, as long as the player continues to meet eligibility for selection.
5. MLB players (including players selected in a preceding Rule 5 Draft) with less than one year (1+000) MLB Service Time accrued (not including time spent on a Disabled list) as of September 1st are eligible.
6. Any player on an Advanced Class-A (A+), AA, or AAA Active Roster or Disabled List on August 15th is eligible.
7. Two players on the Active List or Disabled List of a minor league affiliate below Advanced Class-A on August 15th can be assigned to the AFL.
8. International players from the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and/or Australia are eligible only if the player is not on the reserve list of a Winter League club from the player's home country. Otherwise, there is no maximum limit on the number of international players an MLB organization can assign to its AFL team.
9. A player on the Restricted List, Military List, Disqualified List, Ineligible List, or Voluntary Retired List is not eligible to participate in the AFL.
10. A player who was on a minor league or MLB DL at the close of the regular season is eligible to play in the AFL as long as the player has been reinstated, but there can be no special limits or restrictions placed on the player's playing time (other than the automatic restrictions imposed on a player assigned to an AFL team's "Taxi Squad").
11. A player cannot be assigned to the AFL on an Article XIX-C Minor League Injury Rehabilitation Assignment by a club participating in an MLB post-season series (LDS, LCS, and World Series). NOTE: OF-DH Kyle Schwarber was added to the 2016 Mesa Solar Sox Taxi Squad on 10/22 after being reinstated from the Cubs MLB 60-day DL (so it was NOT considered a "rehab assignment"), and he played in two AFL games before re-joining the Cubs for the World Series on 10/25.
12. Players assigned to the AFL do not accrue MLB or minor league service time, each player receives the same salary, and the salaries are paid out of a special fund managed by MLB.
13. Only players who are under control of an MLB organization are eligible to play in the AFL. A free-agent (unsigned player) is not eligible to play in the AFL.
Each MLB organization provides either the manager, a pitching coach, or a hitting coach to its affiliated AFL club (assignments rotate every year). The Cubs are responsible for providing one of the hitting coaches to their affiliated AFL club in 2018. NOTE: AA Tennessee Hitting Coach Jesus Feliciano will serve as a hitting coach for the Mesa Solar Sox in 2018.
CUBS ASSIGNED TO 2018 MESA SOLAR SOX (updated 9-10-2018)
Bailey Clark, RHP
Trent Giambrone, IF-OF (taxi squad)
P. J. Higgins, C-1B-3B
Nico Hoerner, SS
Erick Leal, RHP
Jhonny Pereda, C (taxi squad)
Manuel Rondon, LHP
Justin Steele, LHP
D. J. Wilson, CF
Jesus Feliciano (Hitting Coach)
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