Austyn Willis

D. J. Wilson drilled an RBI triple, walked, stole a base, and scored two runs, Roberto Caro ripped a triple and an RBI single and scored a run, Robert Garcia collected three hits, stole a base, scored a run, and drove-in another, Carlos Sepulveda singled twice, walked, and collected two RBI, and Eric Jokisch and Austyn Willis combined to toss a shutout, as the AZL Cubs blanked the AZL Athletics 6-0 in Arizona League action Saturday night on Field #4 at the Lew Wolff Training Complex at Fitch Park in Mesa, AZ. 

P. J. Higgins (Cubs 2015 12th round draft pick - Old Dominion U.) drilled three singles, drove-in two runs, stole a base, and scored twice, leading the AZL Cubs to a 7-3 victory over the AZL Giants in Arizona League action Sunday night at Indian School Park Field #2 in Scottsdale, AZ.

Javy Baez doubled, singled, walked, reached base on an HBP, and scored two runs, Roberrt Garcia singled twice, walked twice, stole a base, scored two runs, and drove-in another, Carlos Sepulveda knocked-in four runs with a pair of two-run singles, and RHSP Austyn Willis hurled five innings of two-hit shutout ball and combined with three relievers to toss a five-hit shutout with eleven strikeouts, as the AZL Cubs whitewashed the AZL Brewers 11-0 in Arizona League action Saturday night at Maryvale Baseball Park in Phoenix, AZ. 

Baez (on AAA Iowa 7-day DL - broken left ring finger) continued his AZL Cubs rehab, serving as the DH and batting five times: 

Robert Garcia (two singles, a double, and a home run) reached base four times, scored three runs, and drove-in three more, Wladimir Galindo and Joey Martarano collected three hits a piece and drove-in three runs between them (Martarano with a sharply-hit opposite-field RBI ground single to right through the 3.5 hole in the top of the 1st inning to get things started, and Galindo with a line-drive two-run single drilled to center to cap a five-run 3rd), and 13 of the first 15 Cubs batters reached base (although two were thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double and another was CS), helping the AZL Cubs take an 8-4 lead through three innings en route to a 10-4 victory over the AZL Athletics in Arizona League action last night at Fitch Park Field #4 in Mesa, AZ. 

Wladimir Galindo reached base four times (two singles, a walk, and a HBP), scored two runs, and drove-in two more and Robert Garcia singled twice, doubled, scored two runs, and drove-in four, as the AZL Cubs drubbed the AZL Giants 11-4 in Arizona League action last night on Field #2 at Indian School Park. 

The start of the game was delayed for about 45 minutes while a haboob (desert dust storm) roared through Scottsdale with winds gusting up to 50 MPH.

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The Cubs and Giants players and coaches scrambled to get inside the clubhouse as the wall of dust approached, but it looked a lot scarier than it really was. The umpires apparently hadn't been told about it, because they came out of their room and walked onto the field, except nobody was there. They looked at each other as if to say, "Are we at the right park?" 

RHSP Jonathan Perrin (Milwaukee Brewers 2015 27th round draft pick - Oklahoma State) tossed three innings of perfect baseball and combined with three relievers to hurl a six-hit shutout, and Tyrone Perry (Milwaukee Brewers 2015 14th round draft pick - Lakeland Senior HS - Lakeland, FL) drilled an RBI single, doubled, and walked and scored, as the AZL Brewers blanked the AZL Cubs 4-0 in AZL Opening Day action Saturday evening at Sloan Park in Mesa, AZ.

Robert Garcia slugged a solo HR and RHSP Austyn Willis hurled four innings of shutout ball for the Cubs, and RHSP Chris Johnson tossed four innings of one-hit shutout ball for the Giants, as the Cubs & Giants played to a 1-1 tie on Field #6, and 1B Nick Jones belted an RBI double and singled twice and Byron Murray drilled an RBI double, walked twice, and scored two runs, leading the Giants to a 9-3 victory over the Cubs on Field #5, in a Cactus League Extended Spring Training split-squad doubleheader played this morning at Mesa CubTown at Riverview Park.

Frandy de la Rosa slugged a two-run HR for the Cubs in a losing cause on Field #5.

The game on Field #5 was called after eight innings of play, and the game on Field #6 was called after seven innings.

Chris Denorfia (on Cubs MLB 15-day DL - hamstring strain) played LF for four innings and batted four times for the Cubs squad on Field #6. He walked on a 3-1 pitch his first time up, struck out swinging on three pitches in his second Plate Appearance, lined a double into the LF corner on a 3-0 pitch his third time up, and flied out to right in his fourth and final AB.

Shawon Dunston Jr (on Myrtle Beach 7-day DL - right shoulder injury) saw his first game action in more than a month, serving as a DH for the Cubs on Field #6. He went 0-3, striking out twice (both times swinging) and grounding back to the pitcher 1-3.

Prior to the Cactus League EXST doubleheader, RHP Marcelo Carreno (post-2013 shoulder surgery) and RHP Jesus Castillo squared-off in a two-inning "sim" game on Field #3.

In EXST Cubs medical news, RHP Yomar Morel has been diagnosed with a torn elbow UCL, and will be undergoing Tommy John Surgery next week. The 21-year old Morel will be the third Cub minor leaguer to undergo TJS this season, the other two being catcher Will Remillard (in March) and RHP Jose Rosario (in April).  

Here are the abridged box scores from today's two Cactus League EXST games (Cubs players only):

It wasn't a Cactus League Extended Spring Training game, but the Cubs did play an intrasquad game this morning on Field #6 at Mesa CubTown at Riverview Park.

Some of you may notice that when there is an EXST intrasquad game or a Cactus League EXST split squad doubleheader, that (with the exception of the pitchers and catchers, who move back & forth between the squads) one squad (Squad "A") is essentially the proto-Euguene Emeralds, and the other one (Squad "B") is essentially the proto-AZL Cubs. The squad rosters change slightly every now & then, but what you see now is probably pretty close to what will likely be the case next month when the two teams are officially separated.

Three position players assigned to Squad "B" -- 3B-1B Wladimir Galindo (left wrist injury),  IF-OF Carlos Jimenez (left elbow injury from HBP yesterday), and 1B-C Miguel Rico (left knee injury) -- are out indefinitely, so the AZL Cubs may have to "run short" for a while at the start of the AZL season. (Rico is being converted to catcher, but also plays 1st base).

RHP Barret Loux (on Iowa Cubs 7-day DL with a right triceps strain) made his first game appearance in a month, getting the start for Squad "B" in the intrasquad game. While he did throw 3.2 IP (44 pitches) and allowed no runs, he also surrendered five hits (and a walk), struck out only one, and his fastball velocity topped out at 86 MPH.

The 26-year old Loux was the 1st round draft pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2010, but then was declared a free-agent by MLB after the D'backs reduced their original bonus offer after a post-draft physical showed a pre-existing shoulder problem. (The Loux Case was one of the factors that led to draft slotting in the 2012 CBA).

So Loux signed with the Texas Rangers in November 2010 after being declared a free-agent, and then was traded to the Cubs as the PTBNL in the Geovany Soto deal post-2012. He made it through the 2011-13 seasons OK, but then he had shoulder surgery post-2013 and TJS at the start of last season, so he has been through the sports medicine wars over the past couple of years. He made a fairly rapid recovery from the 2014 TJS, however, and actually was a member of the Iowa Cubs starting rotation at the begining of the 2015 season, before being shut-down last month.

18-year old RHP Austyn Willis (Cubs 2014 18th round draft pick - Barstow HS - Barstow, CA) started the intraquad game for Squad "A", and had a lot of difficulty throwing strikes in his three innings of work (61 pitches - only 28 strikes). For a guy who is 6'6, Willis does not throw especially hard (his fastball tops out at 89 MPH), but he usually is able to spot his fastball effectively and throw all of his pitches (including his curve and change-up) for strikes, with the stamina to throw multiple innings. At 6'6 205, Willis has the size & frame scouts call "projectable," because it is presumed that he will add velocity as he matures and fills-out. Along with Carson Sands, Justin Steele, Jose Paulino, and Oscar de la Cruz, Willis is being primed to be one of the rotation starters at Eugene when the Northwest League season commences next month.  

6'7 RHRP Scott Frazier (Cubs 2013 6th round draft pick - Pepperdine) threw an inning in the game (12 pitches - 7 strikes) and retired the side uneventfully (4-3, BB, 4-6 FC, K), although the Squad "A" lineup was adjusted so that he only had to face left-handed hitters (something the Cubs can't do in a Cactus League EXST game). His fastball velocity usually sits at 95-97 MPH and has touched 98-99 previously this Spring, but he apparently has dialed it down a bit, because he threw only 96 (max) today, working mostly at 94-95.

Boise State's Joey Martarano saw his first game action of 2015, serving as a DH for Squad "B." He was hitless in four plate appearances, but he did reach base on an HBP and scored a run his first time up. He ran through a "stop sign" as he rounded third and headed home, but when you've got a 6'4 235 D-1 college linebacker coming through, you just have to get out of the way and let him roll. I half-expected him to tackle the catcher at home plate, but he did not. Martarano projects to be the first-baseman and sometimes DH for the AZL Cubs once the AZL season starts next month.

Here is the abridged box score from today's intrasquad game: 

Alberto Mineo (two-run single, RBI triple, and a walk) and Tyler Pearson (two walks and a double) reached base three times a piece for the Cubs, and Gilbert Lara (RBI triple), David Denson (RBI double), and Yerald Martinez (RBI double) stroked run-scoring extra-base hits in a three-run fourth, CF Joantgel Segovia drilled three singles, stole two bases, drove-in two runs, and threw out a runner on the bases, and RHP J. B. Kole threw five innings of two-hit ball for the Brewers, as the Cubs rallied for two runs in the top of the 9th and played the Brewers to a 6-6 tie in Cactus League Extended Spring Training action this morning on Field #7 (AKA "Paul Molitor Field") at Maryvale Baseball Park in Phoenix, AZ.  

Before Kole entered the game, the Cubs scored two runs on four hits in the top of the 1st inning off 6'9 RHP Johnny Hellweg, who is on the Brewers MLB 60-day DL while rehabbing from 2014 Tommy John Surgery.  

RHP Austyn Willis got the start for the Cubs and retired nine of the first ten men he faced on just 27 pitches, before running into trouble in the fourth when the Brew Crew plated three runs on a single, the Lara triple, and the Denson and Martinez doubles.

RHRP Corbin Hoffner worked the 8th and the 9th for the Cubs and did not allow a run, retiring six of the seven men he faced (three strikeouts and three ground outs) to preserve the tie. His new extreme sidearm (almost submarine) delivery coupled with lots of off-speed stuff (AKA "junk") really kept the Brewers hitters off-stride.

In EXST Cubs roster news, RHRPs Brad Markey and Daniel Lewis have been moved up to Lo-A South Bend, replacing RHPs James Norwood and Jake Stinnett, who were placed on the SB 7-day DL.  

The 23-year old Markey was the Cubs 2014 19th round draft pick out of Virginia Tech, and he worked in 15 games (combined) out of the AZL Cubs and Boise bullpens after signing in June. He was left behind at Extended Spring Training despite spending much of Minor League Camp with the Hi-A Myrtle Beach squad, but he has pitched very well at EXST, and it was just a matter of time before he got his Letter of Transit out of Casablanca.  

Although Daniel Lewis is 24, he has only been pitching for a year. He enlisted in the U. S. Air Force after finishing high school, and enrolled in Pensacola JC after being discharged in 2013. The Cubs signed him as a Non-Drafted Free Agent (NDFA) in July 2014 after scouting him in the Cape Cod League (probably the top collegiate summer league), and he appeared in eight games out of the Boise bullpen after signing. He attended AZ Instructs post-2014 but he did not pitch well there. Lewis features a high-octane 94-MPH fastball, but his command is spotty and his secondary pitches are raw. 

BRAD MARKEY - 2015 CACTUS LEAGUE EXTENDED SPRING TRAINING GAMES 
1. 4/17: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R (1 ER), 0 BB, 0 K, 1/2 GO/FO, 18 pitches (11 strikes)
2. 4/21: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R (1 ER), 0 BB, 0 K, 2/1 GO/FO, 15 pitches (10 strikes)
3. 4/24: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 1/3 GO/FO, 30 pitches (18 strikes)
4. 4/29: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 PO, 3/1 GO/FO, 24 pitches (16 strikes)
5. 5/5: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 B, 0 K, 3/3 GO/FO, 17 pitches (13 strikes)
6. 5/9: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, 2/1 GO/FO, 23 pitches (16 strikes)
TOTAL: 10.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R (2 ER), 1 BB, 6 K, 1 PO, 12/11 GO/FO, 66% strikes, 1.80 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, .172 OppBA

DANIEL LEWIS  - 2015 CACTUS LEAGUE EXTENDED SPRING TRAINING GAMES 
1. 4/17: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HBP, 1/2 GO/FO, 17 pitches (8 strikes)
2. 4/20: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 2/2 GO/FO, 23 pitches (14 strikes)
3. 4/24: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 2/0 GO/FO, 18 pitches (11 strikes)
4. 4/28: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R (1 ER),  0 BB, 0 K, 1 WP, 5/1 GO/FO, 20 pitches (15 strikes)
5. 5/1: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 R (2 ER), 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HR, 0/3 GO/FO, 17 pitches (9 strikes)
6. 5/5: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 1/0 GO/FO, 18 pitches (12 strikes)
7. 5/8: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 2 R (1 ER), 4 BB, 1 K, 2 GIDP, 2/1 GO/FO, 44 pitches (19 strikes)
8. 5/13: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 0 K, 2 WP, 4/2 GO/FO, 36 pitches (19 strikes)
TOTAL: 12.0 IP, 6 H, 6 R (5 ER), 9 BB, 6 K, 1 HR, 3 WP, 2 GIDP, 17/11 GO/FO, 56% strikes, 3.75 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, .150 OppBA     

Here is the abridged box score from today's game (Cubs players only): 

Nick Jones (ex-LHP) belted a two-run home run and Jordan Johnson and four relievers combined to toss a four-hitter, helping the Giants defeat the Cubs 4-1 on Field #6, and Bryant Flete doubled, singled, and scored a run, and five Cub relievers combined to hurl five innings of perfect baseball, as the Cubs and Giants played to a 2-2 tie on Field #5, in Cactus League Extended Spring Training split squad doubleheader action this morning at Mesa CubTown at Riverview Park.

The game on Field #5 was called after seven innings with the score tied, and the game on Field #6 was called after 7-1/2 innings.   

Kevonte Mitchell tripled, singled, stole a base, and scored the lone Cub run on Field #6.

18-year old 6'6 RHP Austyn Willis (Cubs 2014 18th round draft pick - Barstow HS - Barstow, CA) got the start on Field #6 and threw three innings of one-hit shutout ball with four strikeouts, retiring Travis Ishikawa (on the Giants MLB 15-day DL with a lower back strain) three times (4-3 GO, K-swinging, and F-8 fly out). Willis has started three Cactus League EXST games, allowing one run on four hits (including a solo HR) and a walk with nine strikeouts in seven innings of work. He will very likely be in the Eugene starting rotation when the Northwest League season commences next month.  

RHRP Justin Grimm (on the Cubs MLB 15-day DL with a forearm strain retroactive to April 2nd) worked the top of the 4th inning on Field #6 and was dominating, striking out the side on 12 pitches. He looks to be in mid-season form. 

The Giants are unusual because they have two ex-LHP at Extended Spring Training being converted to position players (usually it's the other way around). Besides 6'6 first-baseman Nick Jones (who belted a tape measure two-run HR over the RF fence that provided the winning margin for the Giants on Field #6 this morning), outfielder Steven Neff drilled three hits (a single, a double, and a triple) in a game against the Cubs earlier this week in Scottsdale. 

Here is the abridged box score from today's games (Cubs players only):