The Forgotten Cub

As the Cubs get ready to expand their roster from a 25-man to a 40-man squad, all eyes are on top prospect Javier Baez, and his expected return to the bigs. Baez is a one-of-a-kind, flashy infielder with an exceptionally high baseball IQ and a swing stronger than Samson's. While I certainly am excited to see Baez make his return, and hopefully see him stay on the big league roster in the coming years, meanwhile blossoming in to an above average second baseman, I can't help but think about another highly-touted young prospect in the Cubs' system.

Here's a quote from a 2014 ESPN the Mag piece, written by Tim Keown:
"Scouting/player development VP Jason McLeod dubbed [Javier] Baez, [Kris] Bryant, [Albert] Almora and [Jorge] Soler the Core Four. If even three of them come close to fulfilling their potential, they'll represent a homegrown Cubs trio unseen since the days of Banks, Williams and Santo. Analysts who project prospects for a living rank the Core Four among baseball's top 30, with Baez and Bryant in the top 15."

Baez call-up soon? Check. Bryant tearing-up big league pitching and hitting walk-off bombs? Check. Soler hitting whistling bottle rockets in to the gap and throwing out anyone that dares to test the rocket attached to his arm? Check.

But who's the other guy? Why haven't we seen or talked about Albert Almora, much less thought about him since last spring? After all, entering 2014, he was Baseball America's #36th ranked prospect in the world. He was selected 6th overall in the 2012 MLB Draft. What's the deal?

Well, take in to account that when that piece was written, neither Addison Russell nor Kyle Schwarber were in the Cubs' organization yet. Russell was still in the A's organization and Schwarber was preparing for his junior season at Indiana University-Bloomington. Since then, both players have joined the Cubs' big league roster, and thrived, meanwhile becoming fan favorites. It kind of feels like those two have slid in to the "Core Four," with Baez and Almora sliding out. If you took a poll of every Cubs fan at a sell-out game at Wrigley, and asked them who is in the Cubs "Core Four," chances are you would get some mix of Bryant, Soler, Rizzo, Schwarber and Russell.

Almora has had his share of struggles, which many have noticed on the field. Last season, he batted a dismal .234 in 36 games with the AA Tennesse Smokies, where he started the 2014 season. His 2015 season got off to a cold start. On August 4, he was hitting just .237. Almora has been forgotten by Cubs' fans, and many others have already given up on him, calling him a "bust," or simply, "trade bait." Memories of Josh Vitters, Felix Pie, and Brett Jackson are in the back of fans' minds, and many think Almora will be an addition to that list.

While many have taken notice of his struggles on the field, not many are aware of the struggles in his personal life. His father, Albert Almora Sr., has been battling prostate cancer since 2014. This kind of a distraction might explain some of the struggles at the plate that Almora has experienced since raking .347 in the rookie league in 2012 and .329 in high A Kane County in 2013.

The next counter-argument that one might have is that his dwindling numbers in 2014 and most of 2015 suggest that he cannot battle adversity or that he isn't mentally tough enough. That's rubbish. Keep in mind that Almora is only 21 years-old. He's the same age as me! As someone that is also in my early 20s, I can say that a lot of us young adults don't know how to handle adversity. That is something that college prepares you for. It offers you a time to make mistakes and have some experience dealing with the crap life throws at you sometimes. So shouldn't young kids in MLB farm systems be granted the same amount of grace? At least until they "graduate" and turn 23? I say yes.

While Almora has made his share of mistakes at the plate, rarely does he ever make mistakes in the outfield, something that can't be said about some of the current Cubs' outfielders (not naming any names...). I recently had my eyes pop open while watching ESPN's SportsNation (a sentence I never thought I'd write) when the show featured an incredible catch he recently made. Shortly after, I looked up the clip on YouTube and it took me a solid ten minutes for me to find the catch. Why? Because he has treasure chest of web gems on YouTube. Like....

And finally, the catch I was looking for:

Even in the midst of all the hardship surrounding him and his family, Almora has shown a grittiness that doesn't come along very often. That can't be taught. Look at how hard he plays: willing to sacrifice his body and make Mickey Mantle-like catches in the outfield. Look at the range that he has, not to mention his baseball IQ. Can you name a better defensive outfielder anywhere in the Cubs' organization?

Critics will then say "he's not a hitter." I beg to differ. In an August 21 game, Almora stepped up to bat in the 12th inning, with the game tied 6-6. Watch what happens.

And what happened in a game tied 5-5 in the bottom of the 9th last season?

Still not sold on Almora? We have been talking about how he has been struggling primarily throughout this piece. But since batting .237 on August 4, he has gone on an absolute tear, batting a beastly .375, hitting safely in 24 of those 26 games. He has brought up his low batting average to a respectable .274 and a solid .326 OBP. He could eclipse a .280 BA before the season ends. He also showed great promise in big league camp at spring training, where he batted .345 and where he roomed with now all-star and rookie of the year candidate Kris Bryant. He HAS overcome adversity!

While the Cubs have been on a roll, Almora has been quietly making strides towards becoming the Cubs 2016 every day center fielder. I expect Almora to get a lot of time this coming spring, and start 2016 in AAA. If he continues to thrive, we could be seeing him some time in the early summer, similar to how Bryant and Addison Russell got called up, and soon became every day players. As Dexter Fowler and newly acquired Austin Jackson enter free agency, there should be room for Almora to elevate his game to the next level and be given a shot in center.

It may sound crazy, but Almora has the tools to be a better option than both Fowler and Jackson. While Fowler has raised his numbers since his weak first half of the season, at times he is a liability in the outfield. He either doesn't run hard enough, misjudges the distance of fly balls, or just isn't fast enough to keep up in center. Almora is fast enough, and will not make those types of mistakes. At the plate, I think Almora can at least bat .241 (what Russell is hitting right now), and have a good enough OBP for a rookie player that would make up for the loss of Fowler. But I guess we are getting ahead of ourselves.

The bottom line is that in a system that has yielded two all-stars (Bryant and Rizzo), three other stud rookies (Russell, Schwarber and Soler), there is still more to come. Javy Baez should be making his return some time this week and barring injury, Almora is primed for a big league debut next season. Why have a core four when you can have a core seven?