JULY 11th: The Cubs have officially announce the signing in a press release. Almora will report to the team's complex in Mesa.
JULY 9th: The Cubs have agreed to sign first round selection Albert Almora, Jim Callis of Baseball America reports (on Twitter). The high school outfielder obtains a $3.9MM bonus.
MLB recommended a $3.25MM bonus for Almora, the sixth overall selection in last month's draft. The outfielder has lots of tools and polish, Callis notes. The Cubs have now agreed to terms with their first 20 selections from the draft. Just six first round selections remain unsigned with four days to go before this Friday's deadline for signing draft picks.
Thank God!
Good to hear. I honestly don’t know a lot about him, but the crapshoot of picking again next year is frightening on its own.
Baseball America has a free scouting report with video. Google “Albert Almora Scouting Report” and find the link to Baseball America. Nice addition to the Cubs farm system. Big win for the front office getting Almora and Underwood signed with the new draft rules.
Agreed, singing both Almora and Underwood is a nice get for the Cubs. This looks like a very good draft by the new Cubs front office and has drastically improved their farm system.
Woo!
Who are the four unsigned in the first round?
Gausmann, Appel, Giolito and Heaney I think
Henley also!
6 are still unsigned, Gausman, Appel, Heaney, Giolito, Shaffer and Hensley
Appel isn’t going to sign. He wants strasburg money. Even though the new CBA does not allow for that. But he honestly thinks he is as good as stras
Doesn’t really matter what he wants of course. Hopefully for Pirates fans sake, he looks closely at the cases of Matt Harrington and Matt Purke when he considers turning down $3 million.
Great news for Cubs fans. This guy should be a stud in a few years. I look forward to seeing Castro/Jackson/Rizzo/Baez/Soler/Almora in a few years! Now if only we can acquire some young pitching!
EDIT: Spelling
He’s a high school kid not likely he will be in the bigs in two years
It’s optimistic, to be sure, but everywhere I try to read about this guy I find some verbiage to the effect of how polished he is. If he’s that polished I wouldn’t be surprised if he can make it up on closer to a typical college timeline than a typical high school timeline. Or maybe evaluators just need to find a better word, heh.
Don’t confuse polish for MLB ready or close to MLB ready. It just means he has a polished tool set. Bubba Starling is considered a raw talent. Great athlete, needs to learn to play baseball. Almora is a baseball player.
If the Cubs trade away Dempster and Garza I suspect they will be looking for some quality young pitching prospects in return.
Totally agree, the Cubby’s need to trade Garza and Dempster for some young pitching. Hoyer should looks to the Jays, Padres, Dodgers, or O’s for young pitching.
Other than Zack Lee, the Dodgers farm system is lacking in good SP prospects. The previous owner slashed their scouting and signing bonus budget, which destroyed their farm system.
Garrett Gould, Chris Reed, Allen Webster, and Ethan Martin are all solid pitching prospects. Among guys who have already pitched in the big leagues, I’m sure teams would be interested in Rubby De La Rosa once he’s healthy and of course Nathan Eovaldi.
If you want to talk Dodgers position prospects (sans Seager and Puig) then go ahead and rip them, but there is a decent amount of young pitching in the organization.
A catcher that can hit would be nice! Soto is a one year wonder…
Two year wonder but yeah, he’s too unreliable for me at this point.
What about Baez?
Castro/Jackson/Rizzo/Soler/Almora/Baez
Imagining the Battiong order:
Almora CF
Soler RF
Castro SS
Rizzo 1st
Baez 3rd
Jackson LF
Lake 2nd
Catillo/Clevenger C
Castro would not be hitting 3rd in that lineup. He simply doesn’t have the power potential like the other players. The lineup would look a lot more like this:
Almora
Castro
Rizzo
Soler
Baez
Jackson
Lake (assuming he makes the majors or isn’t traded)
Castillo/Clevenger
Replace Lake with Vitters
I like that a lot more. Im very skeptical about Lake. He could have a great bat but his defense is worse than Castro’s and thats saying something. I would prefer that Theo sold high on him when he works his way to AAA. We could always try and get a decent arm for him.
Castro has pretty incredible defense for a 22 year old… he has one of the highest range factors in baseball at SS and a solid UZR rating this year.
He’s improved drastically every year, and is already an above average SS.
Vitters would obviously have to learn 2nd base first then since Baez projects as a 3rd baseman
Baez has potential to be 3b, ss or 2b so it all depends what positions will be open for him
Or Baez could end up at 2B…
Very unlikely he will maintain the agility for a middle infield spot as his body fills out.
Expecting every prospect to work out is a bit much and jackson doesn’t really belong in that group.
Granted he’s truck out a bit more over the year, I don’t think you can totally write him off. He may only need to make a couple of adjustments. Personally I think Szczur will really challenge him or Soler for a spot because of his plus speed. But still Jackson can be an above average outfielder.
Great signing and draft strategy.
When you hear the word “gamer” and “leader” on a player it always means he’s not an elite player. Thats the way scouts describe Almora. Am thinking if he ever makes it to the bigs he’s gonna be an average player.
I dunno, there’s plenty of elite players on the MLB who are both “leaders” and “gamers”. I don’t think just because you’re a “gamer” or “leader” you’re limited to being an average player.
Seems to me that guys like Ripken and Jeter are described that way. Not too average. Why don’t we let the kid play a little before we judge him.
David Eckstein. WHAT A GAMER.
He’s a real scrapper!
Mostly those are euphemisms for “not a great athlete” and/or “white” with few exceptions.
And you could do a lot worse than be an average player, that would be a fine result for Almora, and his gamer-iness is probably just reflective of the likelihood that he’ll achieve that level of success. It’s just a lazy way of saying he’s good but not exceptionally physically impressive.
If you ask how your blind date looks and someone says, “She has a great personality,” she’s probably a cow. If they say, “She’s cute–tall, athletic, brunette. And she has a good personality,” she’s probably attractive AND has a good personality.
When scouts talk about Almora, they say he has advanced pitch recognition, terrific defensive instincts, and good makeup. They don’t say that because they’ve nothing better to say. They say that because, by all accounts, it’s true.
The only negative thing scouts really have to say about Almora is his speed. ”
Almora has tools, game instincts and makeup; his lone weakness is his fringe-average speed, which some scouts describe as below-average. Scouts give him 60s across the board otherwise, with some giving him higher grades for his arm strength. His instincts allow him to play center field at a high level; one scout said he was a 40 runner with 80 range and said he played center field like some players do shortstop, being instinctual rather than reactive like almost all outfielders.” – John Manuel BA post.
It’s not physically possible to have 80 defense in CF with 40 speed no matter how instinctive a player is. That scout sounds full of it.
80 Range not 80 defense… People felt that he’s more around 45 speed.
Just because they need pitching doesn’t mean they have to trade for young pitching, you trade for the best prospects available and btw its not like the Cubs have a lot of young elite hitting prospects either.
With outfield prospects such as Jackson, Szczur, Soler, and now Almora, and infield prospects such as Junior Lake, Javier Baez, and Josh Vitters to go with Castro and Rizzo, they have pretty decent depth other than where it really counts–pitching. I’d love to see the Cubs make a few moves to acquire some quality pitching prospects.
Let’s be serious here in how we think of these guys as prospects. Jackson strikes out way too much, that’s why he’s still in the minors. Vitters swings at everything, has little concept of the strike zone, and can’t play defense at 3b. He’s looking like a future corner OF who mimic’s Jeff Francoeur at the plate. You can’t bribe him to walk. He’s not a top prospect, despite being a former first round pick.
Szczur the jury is still out on, hasn’t played a lot of baseball after coming from a football background. He has great defense but so far has absolutely no power. Baez looks like a very good prospect. Junior Lake is an enigma. A ton of talent but he only shows flashes of it. Soler and Almora are too far off to get excited about or know how they will adjust to better competition. Counting on any of these guys as top prospects, other than Baez, isn’t going to get us anywhere. Jackson at best grades out as a very solid major leaguer who still strikes out a ton and doesn’t hit for average. The Cubs system has a lot more talent than a year ago, but it’s still not loaded. Remember that less than 1 percent of drafted players ever make the majors, period, and not just become MLB starters. Some of the guys mentioned above will flame out, that’s just the way it is.
Soler, Baez, and Almora are so far away you basically ignore them when it comes to “needs”, BPA is what cubs need.
Congrats – on another note:
What are the chances of Dale Sveum getting fired after the season, Cubs fans? Just wondering because I’d like him back as hitting coach in Milwaukee.
Expectations for this team were rock bottom low. I think he could not win another game all year and still not get canned.
I figured he’d probably get another year, but you never can tell. Quade didn’t get much time, and expectations shouldn’t have been much higher, honestly. I know some of that was likely just Epstein wanting to put his guy in there… Anyway, I’d always hoped Sveum would get a legit shot at managing in Milwaukee one day.
I think there’s very little chance he’s fired. Theo and Hoyer hired him knowing that this year and the next couple would be rebuilding years. That said, there wasn’t much expectation for a particularly well-performing team. Sveum is a smart guy, and Theo and Hoyer really like him. I think he’ll be around for a while, and I’m glad of that.
I doubt they would would can Sveum after only 1 season, but I will say his lineups often make no sense. Why he loves to put a 3b in the OF and an OF’er at 3b, or a 2b at 3b and a 3b at 2b in the same lineup leaves me wondering if he fell on his head. Baker, a 3b, hasn’t played 1 inning at 3b this year. Until Valbuena came up and took over 3b, Mather had played a lot of 3b and done an awful job, averaging 1 error per start and the worst fielding percentage of any 3b since the 1800’s. Yet Baker plays everywhere but 3b. The other day when Barney played SS he had Baker play 2b, where Baker has no range, while Valbuena, who has played 80 percent of his games in his career at 2b or SS and has good range, played 3b, where his fielding percentage is mostly awful for his career, despite the occasional flashy play. Sveum has a love for making the team worse on defense at 2 positions.
I don’t know where you get this Baker being a 3B idea. He’s a utility player, and if he had a position, it would be 2nd base. He’s played almost 2 times as many games there as he has at 3rd.
That’s true. Valbuena really hasn’t been a bad 3B either – if he can pick up his average a bit, he might end up being a nice stopgap for another year or two until Baez is ready.
You’re expecting Baez to be up quite fast. We’re going to suck for about 2-3 more years and 3rd has become a top heavy position, so I don’t really care who we have there just as long as the other positions start improving.
I honestly don’t see it happening. The on-field performance has been poor, but he can’t really be blamed for that. On the contrary, he and his staff are being given credit for Castro and Soriano’s defense improving and he was working a lot with Barney early in the year/spring training as well. In other words, the things he actually controls have been very good overall. Cubs have no reason to look for a martyr, so I can’t see why he would be let go.
Well, I’m glad to see another NL Central team sign their first round picks. Pittsburgh, you are on the clock.
What’s gonna happen if Appel doesn’t sign? I’m curious.
Pirates will get the 9th overall pick in next years draft. That 9th overall pick will also be protected for the 2014 draft. They would also get whatever pick in the first round their record qualifies them for this year. Short answer: they get two picks next year.
VERY nice addition!
By what I’ve seen this Kid has the “stuff” so on one hand Im happy the cubbies got the deal done. On the other hand I remember seeing his reaction to the draft, I cant find it now. But he said “he should have went 1st!” REALLY? this kinda ego reminds me of pujols… and then we have Boras to deal with……. UGH! Im torn on this.
I don’t recal him saying he should have been the 1st pick.
Because he didn’t.
You know I could be mistaken for someone else. But Im almost positive he DID say it. I really didnt watch much of the draft, just pretty much to see who the Cubs took. Thats why I was looking for the clip of his reaction right after the Cubs got him, I cant find it now. Cant Find Anything on him as soon as he was drafted. it was some thing like .. “How does it feel to go 6th? Feels Good, but i should’ve went 1st!” I remember, Cause I thought the nerve of this Kid! I also find it odd that i cant find that clip on him.. If Iam wrong I will be happy to admit Im wrong. In fact I would like to be wrong, it would change what i think of the kid.
I too think we should have kept Colvin, but his splits aren’t the best. (His counting stats look fine), but others not so much.
Home:
BB% K% AVG OBP SLG OPS BABIP
5.3% 24.2% .330 .366 .739 1.104 .379
Away:
BB% K% AVG OBP SLG OPS BABIP
3.8% 23.8% .283 .308 .525 .833 .319So, he’d definitely be suitable on the Cubs, but we’d still have a log jam in the OF. He’s not the greatest defensively either. Also with the amount he of walks to K’s, the Cubs line up would be even more impatient at the plate. While Stewart hasn’t been great with the bat (currently injured) he’s played solid defense at third. A position the Cubs needed after losing ARam.
This was supposed to be in reply to: Jason Zenk
I like what Theo and Co are doing with the Cubs. Trying to build something for longevity. I like the idea of the younger guys. Their not a bunch of prima donnas (atleast not yet) They play with GRIT! BUT when Colvin was traded needless to say i was a lil upset. To me Colvin “fit” into what they are doing. then again Im sure there is something Im missing. Yea last year Colvin was off. but by the numbers so were Dejesus, and Stewart. I just have this feeling that Colvin is going to be one of those deals that comes back to bite the Cubs in the butt.
I understand the reasoning for not bringing Rizzo up sooner. I just feel that the more these guys get to play together and “mesh” as a TEAM. the sooner it will happen.
Colvin doesn’t fit what they are trying to do because he doesn’t work counts and take walks.
Neither does 6 out of the 8 position players currently playing for the Cubs!
You have to look at it from the perspective of last winter. The Cubs had no 3rd baseman. Ramirez was let go, Vitters was not ready, Valbuena was not even in the picture and Rizzo was not ready so LaHair had the 1st base job. So at that time Colorado was soured on Ian Stewart and had and the Cubs considered they had a surplus of outfielders. Colvin did terrible last year and definately striking out a lot more that FO had a taste for. Colorado had an interest in Colvin. It was a sound deal at the time and a deal they any GM would make given these factors. The Cubs will be fine. They how have Almora, Solar, Sczurzer, along with the current corps of Dejesus, Mather, Campana, Baker and the soon to be gone Soriano. The outfield picture for the cubs is bright. You may judge the trade poorly, however hindsight is 20/20.
I actually liked getting Stewart. He plays solid defense, and if he can somehow get his bat back to his career levels (not the best numbers) he’ll probably stick around.
I think by the time that happens, 3rd base could be taken over by Josh Vitters. Stewart will need a really good spring training. He might be traded again.
Vitter probably won’t stick at 3rd. He’s been pretty bad there. No where near as good as Stewart defensively. Also Vitters still has no plate discipline, he’s all over the place. His AAA numbers aren’t that bad, but his K% and BB% aren’t pretty.
Vitters is bad to horrible at 3B…but Stewart may never regain wrist/hand strength enough to play MLB again after surgery to repair the nerve. I would like to see Garza and Vitters dealt to DET for Castellanos and several pitching prospects.
Baez is probably sticking at 3rd. If anything I want Garza traded for young pitching.
Cubs last 2 yrs have been solid in position players. The one guy in there system who intrigues me is Dan Vogelbach. Appears to have legitimate power, just not much of an athletic build. Shawon Dunston Jr, when asked about Vogelbachs power used the words Oh Yeaaahhhhhhh. Now they need to build pitching-they have none at either AAA or AA.
Almora will be a bust.