Arismendy Alcantara has been a rising prospect in the Chicago Cubs’ system for a while now. After a strong start to the 2014 season in Triple-A, Alcantara is now considered by many to be one of the best prospects in a loaded Cubs’ system.
While it will only be for a short time, Alcantara will be called up to the big leagues on Wednesday. He will make his big league debut this evening against the Cincinnati Reds.
Alcantara gets the call because of Darwin Barney going on paternity leave. The Cubs have already told Alcantara that he will only be with the club for the two days while Barney is gone. It is expected that he will start at second base during his short stay.
At 22-years-old, Alcantara is an exciting player who has a nice combination of power and speed. He is hitting .308/.354/.538 with 21 steals in 24 attempts at Triple-A so far this season. Alcantara is a switch hitter who is showing incredible gap-to-gap power this season with 10 homeruns, 24 doubles and 11 triples.
He came up as a shortstop, but moved primarily to second base last season to accommodate Javier Baez in Double-A. He has also been playing some centerfield this year, and has the makings of a very versatile defensive player in the future.
This is a very exciting call-up for the Cubs. While it is only for a couple of days, expect Alcantara to be up for good in the very near future. The Cubs are sure to continue to sell at the trade deadline, and Alcantara will certainly be the first infielder called up if needed.
He will be the first of the wave of talented prospects who will all be heading to Wrigley Field within the next year or so. The Cubs have the best minor league system in baseball, making the future starting to look very bright.