Results tagged ‘ Junior Lake ’
11/18 Vitters, Lake, Beliveau, Szczur added to 40-man
The Cubs selected the contracts of left-handed pitcher Jeff Beliveau, infielders Junior Lake and Josh Vitters, and outfielder Matt Szczur, and added them to the 40-man roster on Friday. In addition, the Cubs outrighted outfielder Lou Montanez and right-handed pitchers Esmailin Caridad and Kyle Smit off the 40-man roster.
Friday was the deadline for teams to set the 40-man rosters in anticipation of the Rule 5 Draft, which is conducted at next month’s Winter Meetings. With the changes, the Cubs’ 40-man roster is now 34 players.
Beliveau, 24, was named the Cubs’ 2011 Minor League Pitcher of the Year after combining to go 6-2 with five saves and a 1.57 ERA in 53 relief appearances between Class A Daytona and Double-A Tennessee. The lefty combined to strike out 89 and walked 19 over 74 1/3 innings. He also pitched for Team USA and briefly in the Arizona Fall League. In four Minor League seasons, Beliveau is 17-9 with 10 saves and a 2.69 ERA.
Lake, 21, combined to hit .279 with 21 doubles, six triples, 12 home runs, 38 stolen bases, 80 runs scored and 51 RBIs in 116 games between Daytona and Tennessee. The shortstop was named a 2011 Arizona Fall League Rising Star, batting .296 with eight doubles, three triples, five home runs and 18 stolen bases in 28 games. He is a career .267 hitter in 476 Minor League games over five seasons.
Szczur, 22, batted .293 with 22 doubles, three triples, 10 homers, 46 RBIs, 75 runs and 24 stolen bases in 109 games for Class A Peoria and Daytona this season. A fifth round pick out of Villanova in 2010, he participated in the 2011 All-Star Futures Game and was a mid-season Midwest League All-Star.
Vitters, 22, batted .283 with 28 doubles, two triples, 14 home runs and 81 RBIs in 129 games with Tennessee, his first full season at Double-A. He followed that with a strong season in the Arizona Fall League, batting .360 with six doubles, four home runs and 17 RBIs in 24 games. The Cubs’ first round pick in 2007, Vitters is a career .277 hitter with 95 doubles, 47 home runs and 229 RBIs in 419 games covering five seasons.
– Carrie Muskat
11/17 AFL update
Junior Lake hit a two-run double in the fifth to help spark the Mesa Solar Sox to a 6-2 win over Scottsdale in the Arizona Fall League finale on Thursday. Lake finished with a .296 average, while Josh Vitters had two hits and finished .360. DJ LeMahieu ended the AFL season with a .302 average. The AFL championship game will be played Saturday when Salt River faces Surprise. Next up for the Cubs prospects is a short break, then time to prepare for Spring Training.
– Carrie Muskat
11/15 AFL update
Junior Lake hit a RBI double in the eighth but it wasn’t enough as Mesa lost 4-2 to Peoria on Monday in Arizona Fall League play. Cubs prospect Trey McNutt started, and gave up two runs — one earned — on two hits and two walks over four innings. He struck out two. The two teams meet again in Peoria on Tuesday.
– Carrie Muskat
11/12 Zambrano & AFL update
Carlos Zambrano gave up three runs on five hits, including two home runs, over six innings Saturday night in his second start in Venezuela. Zambrano, who was pitching for Caribes against Zulia, struck out five of the 23 batters he faced. The homers included a two-run shot by Ernesto Mejia with two out in the first, and a solo homer by Colin Curtis with one out in the sixth.
* In Arizona Fall League play, DJ LeMahieu had two hits and Josh Vitters had one RBI in Mesa’s 8-2 loss to Phoenix on Saturday. Junior Lake was 1-for-4, scored a run and stole his 18th base. He’s now 18-for-18 in steals. Only Eric Young Jr. had more stolen bases in the AFL (20). Jeff Beliveau took the loss, giving up three runs on three hits in one inning. He struck out three but also served up a two-run homer in the fourth. Andrew Cashner also pitched one inning in relief, retiring all three batters he faced. After a day off Sunday, the Mesa Solar Sox play host to Peoria on Monday at HoHoKam Park.
– Carrie Muskat
11/11 AFL update
Junior Lake hit a two-run single but struck out looking to end the game as Mesa lost, 7-6, to Salt River on Friday night in Arizona Fall League play. Lake also stole a base, his 17th, which leads the AFL. Another Cubs prospect, Marcus Hatley, pitched two-thirds of an inning but had to leave the game in the sixth when he appeared to injure his right ankle covering first base. On Saturday, Mesa is back in action against Phoenix.
– Carrie Muskat
11/6 AFL & winter ball update
Junior Lake went 1-for-3 with a double but also made a costly throwing error as the West team beat the East, 11-2, in the Arizona Fall League Rising Stars game Saturday in Surprise. Cubs prospects Chris Carpenter and Trey McNutt each pitched in the game in relief. After an off day Sunday, the three rejoin the Mesa Solar Sox and play host to Peoria at HoHoKam Park on Monday.
In Venezuela, Austin Bibens-Dirkx gave up two hits and struck out five over seven innings to help Zulia beat La Guaira, 4-0. On Sunday, Carlos Zambrano is scheduled to start for Caribes against Magallanes. It will be his first game since Aug. 12.
– Carrie Muskat
11/3 AFL update
Junior Lake had three hits, including a walkoff RBI double in the ninth and a triple, to lead Mesa to an 8-7 win Thursday over Phoenix in Arizona Fall League play. Lake, who started at third, also swiped his league-leading 16th base. He’s batting .315 in the AFL. DJ LeMahieu was 1-for-4 and scored a run. On Friday, Mesa plays host to Salt River at HoHoKam Park. Saturday, Lake will take part in the Rising Stars game.
– Carrie Muskat
10/31 AFL update
Junior Lake was 1-for-4 with a triple and scored the tying run in the seventh in Mesa’s 3-1 win Monday over Phoenix in Arizona Fall League play. Lake is batting .313 in the AFL. DJ LeMahieu also played, and was 0-for-4. On Tuesday, Mesa travels to Surprise.
– Carrie Muskat
10/27 Junior Lake steals 2 in AFL play
Junior Lake increased his league-leading stolen base totals to 13 with two steals Thursday but it wasn’t enough as the Mesa Solar Sox lost 8-7 to Scottsdale in Arizona Fall League play. Lake’s 13 steals matches the 2009 and 2010 AFL season highs, set by Chase D’Arnaud and Ben Revere. Bryce Harper hit a three-run walkoff homer to lift Scottsdale to the win. Lake, who started at third and batted third, went 1-for-5, while Josh Vitters, who started in right and batted fourth, was 0-for-5. On Friday, Mesa travels to Peoria. The Cubs’ Andrew Cashner was expected to pitch in relief either Friday or Saturday. He’s been slowed by a sore oblique.
– Carrie Muskat
10/24 AFL update
DJ LeMahieu had one hit and scored a run but it wasn’t enough as Surprise beat Mesa, 8-3, on Monday in Arizona Fall League play at HoHoKam Park. Junior Lake, named AFL Player of the Week, was hitless in four at-bats. On Tuesday, the two teams meet again in Surprise. First pitch scheduled for 12:35 p.m. MT.
– Carrie Muskat
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