Jake Roth - USA Today Sports
Jake Roth - USA Today Sports

Cubs name minor league players of the month


by -

CHICAGO – The Chicago Cubs today named Single-A Myrtle Beach infielder Jared Young and right-handed pitcher Erick Leal the organization’s minor league player and pitcher of the month for July, respectively.

Young, 23, split the month between Single-A South Bend and Myrtle Beach, batting a combined .350 (35-for-100) with four doubles, four homers and 17 RBI in 27 games. He appeared in six games with South Bend to begin the month, going 10-for-22 (.455) with one homer and four RBI, earning a promotion to Myrtle Beach, July 7. With the Pelicans, he continued his hot stretch as he hit .321 (25-for-78) with two doubles, three homers and 13 RBI in 21 games to close out July.

Named the Cubs Minor League Player of the Month for the second-consecutive month, Young is batting .307 (107-for-349) with 15 doubles, six triples, 14 homers and 67 RBI in 94 games this season between South Bend and Myrtle Beach. In 25 games with Myrtle Beach, his first stint at the High-A Level, he is batting .289 (26-for-90) with two doubles, four homers and 14 RBI. Named a mid-season Midwest League All-Star, Young has appeared in 66 games at first base, 17 games in left field and two games at second base this season.

Selected by Chicago in the 15th round of the 2017 Draft out of Old Dominion University, Young owns a .292 career batting average (143-for-489) with 21 doubles, seven triples, 15 homers, 82 RBI and 39 walks, contributing to a .354 on-base percentage in 133 games.

Leal, 23, did not allow an earned run in 22.2 innings in July. The right-handed pitcher went 1-0 in seven games, including two starts, and allowed just two unearned runs, while striking out 25, walking one and surrendering eight hits. He was named Carolina League Pitcher of the Week for July 23-29 after allowing just two hits and no walks in 8.1-scoreless innings.

A native of Venezuela, Leal has gone 1-1 with a 1.10 ERA (6 ER/49.0 IP) in 17 games, including six starts, this season. He has walked just eight batters, contributing to a 0.67 WHIP. Leal made his season debut, May 25, after beginning the season on the disabled list as he continued to recover from a right elbow injury which caused him to miss the entire 2017 season.

In his sixth pro season, Leal has gone 37-19 with a 3.05 ERA (155 ER/456.2 IP) in 101 games pitched, including 79 starts. He signed as a non-drafted free agent with Arizona in September of 2011, and was acquired by Chicago in a February 2013 trade that sent outfielder Tony Campana to the Diamondbacks.

Comment on this story
Print   
Post your comments!