The Chicago Cubs have acquired their first baseman of the future, and his name isn’t Prince Fielder. The San Diego Padres have traded first baseman Anthony Rizzo and right-hander Zach Cates to the Cubs for right-hander Andrew Cashner and outfielder Kyung-Min Na.
Rizzo has been listed as potentially available since the Padres acquired first baseman Yonder Alonso in the trade that sent Mat Latos to the Cincinnati Reds.
The Cubs had significant ties to Rizzo and instantly became one of the most likely landing spots for the first baseman. New Cubs president Theo Epstein drafted Rizzo as the Red Sox general manager in 2007, and Chicago’s current GM Jed Hoyer traded for Rizzo in 2010.
Over his five seasons in the minors, Rizzo hit at a clip of .296/.366/.514. The 22-year-old tallied at least 25 home runs and 100 RBI’s during his 2010-11 seasons.
After posting an OPS of 1.056 over his 93 games at Triple-A last season, Rizzo spent 49 games with the Padres. Over his 153 plate appearances, Rizzo struggled to the tune of a .523 OPS, but this was as a 21-year-old at the major league level.
Zach Cates, the other player heading to the Cubs, was selected by the Padres in the 3rd round of the 2010 MLB Draft. In his first season of professional ball, Cates maintained an ERA and WHIP of 4.73 and 1.356 over his 25 starts and 118 innings pitched for the Padres Single-A affiliate. The right-hander held a SO/9 of 8.5 and BB/9 of 4.0.
Cashner is a 25-year-old right-hander that has spent the last two seasons with the Cubs. Cashner has compiled 65 innings at the major league level, working primarily as a reliever. Over that span, Cashner has maintained an ERA and WHIP of 4.29 and 1.415 while posting a SO/9 of 8.0 to go with his BB/9 of 4.7. Cashner is expected to continue pitching out of the pen for the Padres.
The final piece of the trade is 20-year-old Kyung-Min Na. Primarily a center fielder, Na has hit at a clip of .244/.335/.284 over his 519 plate appearances in the minors.
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