This Chicago Cubs Prospect is Deserving of a September Call-Up
With September call-ups beginning today, the Chicago Cubs can offer a chance for minor league prospects to experience the highest level of baseball and join the big league club for the remainder of the season.
There’s no reason that Darius Hill should not be given that opportunity.
Taken by the Cubs in the 20th round of the 2019 MLB draft, the 25-year-old outfielder has put together some of the best numbers we have seen from any prospect across the Cubs minor league system this season.
Standing at six feet and one inch tall, the left-handed Hill began his season where he left off in 2021 with Double-A Tennessee.
After posting a .277 batting average with ten extra-base hits in his first year with the Smokies, just 44 games with a .846 OPS and 57 hits this season saw a quick May 31 promotion to Triple-A Iowa.
Chicago Cubs prospect Darius Hill earlier this month with Triple-A Iowa.
© Bryon Houlgrave/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK
Primarily hitting in the leadoff position, the agile West Virginia product has offered a display of both quick bat-to-ball skills and contact ability across 65 games this summer just one level shy of the show.
With 22 extra-base hits, including three home runs, he also offers some pop in his bat.
His 82 total hits with Iowa are the third-highest on the team while his .333 batting average leads the Cubs Triple-A squad (min. 75 PA).
His average is also good for the second highest in all of the International League (min. 250 PA.)
Despite a slugger-filled lineup that includes power bats like Matt Mervis and Michael Hermosillo, Hill’s .835 OPS is the fourth-best on the team, fueled by an astonishing .513 slug in the month of August.
Numbers display that Hill has refined his abilities within the batter’s box throughout his development in Chicago’s system, too.
Not only does he have the 13th-lowest strikeout percentage (14.6%) in the International League, the left-hander displays his versatility with his team-leading 44.3% of hits going to the opposite field (min. 250 PA).
Another strength of Hill’s is putting the bat on the ball: he leads the team in BABIP at .382 (min. 150 PA).
While the Cubs farm system shows exciting promise for future championship runs, there are many deserving candidates that could get their chance to shine at Wrigley Field this September.
With his consistent performance across various aspects of his game though, Hill makes a strong case to find himself in the blue pinstripes. Even if it’s not for the remainder of this season, if he can continue his level of play we should see him in the major leagues in no time.
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