As this series goes on, I’m starting to get into each individual prospect’s backstory. I’m finding out more and more about each player and watching what video there is. As I do, I am starting to see why the Cubs were interested in the player. This holds true very much for Bradlee Beesley who the Cubs signed as a senior out of Cal Poly last month.
Ht: 5-10
Wt: 180
Bats Right
Throws Right
Age: 22.3
At first glance, Beesley’s statistics show a solid but not spectacular for years at Cal Poly. He was a second-team All-Big West selection as a freshman where he played all over the field. Originally an infielder, he would shift later to the outfield. As a freshman Beesley hit .305 with a .376 on base percentage. That’s pretty impressive for a college freshman. When he came back the next year as a sophomore, Beesley slipped a little bit down to .277. Not terrible, but not the quality we saw his first year.
In between his sophomore and junior year, Beesley went to play in the Cape Cod League where he tore the cover off the ball hitting .368 with eight RBI in just 22 games. That should have given him some confidence heading into his junior season after doing so well against elite competition.
While Beesley did do better his junior year, he hit a very decent .283 with an outstanding .351 on base percentage. He was not drafted, but he did return to the Cape Cod where he hit .280 in the summer of 2019. His senior season lasted only 16 games where he hit .262 with an outstanding .371 BP.
Over the course of his college career, he went from being basically a utility guy to the every day center fielder for Cal poly. From what I’ve read so far, he seems to have the instinct and skills to stay there but how well he does will really depend upon his bat. Let’s take a look at a video
What I like about the videos is that the swing is short, it’s sweet, and he gets through the zone pretty quickly. That’s one reason why he does not strike out much and can also work himself a walk. Despite not having world beater averages his last three years, he still got on base at a pretty decent clip. He’s not going to be a guy that’s going to hit 20 to 25 home runs every year, but he could develop into a the type of hitter that completes your defense in multiple positions and gets on base at a decent rate.
Beesley was rated one of the top 500 prospects for the draft by baseball America. While I can’t publish his whole profile from BA, I can give you a little snippet of what they said about his future: “He’s an undersized contact hitter who sprays the ball around and makes consistent contact against all types of pitching.”
If there was baseball this year, Beesley would quickly find his way to Eugene with an outside chance to get to South Bend by the end of the year. Where he goes to start 2021 is really about his production and versatility. With his approach, he would be a bit too much for the Midwest League and Myrtle Beach would provide an excellent challenge to see how he stacks up.
Cubs Central 