Cubs Prospect Owen Caissie Named MiLB Southern League Player of the Week

Caissie, who primarily plays right field (and a good right field this year at that), has always been known for his offensive potential. As one of the prospects with the most potential power at the plate in the Cubs' farm system, Caissie has 65-grade power and already has 18 home runs and 21 doubles on the season while playing against competition that is mostly older and more experienced than him.

The biggest knocks on Caissie as a prospect have been regarding his defense and his propensity to strike out. Defensively this year, though, Caissie has really held his own in right field. Always gifted with a strong arm, Caissie has put up a .992 fielding percentage in right field this season and has eight assists to his name. There has been talk of Caissie needing to move to left field or first base due to some defensive limitations, but he is coming into his own and looks solidly like a legitimate right fielder.

Regarding strikeouts, Caissie still sports a very high 32.9 K% and that could very well be a reason Caissie does not follow Crow-Armstrong to Triple-A soon. Still, he is slashing .280/.388/.527 with a .915 OPS. More than that, Caissie has clearly been making a concentrated effort to reduce his strikeout numbers. After an eye-popping 43.2 K% in April, Caissie has put together a much more reasonable 25.5 K% in July.

Caissie continues to look like a potential future star, especially if he can cut down on his strike-out numbers. A legit right fielder with 30+ home run potential? That'll play, and it's nice to see the 6-foot-3 left-handed batter get some recognition. Be on the lookout for him tearing up MLB's top 100 prospect lists if he continues to improve.