There was an awful collision between a couple of minor leaguers on Sunday that ended with Cubs prospect Ezequiel Pagan taken off the field in an ambulance. Fortunately, the 23-year-old outfielder is doing well and gave fans a positive update through his Instagram account.
The incident happened in Sunday’s Tennessee Smokies game against the Mississippi Braves, as Pagan and infield prospect Matt Shaw collided in right field. The video from the broadcast isn’t great, but you can see Pagan being attended to in the outfield grass as his teammates looked on with concern.
Again, not the best camera work, but the collision might have also involved first baseman Haydn McGeary.
Pagan was eventually taken away in an ambulance and taken to a local hospital.
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On Sunday night Pagan posted a story to his Instagram account, where he thanked God and fans for their messages of support and said he was good after the scary outfield collision.
The Cubs picked Pagan in the 13th round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of high school from Puerto Rico. The left-handed hitter made it up to Single-A Ball in 2021, posted an .809 OPS with Myrtle Beach in his first full season in the minor leagues in 2022 and after hitting .301 at Advanced A-Ball with South Bend last year Pagan got a late-season promotion to Double-A, where he began the 2024 season.
Hopefully Pagan won’t be up out for long.
Matt Shaw Hitting for Power
Top Cubs hitting prospect Matt Shaw has been on fire lately and the recent stretch of success has included more power from the right-handed batter. Shaw had an unbelievable showing in 2023 after the Cubs drafted him 13th overall out of Maryland, as the infielder slashed .357/.400/.618, with 8 home runs in 38 games, while striking out only 14.7% of the time.
Shaw began the 2024 season at Double-A and he was making noise early, ending April with an .811 OPS in 18 games. However, there was a two or three week period in late April into May, when Shaw was struggling big time at the plate. His OPS was below .700 in the month of May, but his last 25 games have shown that Shaw can re-adjust after slumping.
From May 25-June 23, Shaw is slashing .296/.386/.561, with 7 home runs and 5 doubles in 114 plate appearances. Shaw only had 3 home runs in his first 165 plate appearances of the season.
On Sunday, Shaw homered twice for the Smokies, raising his overall slash line to .245/.358/.421. Those numbers may not jump off the page, but Shaw currently has a 134 wRC+, which ranks in the top-30 among all qualified hitters in Double-A.
Kevin Alcántara Back from Injury
Outfield prospect Kevin Alcántara hasn’t quite broken through yet at Double-A this season, but he’s also been hampered by an unknown injury. The 21-year-old has not played since June 7, but the reason for his absence had been a mystery until today.
According to Marquee Sports Network reporter Andy Martinez, Alcántara was out because of a shoulder issue and now the Smokies are hopeful the center fielder can return this week.
Via Marquee Sports Network.
Kevin Alcántara, the Cubs no. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline and the no. 51 overall prospect in the game has been sidelined since June 7 with a left shoulder injury, but the hope is for him to be back with Tennessee Tuesday when they open a 6-game set in Birmingham, Ala. against the Barons.
Alcántara suffered the injury and the Cubs shut him down for a few days. During his ramp up, he felt it again, so the Cubs shut him down again to play it safe. The injury came when Alcántara was just beginning to heat up.
Overall in 2024, Alcántara has a .693 OPS, which at Double-A this year is still above league average, coming out to a 106 wRC+. However, as we’ve seen with Alcántara in the past, he was starting to get hot at the plate as the year progressed. In his last 18 games before the injury, Alcántara slashed .315/.351/.438, a 138 wRC+ across 77 plate appearances.
