WASHINGTON — Chicago Cubs catcher Miguel Amaya smiles at the mention of right-hander Ben Brown.
“He’s nasty,” Amaya said.
Amaya caught all four of Brown’s starts at Double-A Tennessee before the Chicago Cubs promoted the 6-foot-6 right-hander to Triple-A Iowa over the weekend. Brown posted a 0.45 ERA in 20 innings at Double-A, surrendering just one earned run while totaling 30 strikeouts and only six walks.
“Awesome dude,” Amaya said. “He trusts his stuff, he attacks the zone and goes after hitters. That’s why he’s having success.”
Brown, acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies at the trade deadline last year for reliever David Robertson, has quickly positioned himself to earn a call-up. Before he gets to that point, the Cubs wanted to get a better understanding of where he’s at in his development by moving him up to Iowa. Major League Baseball’s “enhanced-grip” baseballs they are testing in the Smokies’ Double-A Southern League have noticeably affected pitch movement.
General manager Carter Hawkins and pitching coach Tommy Hottovy highlighted the value of getting Brown out of the tackier baseball environment at Double-A. Brown, 23, is scheduled to make his Triple-A debut Thursday.
“We’re candidly trying to figure out the effect of the baseballs in Double A and how much that plays into the form of some guys,” Hawkins said. “He’s done really well, regardless, but getting him back to the old baseballs at Triple A and getting back his comfort level there will be helpful to really have a better sense of how close he is to the big leagues.”
The stickiness of the Double-A baseballs has created a higher-than-normal spin create, said Amaya, who commended Brown for making that work to his advantage.
“If guys are that are going to be part of our depth piece and part of the guys that we feel like can help us, we need to make sure that they’re in Triple-A using balls that they’re going to be using here and not trying to jump back and forth between Double-A and here,” Hottovy said. “He’s just really impressed with his demeanor, his personality. He knows who he is. He knows what he can do well and he also knows what he has to work on and keeps it very simple.
“It doesn’t really need to be any harder than that, honestly.”
The Cubs’ starting pitching depth appeared to be an organizational strength coming out of spring training. One month into the season it already is being tested. While they have depth in numbers, usable options have taken a hit.
Right-hander Adrian Sampson is sidelined in Iowa with right scapula inflammation. Right-hander Caleb Kilian struggled in his big league season debut Saturday, extending his inconsistency when receiving MLB chances, albeit in a small sample size of four starts. Right-hander Javier Assad has been working to build up after beginning the season in the Cubs bullpen.