Cubs Names Moises Ballesteros MiLB Player of the Year, Brandon Birdsell Pitcher of the Year

I’d love to go a little deeper on this, but time is serving as my enemy at the moment. See press release below for more info.

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The Chicago Cubs today named catcher Moisés Ballesteros the Buck O’Neil Cubs Minor League Player of the Year and right-handed pitcher Brandon Birdsell the Vedie Himsl Cubs Minor League Pitcher of the Year.

Ballesteros, 19, has been named the Cubs Minor League Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons after he also won the award in 2023. This season, the left-handed hitting catcher batted a combined .289 (131-for-454) with 24 doubles, one triple, 19 home runs, 78 RBI, a .354 on-base percentage and a .826 OPS in 124 games between Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa. He led all qualified Cubs minor leaguers in average, while finishing second in RBI, third in slugging percentage (.471) and OPS and tied for fourth in home runs.

The five-foot 11-inch Ballesteros began the campaign with Tennessee, batting .299 (58-for-194) with nine doubles, one triple, nine home runs and 43 RBI in 56 games. He posted a .301 average (44-for-156) with seven doubles, six home runs and 35 RBI in a 41-game span from May 1-June 15. Ballesteros tallied an eight-game hitting streak, batting .441 (15-for-34) during the stretch. On June 16, he was named the Southern League Player of the Week.

Following his June 18 promotion to the I-Cubs, Ballesteros batted .281 (73-for-260) with 15 doubles, 10 homers and 35 RBI in 68 games. He began his Triple-A career by hitting safely in eight of 11 games from June 18-July 1, posting a .378 average (17-for-45) with five doubles, one home run, three RBI and a .972 OPS. On September 1, he was named the International League Player of the Week, after going 10-for-17 (.588) with one home run and five RBI during the week.

Ballesteros this season was named to the Futures Game during All-Star Week in Arlington, Tex., and following the season, was named to the All-MiLB Prospect Second Team. Lifetime, across parts of four minor league seasons, all in the Cubs system, the lefty has played 352 minor league games, batting .279 (345-for-1,235) with 73 doubles, one triple, 46 home runs, 200 RBI and an .818 OPS. A Los Teques, Venezuela, native, Ballesteros signed with the Cubs as an international free agent January 15, 2021. He is currently ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Cubs’ No. 4 prospect.

Birdsell, 24, went 8-9 with a 3.91 ERA (59 ER/135.2 IP) and 134 strikeouts in 27 games (26 starts) between Tennessee and Iowa in 2024. The righthander led all Chicago minor league pitchers in starts, innings pitched and strikeouts. He posted a 5.4% walk rate (31 walks in 135.2 IP), the lowest among all Cubs minor league starters (min. 20 GS).

The six-foot two-inch Birdsell made 15 appearances (14 starts) for Tennessee, going 4-4 with a 3.63 ERA (30 ER/74.1 IP), allowing three runs or fewer in 11 of those outings. From April 24-July 1, Birdsell posted a 2.88 ERA (21 ER/65.2 IP) in 12 starts. He was named the Southern League Pitcher of the Week on June 2, after he tossed 6.0 scoreless innings vs. Chattanooga May 31. In his final start at Double-A on July 1 vs. Chattanooga, he threw a career-high 7.0 innings.

Birdsell finished the 2024 campaign in Triple-A with Iowa, going 4-5 with a 4.26 ERA (29 ER/61.1 IP) and 69 strikeouts in 12 starts. In three starts from Aug. 22-Sept. 4, he allowed one run in 18.0 IP (0.50 ERA), including 12.0 straight scoreless innings from Aug. 22-28. On Sept. 21 at Rochester, the righty threw 7.0 scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts.

A Willis, Texas, native, Birdsell was selected by the Cubs in the fifth round of the 2022 draft out of Texas Tech University. He has appeared in 51 career minor league games (50 starts) in two seasons, going 12-17 with a 3.41 ERA (92 ER/243.0 IP) and 231 strikeouts. He is currently rated by MLB Pipeline as the Cubs’ No. 23 prospect.

The Buck O’Neil Cubs Minor League Player of the Year Award

The Cubs Minor League Player of the Year Award is named after the legendary John “Buck” O’Neil, who spent 33 seasons (1956-88) in the Cubs organization as a scout, coach and instructor. A first baseman and manager for the Kansas City Monarchs, Buck managed Ernie Banks and Gene Baker when the two signed with the Cubs. As a scout for the organization, Buck signed future Hall of Famers Lou Brock and Lee Smith, as well as MLB veterans George Altman, Oscar Gamble and Joe Carter. As a mentor, O’Neil was instrumental in the development of Hall of Famer Billy Williams.

After several seasons as a minor league and spring training instructor, O’Neil was promoted to the Cubs major league coaching staff in 1962 to become the first African American coach in MLB history. A driving force behind the creation of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, O’Neil was a long-time chairman of the institution and was an advocate for inducting Negro League players into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

In 2006, O’Neil was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom – the United States’ highest civilian honor.  Two years later, he was honored by the Hall of Fame with the creation of an award in his honor – the Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award – an award to be given not more than once every three years to honor an individual whose extraordinary efforts enhanced baseball’s positive impact on society, broadened the game’s appeal, and whose character, integrity and dignity are comparable to the qualities exhibited by O’Neil. O’Neil was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in July 2022.

The Vedie Himsl Cubs Minor League Pitcher of the Year Award

The Cubs Minor League Pitcher of the Year Award is named after A.B. “Vedie” Himsl, a former minor league pitcher whose time with the Cubs spanned 32 seasons through 1985.  He joined the organization as a scout, and a year later in 1953 co-authored the final scouting report recommending the signing of Ernie Banks – the first African American to play for the Cubs. By the late 1950s, Himsl added roles as roving pitching instructor and minor league coordinator to his scouting duties.

Himsl joined the Cubs major league staff as pitching coach in 1960 and served as part of the College of Coaches system through the 1964 season. In 1961, Himsl was named the first Head Coach in MLB history, serving three stints in the role during the season. He also served as Head Coach for many of the team’s minor league affiliates during the College of Coaches era.

Himsl joined the front office in 1965 serving as the Assistant Director of Player Development and Procurement for four years.  After a two-year stint as Director of MLB’s Central Scouting Bureau, he returned to the Cubs in 1971, and a year later was promoted to Director of Scouting, a position he held until retiring after the 1985 season. Himsl continued to consult with the Cubs on scouting matters for well over the next decade.

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