The Detroit Tigers made a trade!
In a shortened season where it was hard to tell if the Tigers (16-16, two games back of the final American League playoff spot) were buyers or sellers, they made completed a small move for the future.
Outfielder Cameron Maybin was dealt minutes before Monday’s trade deadline to the Chicago Cubs for minor-league middle-infielder Zack Short. Short, 25, is on the Cubs’ 40-man roster and was ranked the 21st-best prospect in their organization (MLB.com has ranked him No. 27 in the Tigers’ organization).
[ Tigers make one trade at deadline, keep roster intact for playoff push ]
‘Surprising power’
MLB.com describes Short as a versatile and talented defender with “surprising power” for his 5-foot-10, 180-pound frame. He was projected to make his MLB debut last year before a hand injury limited the first half of his season at Triple-A Iowa.
“The Cubs would like to see him shorten his stroke, develop more consistency and make adjustments to catch up to fastballs up in the zone,” reads a description of the Kingston, New York native. “While he doesn’t hit for average, he does work deep counts and draw a lot of walks, fueling healthy on-base percentages.”
Short, a 17th-round pick in 2016, blasted six home runs and nine doubles in 133 at-bats over 41 games last season for the Iowa Cubs. He slashed .211/.348/.414 with 17 RBIs.
In 341 total at-bats in the minors, he has 37 home runs and 162 RBIs, slashing .241/.377/.405.
Podcasts and putts
After preseason preparations were delayed because of the pandemic, Short jumped into the podcast game, creating “The Compound” with fellow young Cubs Ian Happ and Dakota Mekkes. It may be his second calling.
He was on a former teammate’s podcast last week and before that, was featured on a separate one, where he debated New York vs. Chicago pizza (Detroit has something to say about that).
“The Compound” now has more than two dozen episodes and covers a range of topics from current events in the NBA and PGA to interviews with Jeremy Piven and Anthony Rizzo.
Speaking of the PGA, Zack Short seems to be a big golf guy. The descriptions of his podcast episodes as well as his Twitter profile show a dude who loves the links.
We’re here for all of it.
Follow the Free Press on Facebook and Twitter for more news. Tyler Davis can be contacted at tjdavis@freepress.com or on Twitter @TDavisFreep.
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