When Frank Batista got word the Chicago Cubs wanted to look at him as a potential starter this season with the Double-A Tennessee Smokies, he didn’t sweat it. It was just one more opportunity for the 26-year-old right-hander from Santiago, Dominican Republic to show what he could do.
Batista had been a minor league All-Star in the bullpen and had worked as a closer almost exclusively for the previous three seasons, but the Cubs saw something in the 5-foot-10, 170-pound pitcher and whatever it was, it’s working for the Smokies. Batista is 6-1 with a 1.67 ERA in 10 starts and one of those wins is a complete-game shutout.
“Even though I had a pretty good career in the bullpen, the Cubs gave me this opportunity,” Batista said. “I can excel even more as a starter. I felt good. I’m glad I got the opportunity to do this. Physically you have to prepare yourself more because you’re pitching for longer periods of time. It’s more the physical side than the mental side. Mentally, you have to prepare yourself for a minimum of five innings.”
Unconventional #Cubs prospect Frank Batista lowers @SLeagueBaseball League-leading ERA to 1.11 for @smokiesbaseball. http://t.co/22onIctdMP
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) May 23, 2015
Batista is a laid-back guy. Signed as a 20-year-old kid, Batista had never traveled outside of the Dominican Republic before the Cubs brought him to America. He’s been in the the United States since 2009, but has barely taken the time to pick up any English and still prefers to speak to the media through an interpreter. Luckily enough for me, Smokies assistant hitting coach Guillermo Martinez didn’t mind lending a hand.
Batista hasn’t focused on learning the language, he hasn’t focused on his comfort and he doesn’t focus on the position the Chicago Cubs have picked him to play. He focuses on what he can control. The rest, he leaves up to a higher power.
“I have to keep my head down and keep working,” Batista said. “The only one who knows what’s going to happen is God.”
Coming into Saturday night, Batista has the best record in the Southern League and the second best ERA, behind only the Montgomery Biscuit’s Blake Snell’s 1.48. Snell, a Tampa Bay Rays’ prospect, has three fewer starts than Batista and a 3-1 record and has pitched in 17 fewer innings.
Efficient start for Frank Batista. Has thrown first pitch strikes to 8 of the first 9 batters he's faced. #Smokies #Cubs
— Justin Rocke (@JustinRocke) June 2, 2015
Batista is probably a good four inches shorter and 30 pounds lighter than your average starting pitcher. But that’s just one more thing he can’t control.
“If a man believes in himself, he’s going to go out and pitch well,” Batista said. “I’ve always worked hard my whole entire life to excel at this game. This (success) didn’t surprise me because I believe in myself.”
What Batista can control is his pitches and as the veteran of six pro baseball seasons at various minor league levels, he’s developed quite a few.
“He (Batista) has the ability to command the fastball on both sides of the plate,” Smokies manager Buddy Bailey said. “That sets up your change-up and the breaking ball. Being a starter, you realize that you’re going to see more lefties and you have to develop more pitches to get people out. His change-up has helped him and he’s willing to throw it against right-handed hitters too.”
One thing Batista hasn’t been able to do is put a bat on a baseball. He’s never recorded a single hit in his career and since he’s on a major league club, at least for now, that’s going to come up a lot. When you ask Batista about it, he just laughs.
“I just try to get the ball in play,” he said. “That’s all I can do.”
Prospect Watch
The Cubs Double-A farm hands got a visit from Chicago outfielder Chris Denorfia this week. Denorfia, a 10-year veteran, came to Tennessee on Thursday night to begin a rehab stint with the team after suffering a hamstring injury last month. Denorfia was batting .429 for the Cubs when he went down 12 games into the season.
Kyle Schwarber, Willson Contreras and Dan Vogelbach continue to be monsters at the plate for the Cubs in Double-A. Coming into Saturday night Schwarber is batting .327 with 12 home runs, one triple, seven doubles and 37 RBIs. Contreras is batting .326 with five homers, two triples, 14 doubles and 31 RBIs and Vogelbach is hitting .320 with four dingers, one triple, 12 doubles and 24 RBIs.
