{"id":55406,"date":"2025-05-15T15:43:55","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T15:43:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406"},"modified":"2025-05-15T15:43:55","modified_gmt":"2025-05-15T15:43:55","slug":"cubs-prospect-becoming-must-see-player-crushing-balls-on-fast-track-to-big-leagues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406","title":{"rendered":"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<div>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Jefferson-Rojas.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Jefferson-Rojas.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Jefferson-Rojas.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Jefferson-Rojas.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues\" width=\"780\" height=\"439\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Michael Clubb\/South Bend Tribune\/USA Today Network<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Cubs shortstop prospect Jefferson Rojas<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">A year ago, <\/span>Jefferson Rojas <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> was a very young player at High-A South Bend just getting acclimated to playing at that level.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">These days, the <\/span>No. 6 prospect <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> for the <\/span>Chicago Cubs <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> is still a very young player at High-A, who is showing the Midwest League that he will probably be at Double-A Knoxville in the very near future.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Jefferson Rojas Named Midwest League Player of the Week<\/h2>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<div id=\"5658c55af3c2b7dd485b8ccb24974729\" class=\"embed_container\">\n<div class=\"lazy-embed lazy-embed--ssr embed-instagram-com lazy-embed--loaded\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/sbcubs\/p\/DJkCDCIOf6u\/?img_index=1\"><iframe id=\"instagram-embed-0\" class=\"instagram-media instagram-media-rendered\" src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DJkCDCIOf6u\/embed\/captioned\/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=656&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fheavy.com&amp;rp=%2Fsports%2Fmlb%2Fchicago-cubs%2Fjefferson-rojas-rising-quickly-for-cubs%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A5676.19999999553%7D\" height=\"1185\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-instgrm-payload-id=\"instagram-media-payload-0\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Rojas, a shortstop who just turned 20 on April 25, has crushed the ball this season. In 102 plate appearances over 23 games, Rojas has posted a slash line of .326\/.402\/.539 with an OPS of .941, knocking out five doubles and four home runs with 15 RBIs and 5 stolen bases.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">On Monday, Rojas was named the <\/span>Player of the Week in the High-A Midwest League <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> after driving in seven runs a week ago on eight hits, including two homers and a triple. In the <\/span>updated top 100 prospects list <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> released by MLB Pipeline the day before, Rojas was among the top rising prospects, moving 10 spots to No. 78.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Rojas also impressed the people at Baseball America, who touted him in <\/span>Monday\u2019s \u201cHot Sheet\u201d <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> as one of the hottest prospects from the previous week after slashing .444\/.545\/.889 with three walks and just two strikeouts:<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cRojas held his own following an aggressive assignment to High-A South Bend to begin 2024. He returned to the level to begin 2025 and has enjoyed strong results. Last week, Rojas torched Fort Wayne pitching, racking up a pair of three-hit games and reaching base in all five games in which he played. Rojas\u2019 best performance came on Sunday when he slugged two home runs in a 3-for-4 showing. On the season, he is hitting .300\/.387\/.513 over 21 games. At 20 years old, Rojas is still one of the youngest players in the Midwest League.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MLB.com predicts that Rojas <\/span>will be the Cubs\u2019 No. 1 prospect <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> in 2027, stating, \u201cSigned for $1 million out of the Dominican Republic in 2022 based on his advanced bat, Rojas makes consistent contact, offers 20-homer upside and should be a dependable shortstop.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Of course, that\u2019s assuming he isn\u2019t playing at Wrigley Field by then. Which might seem preposterous, given his age, but Rojas has been a very impressive player since he was <\/span>signed as an international free agent <span data-contrast=\"auto\"> to a $1 million deal in 2022. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Jefferson Rojas Credits \u2018Very Mature Mindset\u2019 For Success at Young Age<\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The native of Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, wasted no time introducing himself to the baseball world, slashing .303\/.391\/.407 in 145 at bats at the Dominican Summer League shortly\u00a0after signing the contract. As an 18-year-old at Single-A Myrtle Beach in 2023, Rojas slashed .268\/.345\/.404, with 14 doubles, seven home runs, 31 RBIs and 13 stolen bases.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cEven though I\u2019m young, I consider myself to have a very mature mindset,\u201d Rojas said <\/span>of his transition to the Single-A level <span data-contrast=\"auto\">. \u201cSomebody that can definitely play and adjust to whatever is needed.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">That will likely mean adjusting to Double-A pitching, possibly before spring turns to summer. Rest assured that Rojas will be prepared when the time comes.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cI\u2019m always ready,\u201d <\/span>Rojas said <span data-contrast=\"auto\">. \u201cI\u2019m ready for the opportunity.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Dave Benson Dave Benson is a longtime writer with over three decades of experience in a variety of mediums, including 15 years covering high school, collegiate and minor league sports in the St. Louis metropolitan area. Dave is also a licensed English teacher and spent a few years teaching at the middle school level. More about Dave Benson<\/p>\n<h2>More Heavy on Cubs News<\/h2>\n<p>Loading more stories<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Though just 20 years old, Chicago Cubs international free agent Jefferson Rojas has been impressive and could soon be at the Double-A level.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":55407,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-55406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Though just 20 years old, Chicago Cubs international free agent Jefferson Rojas has been impressive and could soon be at the Double-A level.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-05-15T15:43:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406\",\"name\":\"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-15T15:43:55+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-15T15:43:55+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":1000},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\",\"name\":\"XuanTan\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"XuanTan\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues - NEWS USA","og_description":"Though just 20 years old, Chicago Cubs international free agent Jefferson Rojas has been impressive and could soon be at the Double-A level.","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2025-05-15T15:43:55+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":1000,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"XuanTan","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"XuanTan","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406","name":"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg","datePublished":"2025-05-15T15:43:55+00:00","dateModified":"2025-05-15T15:43:55+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-05-15T224348.126.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=55406#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Cubs Prospect Becoming Must-See Player, Crushing Balls on Fast Track to Big Leagues"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06","name":"XuanTan","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"XuanTan"},"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=55406"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55406\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":55408,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55406\/revisions\/55408"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/55407"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=55406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=55406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=55406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}