Josiah Hartshorn Promoted to AA for Another Playoff Run

Josiah Hartshorn rocketed to the top of the Cubs’ prospect list this year in his first season of professional baseball, finishing the regular season with a .289/.411/.528 slash line, 23 home runs, and 110 RBI between Low-A Myrtle Beach and High-A South Bend. What makes those numbers even more impressive is that he will still be a teenager for almost five more months. Hartshorn had nothing left to prove at A-ball, but the Cubs wanted him to experience a postseason run before moving on.

Following South Bend’s exit from the playoffs after losing to Quad Cities, the phenom will get a little more action with the Knoxville Smokies. As first reported by Chase Ford of MiLB Central, the Cubs are sending Hartshorn to Tennessee for the final weekend of the Double-A regular season. He will then try to help the Smokies in their playoff series next week against an opponent that is still TBD.

Hartshorn will likely begin next season at Double-A, at which point he could be just a call away from the bigs. The Cubs like to get their prospects a little more seasoning at Triple-A, but there are plenty of examples of uber-talented players making the jump. That could even come as a cup of coffee between promotions, which was notably the case for Kyle Schwarber in 2015.