Vote for the Chicago Cubs Minor League Player of the Month for August

It’s hard to believe that the minor league season ended yesterday, and now we have a bit of business to take care of. It’s time for you to chose the Minor League Player of the Month!

The rules remain the same. I pick five players, one from each of the top five minor league affiliates. You vote for the one you think had the best month. You can choose based on whatever criteria you want, but I do ask that you vote based on only what the player did in the month of August.

Later today we’ll do the Pitcher of the Month vote (9 am CT), and Wednesday and Thursday you’ll also get the chance to vote for the Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Year.

Clicking on a player’s name will take you to their milb.com page for more information.

If you’re reading this on Google AMP or Apple News, you’ll have to go to a browser to vote.

The nominees are:

Iowa Cubs outfielder Mark Zagunis:

I’m going to admit that the I-Cubs haven’t had the best month. Heck, they haven’t had the best season as they sport the worst record in all of Triple-A. But in August, the 25-year-old Zagunis kept doing what he does best: get on base. Zagunis played 23 games and he walked 17 times. His overall slash line for the month was .277/.434/.446 with two home runs and two steals. It’s hard to see where Zagunis fits in the Cubs’ crowded outfield, but you have to believe that some team could use those kinds of on-base skills.

Tennessee Smokies shortstop Zack Short:

Short struggled to hit singles in August and in 2018 in general. But he still manages to get on base through the walk and he doesn’t seem to have many difficulties hitting doubles and home runs. In August, Short had 19 hits in 92 at-bats, which is a paltry .207 batting average. But he had 18 walks, four doubles and six home runs in the month. That gave him a solid .348 on-base percentage and a good .446 slugging percentage for the month. He scored 14 times and drove in 15.

South Bend Cubs/Myrtle Beach Pelicans second baseman Christian Donahue:

Donahue is one of the great success stories this year. Signed as an undrafted free agent last last season, the Oregon State alumnus has put in a terrific first professional season, highlighted by his promotion from South Bend to Myrtle Beach on August 22.

For the month of August between the two levels, Donahue hit .286/.374/.417 over 26 games. In 11 games in Myrtle Beach, Donahue hit .300/.432/.600 with two home runs.

South Bend Cubs infielder Delvin Zinn:

Donahue’s promotion to Myrtle Beach opened up more regular playing time for Zinn and he did not squander the opportunity. Zinn had an 11-game hitting streak that was snapped on August 30. In 26 games for South Bend, the 21-year-old Zinn hit .322/.406/.389. Zinn is pretty much a singles hitter as 26 of his 29 hits in August were singles: he had one double, one triple and one home run. But between his 29 hits, 12 walks and two hit by pitches, Zinn got on base a lot in August.

Eugene Emeralds outfielder Nelson Velazquez:

A lot was expected out of the 19-year-old Puerto Rican coming into this season, but the first half of the year was a big disappointment. Velazquez has lived up to expectations in the second half.

In 25 games in August, Velazquez hit .282/.396/.506 with six doubles, two triples and three home runs. He scored 18 times and drove in 12. He even stole seven bases in ten attempts.

He hit two more home runs in September, but those don’t count.