Cubs 2023 Prospect Wraps: Brennen Davis

InsidetheCubs.com will review each of the Chicago Cubs’ Top 30 prospects, as ranked by MLB.com at the end of the 2023 season.

No. 19: OF Brennen Davis, Iowa Cubs (Triple-A), South Bend Cubs (High-A), Arizona Complez League Cubs (Rookie)

Statistics for 2023: (71 games) .201/.297/.307/.604 with 30 runs, 12 doubles, five home runs, 30 RBI, nine stolen bases, 23 walks, 73 strikeouts.

With Iowa (62 games) .187/.296/.279/.574 with 27 runs, eight doubles, four home runs, 26 RBI, nine stolen bases, 22 walks, 58 strikeouts.

With South Bend (five games) .208/.208/.417/.625 with three runs, two doubles, one home run, three RBI, no walks, 12 strikeouts.

With ACL Cubs (four games) .455/.500/.636/.1.136 with two doubles, one RBI, one walk, three strikeouts.

Season Transactions: Started season with Iowa. Moved to 7-day injured list on June 7. Sent to ACL Cubs for a rehab assignment on Aug. 17. Sent to South Bend for a rehab assignment on Aug. 23. Activated from the injured list on Aug. 31.

Season Summary: Injuries have been a big problem for Davis throughout his minor league career, including a right index finger injury, a concussion and back surgery. This season was, unfortunately, no exception. His numbers never got on track at Iowa, where the Cubs were hoping that he could bounce back and perhaps be an option for them at the Major League level. Instead he had to sit on the injured list for more than a month, do a couple of rehab assignments and then return to Iowa. In thinking about Davis’ development, this ended up turning into a lost season.

Path Through the Organization: the Cubs took the two-sport star out of Basha High School in Chandler, Ariz., with their second-round pick in 2018 and forked over a $1.1 million signing bonus. He was the MVP of the 2021 SiriusXM All Star Futures Game, but unfortunately injuries have derailed his progress. But when he's been healthy he's been able to add power to his game, improve his bat speed and become a solid outfielder.

What’s next: Davis has to find a way to stay healthy. That's the first job. The next will be trying to work his way back into a position where he can get to the Major League level. That requires batting better than his .190 average the past two seasons. He'll also have to prove he can be a good corner outfield option, as No. 1 overall prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong would appear to be the future at center field. There's plenty of talent there but his progress has made his road to Chicago more difficult.

2023 Chicago Cubs Top 30 Prospect Wraps:

No. 30: Christian Franklin | No. 29: Brody McCullough | No. 28: Kohl Franklin | No. 27: Pablo Aliendo | No. 26: Porter Hodge | No. 25: Luke Little | No. 24: Jaxon Wiggins | No. 23: Caleb Kilian | No. 22: Josh Rivera | No. 21: Luis Vazquez | No. 20: Cristian Hernandez |