Chicago Cubs - PlayerWatch

[July 16, 2014]  SS Starlin Castro has bounced back from a miserable 2013 when he hit a career-low .245 with just 44 RBIs. So far this season, the 24-year-old shortstop played in his 700th career game on Sunday and is batting .276 with 103 hits, 11 home runs and 52 RBIs in 93 games. His average and hits are second among major league shortstops. Castro was named to his third All-Star game this month, just the third Cubs shortstop so honored.

LHP Travis Wood (7-8) allowed seven runs on seven hits while walking three and striking out four. It's the most runs he's allowed at Wrigley Field since giving up eight in five innings against the Cardinals on July 27, 2012. Wood issued leadoff walks in three straight innings. He fell to 0-1 in two career starts against Atlanta.

3B Kris Bryant, the Cubs' leading prospect, is batting .346 with 31 home runs and 81 RBIs in 92 games between Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa. But the Cubs are reluctant to bring him up without more seasoning and say he'll stay at Iowa for the rest of the year.

2B Arismendy Alcantara, starting at second base and batting second, went 2-for-5 with a run, double and his first major league home run in the sixth inning. Alcantara, who could head back to Triple-A Iowa over the break, is batting .391 with six runs, three doubles, a triple, a homer and five RBIs in five games since making his big league debut last week. ."

C John Baker went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs, his second multi-hit game of the season while extending his current hitting streak to five games (.538, 7-for-13). Baker doubled in two runs in the eighth as the Cubs trimmed the deficit to 10-7. "It's a positive sign when you keep grinding and get runs back especially after our start," he said. "We gave up seven runs in the first three innings and then we ended up scoring seven. So we did our best to be able to come back."

2B Emilio Bonifacio scored the lone run on Saturday after walking and stealing second in the Mesa Cubs' 3-1 loss to the White Sox in the Arizona Rookie League during a rehab appearance. He's on the 15-day disabled list with an oblique strain.

LF Chris Coghlan went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, a homer, two RBIs and walked once on Sunday. After posting a .147 average in May and a .232 mark in June, Coghlan is batting .435 (20-for-46) with eight doubles, three home runs and 12 RBIs in 13 July games.

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