Milton High School graduate Dylan Cease hasn’t hit the big leagues yet, but he’s leaving his mark in the minors.
After striking out 37 batters over 23.2 innings in April, Cease was named Minor League Pitcher of the Month by the Chicago Cubs. The 21-year-old is playing for the reigning World Series' champs' Advanced-A affiliate in South Bend, Indiana.
Cease, who was drafted straight out of Milton in the sixth round by the Cubs in 2014, has a 1.88 ERA through six starts this season. The 6-foot-2 right-handed pitcher has given up just one home run and walked 16 batters while striking out 43.
Scouts say that Cease can throw over 100 mph, but he told MLB.com that this is the first season he can “really get to go at it” since his Tommy John surgery. Cease, an All-American at Milton high, was projected to be a first round pick before an elbow injury in his senior season.
"It's fun. The surgery changed me," Cease told MLB.com. "For one, physically, it taught me to take care of my body and my arm better. I was able to work out that year off and learn a lot about my mechanics. As a person, any time you go through anything difficult, you're going to learn from it. I think the experience definitely helped me grow up."
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Cease had his best outing of the season so far on April 29 when he fanned 10 batters and allowed just two hits over 4.2 innings of work.
MLB.com ranks Cease the 68th best prospect in all of baseball and the third best prospect in the Cubs' system. MLB.com estimates that he'll make his major league debut in 2019.
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