• Chicago Cubs lefty Justin Steele is one of the few potential starting pitching prospects in the system, and he showed a little better velocity in his outing Thursday. Steele was throwing a 91-95 mph fastball and a solid-average curveball at 79-81 that he landed for strikes while also flashing a changeup that was too firm. Steele threw 50 innings this year in his rehab and return from 2017 Tommy John surgery, so it's a positive step to see that velocity again.
• The Cubs also sent their first-round pick from this year, shortstop Nico Hoerner, an undersized middle infielder from Stanford who looks like a very smart player and shows good instincts on the bases and in the field. But he's very light on tools. He's a below-average runner who didn't make any hard contact when I saw him and doesn't look like he will, given his size