Sit Down With Chicago Cubs Prospect Owen Caissie

Sit Down With Chicago Cubs Prospect Owen Caissie

here with Owen Casey who is putting together another really strong season now at the triaa level and we’re right about the halfway mark of the year how would you say it’s going for you so far and how have you been feeling uh it’s been good you know there’s been a lot of adjustments this year compared to daa um I feel like the pitchers are a lot smarter here uh and adjusting to like the automatic Strike Zone and the uh like the challenge calls is pretty cool but it’s been good so far I’m learning a lot about myself and just like how to cope with things and how to like really play with the game and uh like the game within the game you already kind of led me right into one of the other questions I was going to ask because I think one of the most impressive things about what you’ve done at each stop on top of the numbers is that you’ve been one of the youngest guys at each stop but now you get to AAA yeah it it’s probably the biggest age Gap that you’ve had but at the same time you also have more experience than you’ve ever had so would you say this has been the biggest leap for you just from the game within the game standpoint in terms of just making that adjustment uh personally yeah um this is definitely the biggest leak I was telling my uh roommate uh BJ Murray about that like yesterday he’s like yeah I feel like this is the biggest Leep for me because you really have to like play with the game like like I said before um these pitchers are smarter here they’re not like 22 years old you know some of guys are 30 plus years old they’ve been around a long time you know big Leaguers and everything like that so it’s really just like focusing on what I want to do and not let letting them like deviate myself from my plan um but that’s definitely the biggest jump this year is from my opinion is from doublea triaa just because of how you know like honestly how veteran the league is well what’s interesting too though is it’s not like you had very easy circumstances in the southern League given the uh they way they kind of treated you like any PS with the with the baseball and something that stood out to me and it was of course it was League wide but of course people were going to look at it more specifically with the top prospects and you know with you it’s always been proven that okay I can Crush home runs but also that you’re going to hit and you you’ve hit for average everywhere but everyone you know he always going to try to find the one thing yeah the second attack balls were out of circulation the strikeout rate went totally down was that you getting acclimated to the level or was that the balls being out of circulation or do you think a little bit of both and uh I’ll follow up after you answer that with just what the balls were like but I just want to start with would you feel like it was more of you adjusting to double a cuz that’s also a big leag too from high or was it the balls also kind of getting out of circulation there because there were some silly numbers I think it’s both really because you know everyone I don’t really think the balls near like the Midway Mark of the season with the sigy balls were crazy but at the start I feel like they were like nuts but I feel like uh at the start compared to the end I it was kind of just me getting used to the league more comfortable myself and uh obviously the balls aren’t going like crazy hop ride and everything like that too so I know people like to use like phone balls when they’re training because everyone’s hunting ivb on the mound and you know you’re just getting so much ride on these heaters did you feel like that was almost foam ball training for you in a game setting to where now when you get into a more regular setting uh you almost feel more prepared for for ball fast balls with ride like that um yeah I mean like I remember the first week or two I felt like the balls were legitimately going like up but um you know it was good it was a challenge and one thing I would like hear guys complain about it on other teams and even our team and I would just be like we’re all in the same boat here so let’s just kind of like play and just get it over with at the halfway mark but uh no for real like the balls my eyes were had to adjust for sure for the first two weeks and then when that went kind of when they were out of circulation did it just become easier for you did you have to also recalibrate again because stuff isn’t quite moving the same like cu guys were also getting a lot more horizontal too on some stuff yeah a lot of guys were like really spinning curve balls and Sliders really well with the sticky balls but I feel like when the second half kicked around it was more sinkers the sinkers and Champion guys played better than the ride and like curveball guys because at the start like the Sinker guys and the champion guys were like riding their fast ball and their change up was like a 90 mph two seamer yeah like it wasn’t like diving because the spin rate was so High um but it was definitely adjustment period with that cuz there was more sink and then more definitely change up so I mean just like the game within the game how much do you like kind of diving into those things was that maybe one of the instances where you became a little bit more interested in you know the the pitch shapes of of what opponents may have of course so much information is readily available but you also don’t want to overwhelm yourself with that information especially when you know you’ve been producing at each stop uh how much do you like to look into those things and and how much of that goes into your preparation um I’m not going to lie I do a little scun report on every picture before I go to sleep every night um like we have a charting like pitch f ER like what they like to throw and everything like that so I’m pretty analytical the night before but as soon as the game time rolls around or like the day of I’m not really looking into it cuz I already have what I want to do mind yeah I got my plan like like I said I try to like dream on it like say cuz I will have dreams of that bass sometimes um which is nice but like the Cubs do a great job with their with their system and they provide us with a bunch of information um so I really like getting into analytical side of things um just nothing too crazy have you ever had a that bat go very similar to your dream uh I remember one time that freak me out I remember one time I was like I had at bat where I swung miss a fast wall then I took a change up out in the way for strike and it was O2 count and the guy front hit me with a sinker and like I hit double on the left Centerfield Gap because I like inside out of it and I did that one time in like end of high a two years ago but never that’s the only time yeah that’s the only time that’s pretty cool though I me visualization I know is something that a lot of people uh preach and I know Michael Jordan being one of them is someone that you know is definely backed that something else that I’ve noticed this year as well is of course you’re walking more than you ever have I I know some of that could be the ABS and and the smaller Zone but you also have talked about really being focused on your plan now more than ever again is it is it the which variable is is you know more important here do you think um obviously the strike zone I’m not going to lie is pretty small here not so small it’s the plate I guess um but there’s really no variance in like the height and like the width so I mean you can really hone in on your Strike Zone awareness but obviously you know when I go into the at bat with my Approach and my plan of just sticking middle I’m going to take those you know two three inch balls off the corner but uh I feel like it’s a play of both um but like my walk rate’s always been in the higher side as well with my strikeout rate but um it’s just a thing I really try to focus on is really just staying middle like last night in the last night game that was not on my plan yeah but that happens and you you mentioned kind of just the the strikeout rate and the walk being high that’s going to come just with getting deep into counts and you know you’re able to get deep into counts pretty comfortably and you do a lot of damage in in two strike counts when you’re you’re deep in so like is that something that you are still trying to balance because I have noticed this year where you’ve been taking some let’s say B swings at balls and producing 108 it’s like you could still produce so much power even if you’re a little bit fooled so knowing that like how do you balance the okay I still want to slug like that’s what I’m going to at the big leagues I’m a slugger I’m a power hitter but also hey you know I do want to be able to sprinkle in those singles and especially now seeing that sometimes when you’re even fooled you can produce some ridiculous EVS yeah I mean my biggest thing is just hit a line drive and my natural Loft and like back spin the ball will carry it but I just really I don’t I really don’t try to slug I really just try to hit the ball see ball hit ball um and let my swing just take over but uh at the end of the day I just want to like I said see ball hit ball and right back at the pitcher’s head with the ball you’ve had similar like a similar setup and and similar moves for the most part for most of your your professional career but one thing I did notice over the last I think maybe starting in last year a little bit quieter with with the hands and that hand load was that something that you did going into 2022 and and how did that kind of help you just in general I assume timing I assume a little bit of maybe even adjustability from there uh what was that process like and you know how did you decide to kind of make that switch because you were still performing yeah uh I mean in high it was really really really big like a lot of movement and then over the offseason I was like okay I legit have to you know calm this down because the biggest thing they were getting me was I late and I would foul back fast ball foul back fast ball but r i was crushing off speed but those fast balls I want to hit I wasn’t so it was really just kind of like a mature maturing process and like talking with the Cubs and they were just like yeah just quiet down and all I had to do was kind of just like keep him still and quiet but uh yeah going into the offseason of 22 so going for last year um really just tried to keep him quiet and not not do too much and just fire my hands that’s really what I’ve kind of gone through was how much was it a lot of repetition to get there because I know for some people you do something for so long it you almost feel like you’re you’re a fish out of water trying to do a different move and and and still trying to be on time and not maybe break into some other habits was that something that kind of still came easy for you or or did it take some time I do know that going into 22 we did a we had a quick conversation you you were kind of enough to take the time fall league and you had mentioned that you were spending the whole offseason or for the most part in Arizona working on a bunch of different things was that the time where that you were able to get those reps in and focus on that yeah I mean like you said was it a hard transition honestly no because all I have to do was just tell myself to calm down and breathe and not think about my hands and they would they would still have that move like that click kind of but um it was just a lot smaller and I wouldn’t focus on it it was just like breathe relax and it was really really small but um the Cubs are H great you know they don’t they don’t Tinker with my swing they let me do my own thing um because they have trust in me and I really appreciate that um but you know it was just kind of like just continue to be me and um just like fine-tune the things and I know what I need to do and they know that too so it was just a really good offseason left left this year like seems like more comfortable than ever uh yeah you laugh like is is there something is something that clicked for you or is that just kind of a I don’t know I’m just hitting lefties better this year um I feel like it’s a the maturation process and um the Cubs plan for me last last offseason was you know you need to hit lefties better um so I really honed in on that um it’s just really uh being like getting like comfortable comfortable comfortable more reps you know because obviously you’re going to see more righties than lefties and I feel like in this league especially there like there’s a lot of lefties in this leag um so it’s just really getting more reps and Reps and Reps and just being comfortable with getting the ball out front and Lefty uh but uh you know it was just a big just being a more mature hitter in my opinion what is it you know for those that are listening who you know not stepped in the Box against professional pitching to really understand the the difference and why the splits are so dramatic for for a lot of hitters especially power guys what is it that makes it so difficult left on left other than the fact that the breaking balls are breaking away from you you you know what is it that can make it more difficult for a hitter maybe to trust their mechanics to stay on the ball or or just to be as productive I know for me it’s sinkers I really have yeah I really have to be careful not to chase the Sinker in because I’m either going to foul off my shin or gr on the first base um so I really have to push him out but then it’s the slider breaking away and like I said before um when you’re trying to push a guy out and you don’t see it that much the sliders go out and then you’re swinging at it but it’s really just focusing middle and like find your Zone and where you want to fire but uh for me it’s sinkers like foram ride guys are okay I know Fel struck me out yesterday but uh you know I still felt comfortable and I felt fine with that at bat but uh it’s really just being stubborn and like really just staying to your Zone guys with like power breaking Ms and now we have we have a big like of course guys are looking at on how they can tunnel and and just I mean they have the feedback and the information that you’re diving into for your scouting reports they’re diving into to make themselves better pitchers and the guy you faced last night pretty good at that well you know someone like that where it’s a power breaking ball and then that fast that’s kind of running up and away a little bit as well what what is what is an approach for you in that kind of situation and and and do you feel like there’s just more pitchers than ever kind of able to kind of create that tunnel because now I mean less less emphasis on the change up when you can have that down down breaking you know breaking ball have you f felt like you you’ve been seeing more of those from righties uh I feel like I saw more breaking balls like 12 sixes in able a than tripa this year I feel like if a guy has a really good pitch here like a slider they stick to it here and rather in daa they kind of like have a plan like every team has a plan like oh we’re going to stick to our plan here rather than the guy’s plan but uh um no I feel like I really do feel like in Triple A if the guy has a really good pitch he’s going to stick to it and he’s only going to deviate when you’re like kind of on it yeah and it I mean that’s a pitch that not very many people have been on all year for him so he stuck to it pretty good for sure I I want to ask about the defense a little bit too because I mean the tools it’s fun to watch when when you’re going out there and you one loose Ian you can really throw out there um they’ve moved you back and forth from right and left naturally most people think big arm you go and right uh is there a side of the field that you’re more comfortable on and and and what’s the defensive progress been for you because you know again going back to the conversation we had before you were getting ready for double A I know you would if I remember correctly you were talking about kind of speed and and try to be a little bit quicker and and just move better and and I think that’s more than evident that you’re able to do that out there how’s that that progression been for you it’s been good um my speed progression has been very very good um uh we wear these like catapult things these like GPS’s and I’m like TP in the Oregon speed and everything like that but really just in uh The Outfield I’m really working on my brakes in my first step um we called tear up 10 um like the first 10 steps of the route you got to like really get that get after it cuz that’s really what matters um try to beat the ball a spot like last night I had a ball go on my glove and then dunk out on the wall um but uh it’s really just been a know I’m getting older I’m learning more stuff you know the wind everything like that cuz as a kid I didn’t get many reps but now I’m learning and learning learning and um you know just like watching like when I was playing with Pete PCA uh I mean he’s the best out Builder I’ve ever played with so I really just try to like pick his mind and um just try to really watch what he does and try to like emulate um the actions he does obviously it’s kind of hard to do but uh really just watch and learn and um try to just um ask guys questions we we had Pete on the show and we pulled some of the video and I said like walk us through this and you realize I think he’s gifted it’s god-given yeah but people don’t I think realize how much goes into the mental side of Defending as well how much are you looking at like you know swings being that you know you’re a smart hitter and love to study what goes into that so obviously you know a lot about you you probably see a swing and say oh he was this or that he pulled off it what that could maybe mean to how the ball is going to fly towards you how much are you looking at that or how much is more just trusting the scouting reports or you do you have a little bit of your own feel for it now when you’re looking at hitters and and seeing maybe how that ball may fly off of his Bat uh I’m definitely more of a field outfielder rather than a SC report I’ll like stay in the area of the SC report but like if he’s laying a fast ball I’m going to move a step over yeah like or if he’s you know really getting the head out maybe I’ll play little over it depends on the pitcher too the wind also like um Frasier yesterday he’s really hitting ball so um I forget he was pitching I think it was Kyle and I moved like three steps in the Gap and he hit one the Gap and boom I was there and I caught it uh so it’s just you know those little tinkering um things you got to do but uh it’s really just like playing and also really annoying thing is when guys use all black bats at night because you can’t see the swing path so like when a guy uses like a unfinished or like a like a unfinished Barrel you can really see the swing plane so that’s also another thing too so it really is helpful feedback to see that that plan it is for sure that’s awesome and this I want to go back to the speed thing real quick cuz I know Cubs fans as you can tell like they’re really excited about everything when it comes to prospects I think they’re as tapped in as anybody and they they want to see they’re already they already want to see Moises up they want to see you up they want to see everybody but the speed thing will probably get them very excited just because again I don’t think people realize a lot of times the big Power hitters a lot of times they overl the athleticism uh how have you trying you mentioned it in in the field like trying to convert that speed into you know more game speed on the base paths once you get going you can see it but you know I I I remember you also mentioning I want to steal some some more bags you’ve done that a little bit this year they have five so far are are you more focused on just like when I’m underway I know I’m set on The Base PS or do you still want to try to have that be a part of your game I still wanted I still want to be part of my game I have five right now and um I’m not going to say what I try and do every week because I know maybe some of the guys are listening to it but I really just try to be pick my times you know um pick and choose right and just really get the right jumps cuz you know just pick on little things like if the pitcher shakes twice boom boom he wants to throw a certain pitch and I’m going to go like he’s not going to pick off after shaking twice yeah or like um you know just really picking up on the timing of things cuz the pitchers do fall into habits um but you know I really try to add to my game and I’m still learning um you know in spring training uh I was just really like listening to the bass dealers and how they do things like what I picked up on the two Shake thing like I’ve never heard of that before but that’s like pretty good uh information yeah that’s awesome just a couple more quick ones for you we got we got some guys on our just baseball staff an abnormal amount of Canadians actually um so they anytime we have we have anything out on on any Prospect player that that’s from Canada they’re all pumped up I think we have an abnormal amount of Canada baseball covers to be honest the nailers get a lot of run on your site but what I have noticed and it might again just be because we have so many writers now in Canada it seems like the baseball just continues to to grow there and take off and the talent you know every time I do my draft prep I just see more prospects from there uh and I felt like you know your year and kind of like it even going back to the nailers it started there but it’s really started to take off can you speak to that a little bit because I I know like it’s got to be interesting just for you to Monitor and see the way that that baseball continues to grow there yeah I mean for me when I was coming up it was kind of just me um by myself training everything like that but every time I go back there’s more and more resources for the kids which I really enjoy seeing um like last like last this offseason I was just in I went down with my Academy the FIS Pirates and I coached with them we went down all J Co and everything like that for the for the fall trip so it was good but it’s really nice just seeing all the kids you know how much talent there actually is um because I don’t think people realize there’s actually really good players in Canada it’s just they don’t get seen a lot and you know they then they have to go difficult routes um but they’ll get there but I mean it’s just really getting better and um I’m happy to see that baseball can is giving back the WBC was a good reminder of the talent out there too and and that seemed to be a lot of fun for you too uh are you excited to do that again next time around is that something that you think you’ll you’ll be doing pretty much every time you get the opportunity to yeah I’ll do it until I can’t for sure yeah 100% how fun was that uh so far it’s the best experience I’ve had playing baseball wow easily yeah that’s I mean it we were we were there and and just I mean the level of care and passion from the players but from the fans the environment the atmosphere I think it couldn’t have been you know more of a success you mentioned so far of course I can think of what the other thing would be that would beat that of course that’s the obvious goal this year but you know just as you continue to to roll forward what are some of the things that you are focused on specifically uh that would make this a successful season outside of the obvious um things that would make it a successful season would be just sticking to my plan and being myself and I don’t care if I debut this year or five years I really just want to be the best player I can be every day um you know when I lay my head in the pillow at night that I ask myself did I do everything I could today to be the best I can and if I say yes to that then there’s nothing I can complain about so yeah it’s great mentality and then speaking of mentality last question is how do you unplug because this this sport is a mental tax all the time it is rough it is difficult uh and and everybody has their own methods of course you’re still diving into the game in the evening but I’d imagine there’s a buffer Zone at some point where you’re you’re you’re doing something else you’re trying to get away from it what is that for you I play a lot of video games um I play like Apex play Call of Duty M Mo um you tried to ex defyant yet no it was a good new game okay free oh it’s free okay I’ll I’ll download it um but I watch a lot of movies too um talk to my girlfriend she’s great um really just let me get away but I’m a baseball nut yeah and I just love watching baseball so I guess like my chilling time would be like watching baseball and kind of just like yeah taking away from myself and just like watching because I am a fan of the game so it’s just really something I think I’ll never get away from which I don’t mind because when I’m watching baseball I don’t think about what I’m doing so I just I really enjoy it so SP one more for me you guys you have a unique swing yeah who do you like to watch swing I remember in high school I was like oh I like to watch this this and that but honestly now myself like if I have a good swing I’ll go back into the game report and watch it a couple times see what I did um but I don’t really watch anyone you know I follow baseball counts I just to see how good hitters move and everything like that um and I really just try to be myself in my swing and the feels of it I guess has there been anyone like in those swing accounts or Clips like I got a couple buddies and that we’ll just kind of shoot back and forth to and and players too that like to probably look at themselves more but they’ll shoot me a video and be like look at this freak swing um has there been anybody in The Bigs or or maybe that you you’ve seen with a clip or a game that you’re watching and you just like wow you can really appreciate like for me right now Royce Lewis every time you T holy crap uh um Shan green that was a great yeah I like Shan green I like I like Shan green a lot he’s kind of just like simple tall lank if cfty so I kind of like that one a lot yeah that’s awesome I love it well thank you so much for the time dude really appreciate it best of luck with the rest of the season and Plum to see you you said five years venture to say it’ll be a lot sooner than that looking forward to that day yeah thank you very much

#mlb #justbaseball #Prospects

—–
Timestamps:
Aram sits down with Owen Caissie, the top Cubs prospect and No. 20 overall prospect by justbaseball.com

Subscribe to Bonus Episodes: https://bit.ly/BonusEpisodes

Download and subscribe to the pod!
Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/CallUpApple
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3VGHekt

MERCH:https://justbaseball-merch.myshopify.com/collections/all

Subscribe to our other YouTube channels!
Just Baseball Fans: https://www.youtube.com/@JustBaseballFans
Just Fantasy Baseball: https://www.youtube.com/@justfantasybaseball
Who’s Better Baseball: https://www.youtube.com/@whosbetterbaseball
Marine Layer: https://www.youtube.com/@MarineLayerPod
Just Basketball: https://www.youtube.com/@justbasketballfans

Follow us on social media!
TT:https://www.tiktok.com/@justbaseballfans
X: https://x.com/The_CallUpPod
IG:https://www.instagram.com/calluppodcast/

Follow the Just Baseball guys!
Aram:https://x.com/AramLeighton8
Jack:https://x.com/Jack_McMullen11