Russell lofts first AFL homer to lead Mesa

The summer of 2014 was one filled with change for Addison Russell. After being traded from the A's to the Cubs in July as the centerpiece of Chicago's haul in the Jeff Samardzija deal, he had to learn a new organization, a new system, a new city, new coaches, new teammates, etc. Because he was limited to 68 regular-season games due to a spring hamstring injury, the 20-year-old shortstop was sent to the Arizona Fall League to make up for lost time and potentially learn a new position.

On Tuesday, normalcy finally came in the form of some offense.

The Cubs' No. 2 prospect connected on his first homer of the AFL season and finished with three RBIs to lead Mesa to an 11-6 win over Surprise.

Russell, who entered the day 5-for-31 (.161) in his first eight games this autumn, plated the game's first run with a single the opposite way to right in the first inning. An additional run scored on a pair of errors by Saguaros right fielder Hunter Renfroe on the same play.

After Surprise grabbed a 6-5 lead in the bottom of the fourth, the right-handed slugger pulled a 93-mph fastball from right-hander Matt Anderson (Reds) over the wall in left field for a go-ahead two-run homer in the fifth.

He struck out swinging in his other three at-bats.

"It felt good," Russell said. "I thought I saw the ball pretty well today. A lot of swings and misses, I definitely want to cut down on those, but overall, I thought I saw the ball good today. ... It was a kind of crazy year and also I was out for nine weeks as well so I'm trying to get those at-bats."

With his first multi-hit performance of the fall, Russell raised his slash line to .194/.275/.306 with six RBIs through nine AFL games. Those early struggles haven't been a carry-over from the regular season, when he slashed .295/.350/.508 with 13 homers and 45 RBIs between Double-A Tennessee and two levels in the A's system.

The circuit also has afforded MLB.com's No. 5 overall prospect a chance to get playing time at second base, given that the Cubs system is packed with talented shortstops in Starlin Castro and Javier Baez.

After 217 career games at short, the defender with a 55-grade fielding tool and 60-grade arm per MLB.com got his first taste at second base last Monday. Given that Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein has reportedly told him to prepare for multiple positions, there could be more time at the keystone to come. Russell, who served as designated hitter Tuesday, said he's ready for the challenge.

"Everything's going good," he said. "I missed nine weeks so not only the at-bats, I need to get some reps at short and possibly at second. That's what I'm working on right now."

Daniel Robertson, who took Russell's spot as the A's top prospect following the July trade, and Cal Towey (Angels) also hit their first AFL homers in the slugfest win. Leadoff hitter Jacob Hannemann (Cubs) went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and a run scored.

The victory was Mesa's fifth in its last six games and pushed the club back to 6-6 after starting the Fall League with a 1-5 record. The team is finally settling into October baseball, according to Russell.

"We're just relaxing and having fun I believe," he said. "We're seeing a lot more pitchers and more pitching, so our eyes are getting adjusted a little bit and I think that's what's going on right now."

Mariners' No. 6 prospect Patrick Kivlehan went 4-for-5 with three RBIs and a run scored for Surprise. No. 2 Reds prospect Jesse Winker contributed a three-run homer and No. 10 Red Sox prospect Deven Marrero added two doubles, two walks and two runs.