Chicago Cubs Baseball

This is a tale of two young Chicago Cub players who find themselves in the same place under different circumstances.

One, Felix Pie, is the Cubs’ top minor league prospect - shades down and glove up. If all things break right, Pie will be chasing down fly balls at Wrigley Field in the not too distant future.

But at 22, and with five years of minor league training behind him, Pie is still being groomed slowly, a sure sign the Cubs organization learned its lesson by rushing its last Can’t Miss, Corey Patterson.

Pie got his ears wet in the Arizona sun, participating in his first nearly full spring training camp. From an outside observer’s standpoint, his showing was - well - promising. The center fielder hit .352 in 54 at-bats with a couple of stolen bases and solid defensive play - a trait that could be in demand by the end of this season.

More importantly, he caught more than fly balls while in Arizona. He also caught Cubs manager Lou Piniella’s eye.

“He’s going to be a major-leaguer,” manager Lou Piniella said. ”Now just wasn’t the time for him. He needs to improve his hitting some, learn the strike zone a little better. It’s a nice challenge for him to go down to AAA and hit .325, .330 and work the strike zone a little more and get himself back up to the big leagues.”

It was never expected of Pie to fill a Big Cubs jersey this spring, summer and possibly fall.

So my dollar to a donut guess is when Piniella informed Pie of his demotion to AAA Iowa on Tuesday, the youngster cleaned out his locker, packed his bags and caught a flight to Des Moines - quietly.

The other Cub youngster is Mark Prior, a former top prospect who has basked in the bright lights of the big city. As a player in 2003, Prior pitched with such calm and control - both emotionally and physically - it was difficult to imagine all of that at a mere 23 years of age.

Yesterday it was announced Prior would be joining Pie at the AAA affiliate - at least to start the season. Which, I imagine, was great news for the bean counters in Des Moines. Who isn’t going to want to watch a major leaguer at minor league prices?

Our gain is Prior’s loss.

Unfortunately, Prior lost more than his job in the Cubs starting rotation. He also lost his cool and in his display of many faces, he gave us a glimpse into how he views himself.

Translated: A man’s soul cannot always be such a pretty place.

Adversity is definitely a test of a person’s character. From Prior’s reaction to his demotion, it’s not only his arm strength that may be lacking.

In his response, Prior came off nothing short of a prima donna, referring to himself as an “employee” of the Cubs organization throughout the interview.

“I’m not even going down that road,” Prior said when asked if he’d consider asking for a trade. “I’m under their control until I’m not under their control, so it’s up to them, if they want me. I’m just an employee.”

Welcome to the real world - and reality, Mark.

If you’re not an employee of the Cubs, you’ll be an employee of some other organization. That is, if you regain and retain the stuff that got you to the Bigs.

But with the kind of money you’ve made over the last few years, I suppose self-employment always is an option.

Meanwhile, I suggest you make the best of your stay in Des Moines. And if you’re looking for a good Thai restaurant, I’d recommend Taste of Thailand.