Forbidden Love is a Cubs DNA series where our staff waxes poetic about a player on a team other than the Cubs. Maybe even one you think they should hate. In this installment, Tina introduces you to the third in a series of three Blue Jays rookies, Second baseman, Cavan Biggio.
I previously wrote about rookie phenoms Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. Perhaps these three remind me of what the Cubs had in 2015 - a young, super talented infield, trying to lead their teams to success, all while being adorable and playing great baseball.
Baseball runs in the Biggio family. Former Houston Astro slugger, Hall of Famer Craig Biggio and wife Patty have three children. The oldest, Conor, is now an executive with the Houston Astros organization. Youngest Quinn plays softball for Notre Dame. Middle child Cavan is entering his second year playing for the Blue Jays.
Cavan, named for a county in Ireland, grew up idolizing not only his father, but his brother, emulating his left-handed batting even though he is a natural righty. His favorite MLB player was his dad's teammate, Jeff Bagwell. As a boy, he absorbed everything he could learn from both his father and Bagwell, especially their knowledge of the zone.
Cavan was called up to the majors on May 24, 2019. Although he has occasionally played first base and in the outfield, his primary position has been at second base last year. His skills as a Super Utility Player will undoubtedly be utilized going forward.
Some of his rookie highlights include:
• The third time's a charm: He was hitless his first two games after he was called up, but on his third game, he went 3 for 4, including a home run, becoming the 10th player in MLB history who had a three hit game in his first three games.
• Like father, like son: On September 18, 2019, Cavan, along with his father, became the second father-son duo to hit for the cycle in the majors.
• He led all rookies in walks (71) and finished 5th in Rookie of the Year voting.
Cavan's 2019 slashline looked like this: .234/.364/.429/.793/113 with 16 homers, 14 steals (0 times caught) and a 2.8 WAR. He looks capable of making adjustments and would seem to be able to pull off a 20/20 season.
It's going to be fun watching Cavan, Bo and Vlady Jr. mature in the next few years.
