Cubs Minor Leaguer is turning heads in AFL -- and not just for his wild stance

MESA, Ariz. -- Harrison Feinberg had already made a habit of overcoming adversity in college. So when he went undrafted in July despite starring at Northeastern the past two seasons, that would just be another obstacle to conquer.

Fortunately for Feinberg, he didn't have to wait long. Almost immediately after the Draft ended, he fielded a call from Mo Mogues. The Cubs' area scout in the Northeast, Mogues had gone to bat for Feinberg in the 2025 Draft and thought he might get him toward the end of the 2026 proceedings. Mogues was authorized to offer $25,000 and Feinberg quickly accepted.

Four months later, Feinberg is just one of three players who turned pro this year participating in the Arizona Fall League. He may not have the same pedigree of Royals first-rounder Zion Rose or Giants 16th-rounder Dalton Wentz (who signed for fourth-round money), yet he's more than holding his own. He missed two weeks with turf toe, but Feinberg has hit safely in each of his seven starts for the Mesa Solar Sox and is slashing .321/406/.393 with two doubles and two steals.

Not bad for someone who needed surgery to clean up an infection in his knee after he signed, played in only three informal bridge league games and attended a Cubs high-performance camp before getting challenged by AFL pitching.

"It's definitely awesome to be surrounded by great players, top prospects, guys like that," Feinberg said. “Just being able to compete with them and show that I belong here has been a huge confidence boost for me.

"During the rehab process, I got the opportunity to face a bunch of rehab guys from the big leagues here. Being thrown into that was new to me and I had to shake the rust off, but as I got more reps and at-bats -- even if it was just live at-bats -- I think it prepared me for this."

Feinberg is accustomed to bouncing back. A Connecticut high school product, he began his college career at Southern California, but redshirted in 2022 before transferring to Northeastern. In his first year with the Huskies, a consistent NCAA tournament participant under coach Mike Glavine, Feinberg surpassed their previous freshman home run record with 10.

Feinberg slumped the following year and made just 19 starts before rebounding to share Coastal Athletic Association Player of the Year honors in 2025, homering 18 times and tying a school record with 37 steals. That didn't get him drafted, however, nor did setting Northeastern's career mark with 47 homers and ranking fifth in NCAA Division I with 42 steals this past spring.

"I had a good redshirt freshman year, but I wasn't a complete player, as my coach, Mike Glavine, used to say," Feinberg said. "He instilled in me to work hard. If you work hard, it's going to happen. Just trust yourself, be consistent, be confident, everything's going to work out. And it has so far."

Why didn't Feinberg get drafted as a 6-foot-1, 210-pounder with solid raw power, average speed and a track record of strong performance in a mid-major conference? His age (22 as a redshirt junior, 23 this year) worked against him, as did his profile as a righty-hitting left fielder. He also has an extremely closed batting stance at the plate, which led to concerns about his ability to handle velocity in on his hands in pro ball.

Mogues really wanted to sign Feinberg because of his physical ability and his makeup.

"How much you can squeeze out of him from a strength standpoint and he still has the ability to manipulate the barrel from the pull side to the backside, it's impressive," Mogues said. "There's an engine there. It doesn't take a lot to fuel the fire.

He's going to work for whatever he wants.

"I've seen him over the last couple of years,” Mogues said. “You like the force he's able to generate at the plate, the bat-to-ball skills and the athleticism, but his ability to make adjustments is what really makes him attractive."

Feinberg may have the most extreme setup in the Fall League. He doesn't even open up when he takes a stride and turns his swing loose. It may be unorthodox, but he believes it's the key to his success.

"I widened out after my redshirt freshman year and it helped me be more consistent in my swing and approach, but I still felt as if I was pulling off pitches," Feinberg said. "So I tried to get a little more closed off and it's gotten to where it is now, which is pretty extreme. But if it really helps me just stay on the baseball, drive the ball to center or right-center, and if I get out front of a breaker, I can put it out to left field.

"I think it's something that's really worked for me and kind of saved my career, I'd say."