Iowa Cubs baseball: How Jonathon Long went from walk-on in college to Cubs prospect

One of the most important home runs of Iowa Cubs first baseman Jonathon Longs life came during his freshman season at Long Beach State.

Long, who was still questioning if he had what it took to play in college, got all the reassurance he needed when he belted a pitch, crushing it over the left field fence at Blaire Field.When I hit it, it was like, you didnt even feel it off the bat, Long said.

Thats how good it felt.Since it was just a preseason hit off a teammate, the home run didnt count.

But it certainly mattered.

It was in that moment that Long knew he belonged.

But Long not only belonged on a college diamond, he could thrive on it.

That home run jump-started his career.I think that kind of turned the page, Long said.Long is now boasting with confidence and playing as well as he ever has.

The 23-year-old, who was overlooked in high school and had to walk on in college, isnt flying under the radar anymore.

He is one of the top hitting prospects for the Chicago Cubs, and after a huge start to the season with Iowa, could be on the verge of reaching the big leagues.I wouldnt be surprised if its this year, said former Long Beach State baseball coach Eric Valenzuela.Long contemplates quitting after getting overlooked by colleges Orange High School baseball coach Even Roehrig still hasnt forgotten the first time he saw Long take batting practice.

Roehrig, who had taken over the schools baseball skipper before Longs junior season, had seen plenty of young players turn into professionals during his coaching career.But he was in awe as he watched Long step to the plate and rip baseballs all over the field.

Long put on a show for his new coach, crushing what Roehrig estimates were 10 baseballs over the right field fence, where its 375 feet from home plate.With just relative ease, Roehrig said.Those types of hitting sessions became the norm for Long, who hit .343 at a freshman and .431 with 16 doubles as a sophomore.

Roehrig could tell right away that Long was special.

The only problem was, Long didnt know and seemingly no one else cared.Long continued to rake when he showed up to college camps, but schools continually passed on him.

Hed go 3-for-4 in a game but never get offered a scholarship.

The more it happened, the more Long got discouraged.

The lack of interest killed his confidence and even tore away at his interest in the game.Before Longs junior season began, he spoke with Roehrig about his frustrations.

Long wondered why he was playing and putting in so much work if no one was going to notice.

Roehrig said Long thought about quitting.He was kind of all over the process, Roehrig said.Roehrig says it took time, but he eventually convinced Long to give him a couple of weeks to work his magic.

The coach saw too much talent and potential in Long for him to give up.

So, they went to work.Roehrig hooked Long up with a personal trainer and started making some calls.

He urged teams to take a look at his power-hitting infielder.

Many listened but didnt buy into Long, though.

College and pro evaluators weren't interested.One scout from a National League team showed up to watch Long take batting practice.

After Long dazzled them during his hitting session, Roehrig talked to the scout about his future.

According to Roehrig, the scout loved his swing.

But nothing else stood out.

So, the team passed on him.That seemed to be the overall report on Long, who admits he wasnt in the best shape.

Roehrig said Long didnt even play catch the right way or look the part of a professional.

Evaluators liked his bat but weren't impressed with his overall game.

They werent the only ones who were unsure about him.I didnt even know what type of player I was going to be, Long said.

Roehrig still believed in Long.

So did his travel ball coach, Steve Trombly.

The two worked their contacts to see if someone would be willing to give Long a shot as he continued to rake, hitting .550 with seven homers as a junior.

Still, there was hardly any interest.Things didnt help when his senior season in 2020 was limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The more time passed without a scholarship offer and the more teams that passed on him, the more Long wondered if his baseball career might come to an end.

I didnt really know what was going to happen, a future for baseball, Long said.Long makes the most of his chance at Long Beach StateValenzuela had just taken over the Long Beach State program in 2019 when he heard about Long from Roehrig and Trombly.

The new coach was trying to build up a roster and wanted to find young players.

But there were still questions about Long.Valenzuela saw the numbers he put up in high school.

They weren't against great competition.

Plus, there were doubts about Long's physical stature and where he would play defensively.

Still, Valenzuela believed the bat could play and offered him a chance to walk on."We just said, 'Look, he put up these big numbers, we don't know how challenged he really is, but we're going to give him an opportunity to come in here and he's strong, he's physical and we'll see what happens-what do we have to lose, it's not costing us a cent,'" Valenzuela said.

Long looked at things the same way.

With his confidence still down, Long doubted if he had what it took to be a college baseball player.

He figured he'd give things a few weeks and then reevaluate where he was at.

Just getting a chance was going to be challenging, though.Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Long didn't get to work out with the team in the fall.

His first shot to shine came in the spring, just a few weeks before the season was scheduled to start.

One of his best opportunities came during an intrasquad game.It was there that a big moment came.

Long believes it was either in the first or second contest that he faced Long Beach State right-handed pitcher Luis Ramirez, who went on to get drafted by the Texas Rangers.

The hurler delivered a pitch early in the count that Long clobbered for a home run.When the ball landed, everything about Long, his approach, his faith, his confidence, changed."It was very encouraging to be like, 'OK, I can play this level,'" Long said.Long earned a starting spot right away and did what he's always done: Rake.

That first season, Long hit .341/.410/.591 with five home runs and 16 RBIs before missing the final 14 games due to a leg injury.

He only got better from there.

Valenzuela encouraged Long to avoid fast food, to eat better and take better care of his body.It worked.

Long tightened his body up, grew and got stronger.

He also turned into one of the most dangerous hitters in college, hitting .321 with 26 homers and 35 doubles across three seasons at Long Beach State.

The numbers could have been even more impressive, but Long spent his college career playing in a home stadium known for hurting hitters.Valenzuela knew he had a diamond in the rough in Long, who had also performed well on defense.

The Long Beach State coach, who is now leading the program at Saint Mary's, thought Long had everything it took to play professional baseball because of his work at the plate and on the field.

"At first base, he was elite for us," Valenzuela said.

"But at third, he can do it.

So, I figured that bat would play for sure at the next level." Plenty of other teams agreed.

By the time Long was at the end of his college career, tons of teams were taking close looks at him.

One of those was the Cubs, which ended up selecting Long in the ninth round of the 2023 draft.During Longs first season of pro ball, he hit .274 with four doubles and seven homers in 26 games between Rookie Ball and Single-A.

The following season, he was even better, hitting .283 with 21 doubles and 17 homers between High-A and Double-A.I feel like hes doing exactly what I thought he could do from the first day I ever saw him take batting practice in high school, Roehrig said.The 2025 season has been his best.Long makes his case for his first big-league promotionLong periodically gets texts from his mom and dad, who will send him stories or posts from social media about how he's doing.

There's been a lot to talk about when it comes to Long's performance lately.He's in the midst of his first season in Triple-A, but Long already looks like a veteran and a player who has nothing else to prove at the level.

Through his first 50 games with Iowa, Long hit .352/.420/.560 with 10 doubles and eight home runs and a .980 OPS.The success has garnered him a ton of attention with fans clamoring for him on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.

Jim Callis, of MLB Pipeline, even said on a recent episode of Road to Wrigley, the Marquee Sports Network show that highlights players in the minors for the Cubs, that if the season ended today, Long would be the organization's Minor League Player of the Year."I honestly try not to look into that because it's just not healthy for us," Long said.But it's getting more and more difficult to ignore with Long becoming perhaps the most consistent hitter in the club's entire system.While Long has shown he can hit at this level, he needs to wait for his shot at the next level.

Long has spent the majority of the season playing first, which is locked up in Chicago by Michael Busch.

He's also gotten reps at third, which is now manned by Matt Shaw.

Iowa manager Marty Pevey praised Long's hands, calling them elite.

Pevey said Long will continue to play first and get some reps at third.

The infielder also played his first game of the season in the outfield on May 31.But it's Long's bat that will get him to the big leagues.

"He's just a good baseball player," Pevey said.So, Long once again, has to prove himself.

But that's nothing new for the guy who has constantly needed to.

Even with all the success Long has had, he admits he still plays with a chip on his shoulder."I've grown to accept being underrated and it's just kind of like, 'All right, I'm going to go ahead and take care of what I'm going to take care of and do my thing,'" Long said.Tommy Birch, the Register's sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008.

He's the 2018, 2020 and 2023 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year.

Reach him at [email protected] or 515-284-8468This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: How Iowa Cubs' Jonathon Long went from walk-on to prospect with Cubs.

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