Growing up on the South Side of Chicago, in the shadow of Comiskey Park, David Cales admits he was a White Sox fan growing up. When he was taken in the 24th round of the 2008 Draft by that other team in the Windy City, he quickly learned how to adjust.
It was in the Cubs system that he went 3-0 with a 0.78 ERA and 14 saves in 37 games for Daytona in the Florida State League, numbers that made him the choice for a MiLBY as the Class A Advanced Reliever of the Year.
"As I became older, I loved Chicago sports all together," Cales said. "It's an honor to play for the city of Chicago, even in the Minors. I couldn't be happier playing for the Cubs. I'm just a Chicago fan. It's an absolute privilege playing for a Chicago team."
In his first summer as a pro, Cales split time between the rookie-level Arizona League and short-season Northwest League, so he was a little surprised when he made the leap right up to Class A Advanced Daytona to start this season. He nearly fell over when he got nudged up to Double-A in May, even though that didn't go so well. But he earned his way back up there, and even got a one-appearance taste of Triple-A, late in the season.
"It was a shock to go up to Double-A," Cales admitted. "Then to give me another chance at the end of the year, I don't think I could've asked for anything better. I didn't believe much of it was happening because it was happening so fast."
Cales was drafted in the 24th round by the Chicago Cubs in the June 2008 amateur draft. David attended Mt Carmel High School in Illinois, the University of Missouri in 2006, UIC in 2007, St Xavier in 2008 and Mt. Carmel High School in Illinois.
