Cubs prospect Kevin Alcantara looking to heat up in Arizona Fall League

“My focus is thinking about hitting up the middle and keeping my stroke shorter,” Kevin Alcantara said. “I try to work every day on improving my strike zone.” (Chris Coduto/Getty Images)

The memory of playing in cold weather last spring caused Kevin Alcantara to wrap his arms tightly around the middle of his 6-6, 188-pound frame in mid-90-degree Arizona heat.

“It was my first time playing in the cold,” Alcantara, a native of the Dominican Republic, said about the uncomfortable elements when he played for the Cubs’ High-A South Bend affiliate. “Your hands feel so bad.