Cam Sanders spent years watching and learning from his big-league dad. He's now etching his own legacy.

It’s just over a half an hour before first pitch of the Iowa Cubs’ June 14 game against the Omaha Storm Chasers at Principal Park.

Iowa right-handed pitcher Cam Sanders stands deep on the centerfield warning track hunched over the dirt. Sanders, who does this before every start, is lined up perfectly with second base, the pitcher’s mound and home as he writes a cross in the dirt and says some prayers.

“I say prayers for the ones I love,” Sanders said. “I say some prayers for the game.”

One of those loved ones is Sanders’ father Scott, who pitched nearly a decade in the majors and passed along much of his knowledge to Cam. Cam not only modeled some of his game after his father but could become just as successful, if not more, than him. For the first time in his career, the 25-year-old is one of the most important pitchers in the organization and could be on the verge of reaching the majors.

"I am so proud of the hard work Cam has put in on and off the field to climb the minor league trail," Scott said.

The climb isn't complete.

Cam, who is in his first season in Triple-A with the Iowa Cubs, is making a compelling case for his first big-league promotion. He's already considered a big part of the Chicago Cubs' future plan. And his dad is part of the reason why.

But as Cam has shown, he's intent on carving out of his own legacy in baseball.

Cam pretends to be his dad and follows in his famous footsteps

Cam grew up going to professional baseball stadiums. Scott, a right-handed pitcher, who played in the big leagues for seven seasons, appeared in 235 games over the course of seven seasons with the Cubs, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners and Detroit Tigers.

Cam was there for part of the ride and tagged along with his brother Scottie to the park and sometimes to the clubhouse.

They even worked out with him on the field. When Scott played for the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan in 2001, he stayed back home when the team was on the road and would bring Scottie and Cam with him for workouts at the club's minor league facility.

Jason McLeod, now the special assistant to the general manager for the Arizona Diamondbacks, even babysat Cam a few times when he was 1. McLeod was working for the Padres while Scott played for them and became close with the entire family.

"He was a little wild one, for sure," McLeod said.

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Cam watched everyone, even opposing hitters on tapes of his dad's old starts. He tracked down Scott throwing to Barry Bonds and mimicked the slugger's swing. Cam also broke down the batting stances and deliveries of his dad's teammates. He got so good at them that Scott brought him into the clubhouse so he could show off his impressions.

"My dad would be like, 'Cam, show me how anybody would hit' and I would literally just grab a bat and I'd do the stance, do the swing and everything," Cam said. "He'd be like, 'Show me how so and so pitches' and I'd get the glove and just do the exact same windup."

But the biggest inspiration was Scott, who gave him lessons and coached him. He taught Cam how to throw a curveball a 8. Scott showed him his four-seam fastball, taught him his other grips and explained the importance of playing catch with a purpose.

"We started young,"  Scott said.

Cam pitched sparingly his first few years of high school so he could hit and play short. Scott wanted to save his innings. The time away helped. Cam, who had been hitting the mid 80s in his junior year and touched 90 as a senor. When he got into the weight room at Northwest Florida State College, his velocity shot up to the mid-90s.

Using a lot of the pitch selection as his father, he dominated in high school and college.

Even the same teams were interested in Cam. The Padres, who drafted Scott in the first round of the 1990 draft, took Cam in the 18th round of the 2017 draft. Cam didn't sign and went to play at LSU. During his time there, he impressed McLeod, the Cubs' senior vice-president of scouting/player development at the time, had been keeping close tabs on Cam for years.

"He kind of came on strong later in that spring," McLeod that. "That, with the scouting reports we had and 'Oh by the way, J-Mac happens to know the family and changed his diaper when he was a 1 year old.'"

The Cubs like Cam's makeup, his potential and his background. So they selected him in the 12th round of the 2018 draft.

And Cam became a Cub, just like his dad.

Cam still getting helpful hints from his dad during his rise to the majors

Iowa Cubs pitching coach Ron Villone can't help but think of Scott when he watches Cam pitch. Villone, who was teammates with Scott on the Padres, sees his delivery and even some of the same stuff, like the slider, when Cam pitches.

But …

"Cam's got a better arm," Villone said.

It shows. Cam can get his fastball into the upper 90s and has a wipeout slider he worked on with his dad when the 2020 minor league season was canceled due to COVID-19. But he's still got some work to do to get to where his dad was a a big-league pitcher.

Villone, a close friend of Scott's, said Cam is still working on going deeper into games and learning how to make adjustments on the fly. They're all things consistent big-league pitchers do. And he believes, eventually, Cam will too.

"His talent plays," Villone said.

That's been apparent at times this season. Cam, who started the season in Double-A with the Tennessee Smokies, was promoted to Triple-A Iowa on May 10. During his first start, he allowed two hits and struck out nine in 5.2 innings. Scott, was on vacation in Cancun, watched the start, from a hotel van and then his room. The next day, he rewatched it like he always does.

Sometimes he'll send tips to Cam either about his mechanics or approach.

"I was on the edge of my seat," Scott said.

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That's how it always is when he pitches and as Cam continues to make his rise to the big leagues. Even though Cam doesn't pop up on many top prospect rankings for the Cubs, he's still seen as a bright part of the organization's future and looked at as a guy who could pitch in the big leagues for awhile. Like his dad.

"He is definitely a guy that we see as a part of our future here," Cubs vice-president of player development Jared Banner said. "Just the quality of stuff, the way he misses bats, the competitor he is, the athlete he is: We see him being one of the guys in our system that's ready to take another step forward."

While his dad's legacy is important to him, Cam wants to be remembered for what he does on the field. They're not all the same either. Cam has his own stuff and even his own strut that he shows off after a big play and has made him a popular player with Cubs fans. He's also got the word "Butta" printed on his glove. It's a nod to a recreational team he and some buddies came up with back home in Louisiana. 

"I like to feel smooth as butta at all times," Cam said. 

That's what Cam reminds himself to try to be before every start as he stands on the warning track as he gets ready to start his throwing routine. 

"I just love every opportunity I get and try to make the best out of it," he said.

Tommy Birch, the Register's sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He's the 2018 and 2020 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468. Follow him on Twitter @TommyBirch.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Son of big-leaguer, Chicago Cubs prospect Cam Sanders carves out his legacy