The top of the Cubs’ system is very strong, with a bunch of position players who are either very likely to play in the majors or project to some real impact — or both — and a couple of arms, although it tapers off somewhat quickly afterward. They’ve gutted their pro scouting department, and it’s started to show a little bit in trades, including ones involving their own players.
(Note: Tools are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale; ages as of July 1, 2025.)Height: 5-9 | Weight: 185 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 23
Shaw might be the Cubs’ starting third baseman this April, and he’s earned the shot after reaching Triple A in his first full pro season and hitting better as the season progressed. Shaw started 2024 in Double A, where he overcame some bad luck on balls in play to hit .279/.373/.468 with just a 17.5 percent strikeout rate, and then bumped up to Triple A and hit .298/.395/.534 with a 19.7 percent strikeout rate. He makes very consistent hard contact, averaging 89.3 mph in Triple A with a 90th percentile exit velocity of 106. He utilizes a very rotational and clean swing that tends to put the ball in the air. He’s a shortstop by trade but has played second and third as well in the minors, a reflection of the Cubs’ needs, with second base probably his best position and his third-base defense playable if not quite average yet.He’s a 55 runner with excellent instincts and could probably handle center or left if needed. Shaw is one of the best bets to hit for a high average of any prospect in the minors, and should add another half-grade of power to get last year’s 21 homers up into the 25-30 homer range in his best years. Depending on his position and how much he can improve his defense, he could be a 5-WAR player at his peak.
Height: 6-6 | Weight: 188 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 22
“The Jaguar” made his big-league debut in September, just over three years after the Cubs acquired him from the Yankees for Anthony Rizzo in a trade that worked out well for both clubs. Alcántara started slowly in 2024 and hit the injured list in early June with an injury to his left shoulder, but after he returned, he took off at the plate, hitting .292/.388/.459 between Double A and Triple A in 63 games before the call-up. He’s 6-6 and lanky, with a ton of room to keep filling out and adding power beyond what he already shows — nearly half of his balls in play in Triple A were hard-hit (95 mph or better exit velocities) — while he’s still developing the wrist and forearm strength to stay on plane through contact and get the ball in the air more, with a 51.7 percent groundball rate in the minors last year.Alcántara has worked his way up to become a plus defender in center as he’s improved his focus and his reads on balls off the bat. He’s not ready for the majors yet, between the tendency to get on top of the ball and some real trouble with sliders once he reached Triple A (he whiffed at just over half of the ones he swung at there), but with his plus defense and speed and the 30-40 homer potential, he has the most upside of anyone in the Cubs system.
Height: 5-8 | Weight: 195 | Bats: L | Throws: R | Age: 21
Ballesteros is one of the best pure hitters in the minors, and if you really believe he can catch, he’s a top 20ish prospect — but his body is less than ideal for the position and he’s probably going to end up somewhere else. Ballesteros played all of 2024 at age 20 and hit well at three stops, .299/.372/.495 in Double A, .281/.340/.454 in Triple A, and then .317/.376/.557 in 19 games in the Arizona Fall League. He doesn’t miss pitches in the zone, although to be fair, his strike zone isn’t very big, but does get overly aggressive with two strikes and expands the zone significantly. He may always just be a “swing first, ask questions later” hitter, since he can make contact with so many pitches, and he’s got grade-55 power already.He’s heavy, even after losing some weight (and keeping it off) in the last year, and that’s going to make it hard for him to handle everyday catching duties, as he’s not very agile behind the plate and his just-average arm doesn’t help matters. He could be an occasional backstop who mostly handles first base and/or DH, gaining a lot of value from the games he does catch and from what should be consistently high batting averages with 15-20 homers a year.
Height: 6-1 | Weight: 211 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 23
Horton was getting close to a big-league call-up last year when he suffered what was first called a lat strain in his start on May 29. It turned out to be a Grade 2 strain of the subscap muscle in his rotator cuff, and his season was over. He’s still rehabbing and should be good to go for spring training, although the Cubs may choose to keep him on a pitch or innings limit as he builds back up. Horton has two plus pitches in his wipeout slider, which he added near the end of his last year at Oklahoma, and a changeup that’s improved substantially since the Cubs got their hands on him. His fastball is 92-96 but plays down from it because he doesn’t have a lot of deception. It has a little cut and pitch models like it, but hitters like it too, hitting it hard when it’s in the zone. He’s probably going to have to be a 40 percent fastball guy and work more to the edges of the zone with it, as it’s not a high-ride pitch for the top of the zone and definitely not one he can use in the heart to get whiffs, but he has the two real weapons to get guys out and has shown above-average control up through Double A. He’s a starter as long as he’s healthy, maybe a No. 3 who takes a little while to figure out his optimal pitching plan. We’ll know a lot more once he gets into a game in Arizona.
Height: 6-3 | Weight: 190 | Bats: L | Throws: R | Age: 22
Caissie was a horrendous outfielder and fringy runner when he first signed with the
Padres in 2020, but since his trade to the Cubs, he’s improved substantially to become a plus runner (although he still looks awkward doing it) and at least an average defender in a corner. He also hits the ball extremely hard, reaching 115 mph twice last year, with an EV50 of 101.9 mph — that is, he hits it hard when he hits it, as he still whiffs about a third of the time he swings.In Triple A last year, he struck out in 27.6 percent of his PA against righties and 30.4 percent of his PA against lefties, both of which were improvements from 2023 in Double A. If those rates keep coming down, he could end up an above-average regular with his ability to make so much hard contact, which should translate into 25+ homers. If he can’t continue to make those adjustments, however, he’s going to end up an up-and-down player who can’t hold a major-league job.
6. Jefferson Rojas, SS (Just missed)
Height: 5-11 | Weight: 150 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 20
The Cubs were aggressive with Rojas, who signed for a $1 million bonus in 2022, by sending him right to High A to start 2024 after just 70 games at Low A the year prior. He hit .245/.310/.336 last season, with questionable enough defense at shortstop that it seems very likely he’s going to end up somewhere else, perhaps even a corner outfield spot. He made a ton of contact, with just a 20 percent whiff rate and 15.3 percent strikeout rate despite being very young for the level, and needs now to work on the swing decisions to make sure he’s attacking pitches where he can do real damage.His exit velocities jumped significantly last year and he was very unlucky on balls in play, with just a .274 BABIP, pointing to some real upside at the plate. He’s erratic in the field now, with a lot of unforced mistakes and questions about his internal clock, and other teams seem to believe he’s just not a shortstop regardless of how his body develops. He’s still very young and likely spends this year in Double A at age 20, with a lot of untapped upside at the plate, especially if he cuts down on some of his out-of-zone swings to focus more on pitches he can drive. The ceiling is lower today than it was a year ago given the much lower probability that he stays at short.
7. James Triantos, 2B
Height: 5-11 | Weight: 195 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 22
Triantos hit .300/.345/.437 as a 21-year-old in Double A last year before a late-summer stint in Triple A where he hit .302/.351/.384, and that sums up his batting game: He hits, but it’s singles and doubles, not a lot of walks and very little over-the-fence power. He mostly played second base last year and that’s probably his best-case scenario, a 45 defender at the keystone or maybe a 45 defender in left field. He’s played some center and some third base but neither of those is likely to work. If he sticks at second and hits .300/.340/.400, he’s a solid regular. If he has to move to left, or hits less than that, he’s an extra guy.
8. Cristian Hernandez, SS
Height: 6-1 | Weight: 175 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 21
Hernandez signed in January 2021 for a $3 million bonus, then really didn’t perform at all in 2022 or 2023, and it wasn’t clear what, if anything, the Cubs had in him. He went out last offseason and got significantly stronger, which led to his best year yet as a pro — he hit .269/.382/.406 in Low-A Myrtle Beach, a brutal hitter’s park, and while he was repeating Low A he was also clearly hurt by the lack of short-season ball and didn’t belong at that level the year prior. He’s also improved his defense at shortstop and is at least a 55 there, and he can also slide to second or third if need be. His power is starting to come on as well, with 20+ homer upside, and his command of the strike zone took a big jump as well. He does have timing issues at the plate, with such a loose, easy swing that sometimes he can’t line everything up to really square the ball up, such as on good fastballs. He was kind of a forgotten man a year ago, but I think there’s still something here given the body, tools (including above-average or better speed), and the rapid progress he made in the last 16 months.
9. Pedro Ramirez, 2B/3B
Height: 5-8 | Weight: 165 | Bats: S | Throws: R | Age: 21
Ramirez just keeps hitting, and last year he saw his exit velocity take a huge leap, with his 90th percentile EVs now up 5 mph from where they were two years earlier. His swing is short — I mean, he’s 5-foot-8, what did you expect? — and he hits the ball on the ground too often. If he drops his hands a little it might just get the ball in the air enough for those improved EVs to produce more hits. He’s an above-average runner with great instincts on the bases and projects as at least an average defender at second or third. His ceiling is that of a good regular if he converts some of those groundballs into line drives. His most likely outcome is a high-quality utility infielder who has value as a contact bat off the bench.
10. Jaxon Wiggins, RHP
Height: 6-6 | Weight: 225 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 23
Wiggins had Tommy John surgery before his junior season at Arkansas, so he slid from a potential first-round pick to the second round, where the Cubs took him in the hopes of capturing that upside when he returned. He came back last year, had a few very rough rehab outings in the Arizona Complex League, then was very good to great in Low A and High A, with a combined line of 52 2/3 innings, 38 hits, 24 walks, 64 strikeouts, and a 3.59 ERA across those two levels. He sits 97 with ease and his slider can be a grade-70 pitch with outstanding spin and the ability to manipulate the ball. His changeup was a 45 before the injury, and it’s improved now to be at least an average pitch. It’s a high-effort delivery that has always limited his control, with a 13.8 percent walk rate in his sophomore year and 11.1 percent in A-ball last season, while the fastball plays down a little from its velocity because it’s kind of straight. The most likely outcome is that he’s a high-leverage reliever who throws his slider 40 percent of the time. You have to let him try to start, though, and see if you can help him get some more life on the fastball and repeat the delivery enough to bring the walk rate down under 10 percent.
11. Fernando Cruz, SS
Height: 5-11 | Weight: 155 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 18
Cruz signed in January 2024 for $4 million, but his first year in pro ball was curtailed by some nagging injuries and he only had 92 PA in the Dominican Summer League, hitting .215/.326/.329 with 25 strikeouts. He has shown good bat-to-ball skills in the past, so the strikeout rate and his swing-and-miss rate were both surprising, albeit in a small sample. His swing has improved substantially since he first signed, as he’s got the hand and forearm strength to control the barrel, with a ton of loft in his finish to hope for plus power as he fills out. He’s got really good hands in the field as well and projects to stick at short. He’s still a lottery ticket — the tools and body could make him a star, or he might not hit enough to get out of A-ball.
12. Yahil Melendez, SS
Height: 6-3 | Weight: 165 | Bats: L | Throws: R | Age: 19
Melendez was the Cubs’ seventh-round pick in 2023 out of Puerto Rico and he has already started to fill out and hit the ball quite a bit harder, adding to the above-average power he showed as an amateur just on his hand and wrist strength. He’s got a chance to stick at shortstop, with a 55 or better arm that works there or at third and the athleticism to slide to second if needed. His main issue right now is a tendency to chase, as he doesn’t miss that much in the zone but still punched out 28.4 percent of the time as an 18-year-old in the ACL last year. In a perfect world, he sticks at shortstop, cuts down on the chase, and gets to 20-25 homers a year. That’s three things that have to go right; any two of them going right might still make him a regular.
13. Christian Franklin, OF
Height: 5-9 | Weight: 195 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 25
Franklin’s still an above-average defender in center, although as he’s gotten stronger he’s lost some range out there, on top of the aftereffects of the torn ACL that wiped out his 2022 season. He still walks a lot and makes hard contact that doesn’t put the ball over the fence due to the plane of his swing and some overeagerness to pull the ball. He hit .268/.398/.366 last year in Double A as a 24-year-old, so he’s not young for the level. At this point, he’s probably a fourth outfielder who can play all three spots, hit lefties well, and maybe get on base a little against righties. I don’t know if there’s a swing adjustment in here to get him to regular status.
14. Ben Cowles, SS/3B
Height: 6-0 | Weight: 180 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 24
Cowles came over along with hard-throwing org reliever Jack Neely in the trade that sent Mark Leiter Jr. to the Yankees in July 2024. Cowles just hits, with great feel for the strike zone and the hand-eye coordination to get the bat to the ball consistently, going .295/.376/.472 for Double-A Somerset before the trade. He took a pitch off his wrist in his last game in the Yankees’ system, breaking a hamate bone, and wasn’t 100 percent when he returned in September for four games or in the Arizona Fall League, at least based on the contact quality. He’s not a shortstop but he’s fine at second and could handle third if he can make his fringe-average arm work over there. I think he’s a utility infielder and a definite big-leaguer with almost no shot to be a regular since it’s maybe 8-10 homer power and he’s not a plus defender anywhere.
15. Will Sanders, RHP
Height: 6-6 | Weight: 230 | Bats: L | Throws: R | Age: 23
Sanders was the Cubs’ fourth-round pick in 2023 and spent much of that fall recovering from a foot injury that had hindered him in the spring. He also worked with the Cubs on repeating his delivery so he could throw more strikes. He’s got a slew of pitches, with an out-pitch curveball and a slider and changeup that might both be 55s, but he sits 92-93 on a flat four-seamer that even right-handed hitters teed off on, with most of the hard contact he allowed to them coming on that pitch. He has flashed a sinker and might be better served using that as his main fastball. He still needs to cut his walk rate a little as he was at 10 percent last year, mostly in High A, but he has the pitches to miss bats if he can get ahead in the count more. I’m still leaning starter here, especially since the alternative to the four-seamer is already in place, and the issue is having him use it more.
16. Ronny Cruz, SS
Height: 6-2 | Weight: 170 | Bats: S | Throws: R | Age: 18
The Cubs’ third-round pick in 2024, Cruz moved from the Dominican Republic to Florida not long before his senior year, and then got a late start last spring after knee surgery. He’s very projectable and has quick hands and an easy swing already, with the potential for plus power at his peak. He has the arm and actions for shortstop, although the knee still didn’t seem to be 100 percent last spring and he may be better this spring after a full offseason. He only turned 18 a month after the draft and probably should spend this year in the ACL to work on pitch recognition and getting more consistent on defense.
17. Ty Southisene, SS
Height: 5-9 | Weight: 170 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 19
Southisene is on the smaller side but swings hard and shows a really advanced feel for the game across the board. He’s a likely shortstop who should play average defense, with 55 speed and the instincts to perhaps be a better defender than that over the long term. The question is whether he can impact the ball enough to avoid becoming a singles hitter who pitchers attack in the zone because he can’t do damage. The Cubs took him in the fourth round in 2024 out of a Nevada high school, going a little over slot to sign him.
18. Cole Mathis, 1B/3B
Height: 6-1 | Weight: 210 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 21
The Cubs took Mathis in the second round last season out of the College of Charleston, where he was a two-way player … and he needed Tommy John surgery right after the draft, so he hasn’t made his pro debut yet. He’s a big metrics guy with an excellent whiff rate on pitches in the zone and a peak exit velocity last spring of 113.8 mph, although he also takes a lot of strikes and could stand to be more aggressive. He’s played third and first, with first base by far the more likely spot even before the arm injury. He should be ready to hit in games in March or April, although playing the field will probably come a bit later. His upside is 25 homers or so with a solid OBP at first base.
19. Pablo Aliendo, C
Height: 6-0 | Weight: 170 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 24
Aliendo went back to Double A to start 2024, then broke his right wrist, missing over two months, then re-aggravated the injury in winter ball, so it was kind of a lost year. He still struggles with anything that has a wiggle in it and he chases too many pitches out of the zone, so while he has plus power — he slugged .495 in two months before the wrist fracture — he isn’t going to hit enough to get to it in the majors or maybe even in Triple A. He’s a definite catcher, though, with good hands and a plus arm, so with the raw power he’s probably a backup at worst, even if he hits .180. He would have everyday upside if he’d show any reason to expect his pitch or ball/strike recognition to improve.
20. Nico Zeglin, RHP
Height: 6-4 | Weight: 200 | Bats: R | Throws: R | Age: 25
Zeglin’s probably a longshot, but he does have a 70 changeup and crushed two levels of A-ball last year, with a 0.95 ERA and 90 strikeouts in 66 innings. An undrafted free agent from Long Beach State who was 23 when the Cubs signed him, he started out last year as just an org guy to give the Low-A club some innings, and the Cubs kept him in a bulk role even as he had success and moved up to High A, probably because his fastball is mostly 87-91. He did get up to 94 later in the year and his upper-70s curveball is at least a 45. He could be a long reliever in the big leagues, which would be an amazing outcome given how he signed and started.
2025 impact
Shaw seems to be in line to be their everyday third baseman this year, and if it wasn’t for Roki Sasaki, he might be a National League Rookie of the Year favorite. Horton probably gets some turns in the big-league rotation if he’s healthy. Caissie should be the next bat up if they have a need in an outfield corner or at DH.
The fallen
Left-hander Drew Gray walked 73 in 80 innings in High A in his first full season pitching since the Cubs drafted him in the third round in 2021. He blew out his elbow almost immediately and since his return, he hasn’t had any semblance of command.
Sleeper
Hernandez didn’t even make my top 20 last year, but the growth he showed across the board makes it seem like he might just have been a late bloomer — and someone hurt by the need to send him right to Low A before he was ready.
Additional top prospect coverage
