At least one of them is likely to graduate to MLB this year.
It’s that time of year, when various services come out with their top prospect lists. Usually it’s a Top 100, but Baseball Prospectus, for some reason, stretches that to 101.
Four Cubs were in BP’s list, so let me show you where those four are in BP’s ranking.
Our Top 101 gets started with numbers 77-101 including Cubs 2020 second round pick Owen Caissie
— Baseball Prospectus (@baseballprospectus.com) 2025-01-14T23:01:06.701Z
(Click here for the Bluesky post if you are reading via Apple News.)
Owen Caissie, ranked 77th, batted .278/.375/.473 with 19 home runs in 127 games for Triple-A Iowa last year. He doesn’t turn 22 until July and there wouldn’t seem to be a place for him on this year’s Cubs, so he’s likely ticketed for Iowa again.
Cade Horton, ranked 85th, was the Cubs’ No. 1 pick (seventh overall) out of the University of Oklahoma in 2022. Injuries last year limited him to nine games (four at Double-A Tennessee, five at Iowa). He’s 23 and likely needs a full, healthy season at Iowa.
2023 3rd round pick Travis Sykora climbs his way to 59th overall in part 2 of our Top 101
— Baseball Prospectus (@baseballprospectus.com) 2025-01-14T23:11:36.269Z
(Click here for the Bluesky post if you are reading this via Apple News.)
Moises Ballesteros can hit, no doubt about it. Combined between Tennessee and Iowa last year, he batted .289/.354/.471 with 19 home runs in 124 games, then hit .317/.376/.557 with five home runs in 19 games in the Arizona Fall League, and was selected to compete in the AFL’s Home Run Derby.
There are questions about Ballesteros’ defense at catcher, so he’ll likely play this year at Iowa. He is just 21.
Dodgers newly acquired outfielder Zyhir Hope finds himself at #8 overall in part 4 of our Top 101 roll out
— Baseball Prospectus (@baseballprospectus.com) 2025-01-14T23:32:14.862Z
(Click here for the Bluesky post if you are reading this via Apple News.)
Matt Shaw, ranked 26th, appears to be the leading candidate to start at third base for the Cubs this year, as they haven’t hit the trade or free-agent markets for another third baseman. Shaw batted .284/.379/.488 with 21 home runs in 124 games split between Iowa and Tennessee last year, and then competed in an international tournament in November, the WBSC Premier12, where he batted .412/.500/.706 (14-for-34) with two home runs and 14 RBI.
I think Shaw’s ready for MLB. At some point you have to graduate players from your system and give them a chance to play. This seems like the right time for Shaw.
You’ll also note the presence of former Cubs prospect Zyhir Hope on that last graphic, ranked eighth overall by BP. Hope and Jackson Ferris (ranked No. 52) were traded to the Dodgers a year ago for Michael Busch. We still don’t know how Hope and Ferris will do in the major leagues, and Ferris is just 21 (today! Happy Birthday!) and Hope turns 20 later this month. Busch, meanwhile, is already a very good MLB player who batted .248/.335/.440 with 21 home runs in 152 games in 2024 and posted 2.8 bWAR. To me, that’s a deal that benefits both teams, as a good trade should.
The Cubs still do have some talent in their system. Hopefully, at least one graduates to MLB this year.