The Chicago Cubs, headed into the 2025 season, are equipped with a mix of young and veteran talent.
Young players and former top prospects like Pete Crow-Armstrong and Michael Busch have already made their impact felt in the big leagues and there’s a whole wave of new youngsters on the verge of making their presence felt, such as likely starting third baseman Matt Shaw.
Geoff Pontes of Baseball American recently offered his insights into the Cubs top five prospects during a “deep dive” into the Cubs farm system.
Here’s what he had to say.
Matt Shaw (No. 1 Chicago Cubs Prospect)
“I think that of anybody…on the major league roster, Shaw has the most upside to produce…He’s a winner…He’s been a winner since he was in high school, showed that on the Cape, was Cape Cod League MVP…Won Big 10 Conference player of the year. He was really good as a pro… made it up to Triple A…I think the thing with Shaw is he’s an exciting offensive player who can hit a home run and steal a base and come up with a big hit or a big walk in a tough spot. He does a lot of things really well. He’s a below average defender. Third base is not his natural position. There’s probably going to be some questions regarding the arm strength at third base. Ultimately, I always kind of felt like he’d fit best at second…As an offensive player, I do think that he’s pretty much ready for prime time at this point and could come out the gate and produce and is the kind of player that will make adjustments and figure things out if he does struggle…Tt won’t kill his confidence. He’s just not that kind of person.”
Owen Caissie (No. 2 Cubs Prospect)
“Having spent a full season in Triple A…I think for a lot of other organizations, [he] might be a big league guy starting on opening day in ‘25. The opportunities aren’t there [with the Cubs] unless there’s an injury…I really think, at this point, he needs to be challenged by major league pitching…He might be a player where, if there’s an injury or something happens, a team might seek out Caissie as a potential trade target because he’s somebody that could start every day and I just don’t know how much it’s going to help to have him see another 350 plate appearances in Triple A…He is ready for a big league job…He’s a good defender. He’s got a good arm. He moves well in a corner outfield spot…He mashes…He made a concerted effort to become a better contact hitter this year and to become a little bit more aggressive at times…I don’t think 5 WAR is necessarily possible, but 3.5 to 4 WAR years, consecutively, through a good chunk of his career [is possible].”
Cade Horton (No. 3 Cubs Prospect)
“I do think that there is, with Horton, an element of mystery. He was injured last year. I think we can kind of throw out the production in the time that he was even healthy as not necessarily being who Cade Horton is and the player that we saw for the year and a half prior to that…We don’t know what’s gone on in the background since then. We don’t know if he’s leaned in, is working with maybe a new change up grip or something along those lines to really develop that third pitch and I think that third pitch is ultimately, for me, the difference between sink or swim…We know the fast ball is plus. We know that the slider is plus or double-plus. These are both good pitches, He’s a definitely a two-pitch guy…He needs that third pitch.”
Moises Ballesteros (No. 4 Cubs Prospect)
“When you talk to hitting coaches and folks who are working on the hitting side, it feels like, consistently, the feedback that you get on Ballesteros is tremendous. It’s like this guy does everything well. He can hit the ball with authority to all fields. He keeps a tidy zone, the bat to ball skills and the barrel accuracy is something that consistently comes up…The big question is the body, which, to his credit, has improved…He put some work in there, in-season to tighten up and he made a big difference. The catching is still not great…If he was a fringe average third baseman, he might be the guy that’s playing third base this year and not Shaw…He’s so young [21] and so advanced as a hitter that I do think he’s a major leaguer. I think he’s an everyday regular, maybe an above average regular, but it may end up being more first base, DH.”
James Triantos (No. 5 Cubs Prospect)
“Triantos, in a lot of ways, does what [Nico] Hoerner does. They’re similar players…In terms of his metrics. he was one of the best defensive infielders in the minor leagues last year…When you talk to some of the coaches, you talk to opposing scouts, there is more confidence that he’s at least above average defensively at second base…[He’s] a guy who makes a lot of contact, does not strike out, keeps a tidy zone and he’s an excellent base-stealer, maybe not as fast as Hoerner…Instinct-wise, in terms of his jumps, how he reads the pitcher, how he uses some of the new rules changes to his advantage, I think are going to translate to the big leagues…He is a guy who you could project for a 280 average and 25 stolen bases and pretty good second base defense…I don’t know what the level of confidence is for the Cubs in Triantos in ‘25 but, at the very least, ‘26 I think that he is very easily a Hoerner replacement.”
Chicago Cubs have seven players make MLB’s top 100 list
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