Welcome back to the Cubs Beat newsletter. Jordan Bastian has covered baseball for MLB.com since 2005, including the Cubs since the 2019 season. |
CHICAGO -- As Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer went about rebuilding the team’s farm system several years ago, one of his goals was to create a model from which prospects would annually impact a contending Major League roster. Two seasons ago, former Top 100 prospects Pete Crow-Armstrong and Michael Busch were given runway to develop in the big leagues as the Cubs tried to make the playoffs. This year, Cade Horton and Matt Shaw held prominent roles for a Chicago squad that did make the postseason. “That’s the lifeblood of baseball today – you have to have good, young players,” Hoyer said at the end of this season. “I think those are the guys that have real upside that can surprise you and have great years, even beyond projections.” Here are three Top 100 prospects who could impact the Cubs in 2026: |
1. OF Owen Caissie (No. 47) One of the questions that will hover over the Cubs this offseason is whether the team plans on making a strong bid to re-sign star right fielder Kyle Tucker in free agency. If Tucker winds up elsewhere, that could open up the kind of playing time for Caissie that prospects like Crow-Armstrong, Busch and Shaw received in recent seasons. Caissie, 23, had a 12-game stint in the Majors this year, but the bulk of his action came in August. He returned to the Cubs in September, but a crash into the right-field wall at Wrigley Field on Sept. 13 landed him on MLB’s concussion list and ended his season. By the time the Cubs were eliminated from the playoffs, Caissie was doing well and cleared for all baseball activities, setting him up for a normal offseason. Caissie belted one homer over his first 27 career plate appearances, but he hit .192 (.568 OPS) amid sporadic action. Cubs manager Craig Counsell explained multiple times that the team’s roster construction and playoff push did not free up many at-bats for the young outfielder. There is no denying Caissie’s offensive potential, though. In 99 games with Triple-A Iowa this past season, Caissie hit .286 with 22 home runs, 28 doubles, 55 RBIs and a .937 OPS. He debuted at the Triple-A level in ‘24 and had a .472 slugging percentage and 115 wRC+ that season. In 2025, Caissie posted a .551 SLG and 139 wRC+ at Triple-A, showing he was ready for his chance in the Majors. |
2. C/DH Moisés Ballesteros (No. 53) Similar to Caissie, Ballesteros’ role with the Cubs could be impacted by the situation surrounding Tucker’s future. Ballesteros has the ability to catch, but his bat is what has carried him quickly up the Minor League ladder. While he continues to gain trust defensively behind the plate, Ballesteros can still get at-bats as a designated hitter. That was Ballesteros’ path to really opening eyes in September. While Tucker was on the injured list for roughly three weeks, Ballesteros earned chances as a DH, while Seiya Suzuki took over in right field. In the regular season’s final month, the prospect hit at a .333 (13-for-39) clip with a .999 OPS in 14 games. Ballesteros – who will turn 22 on Nov. 8 – slashed .298/.394/.474 in 20 games with the Cubs overall, collecting two homers, two doubles, one triple and 11 RBIs, while walking nine times (versus 12 strikeouts). He also slashed .316/.385/.473 with 13 homers, 29 doubles and 76 RBIs in 114 games with Triple-A Iowa in ‘25. “He’s been super impressive,” Hoyer said late in the season. “Obviously, the production has been really good, but I think even the underlying numbers – you look at his walk-to-strikeout ratio and things – that’s hard to do as a 21-year-old in the big leagues in September. He’s a really good hitter. And there’s more to his game than that.” |
3. RHP Jaxon Wiggins (No. 67) As the Cubs look to improve their depth on the rotation front this offseason, Wiggins offers one promising in-house possibility. Look no further than Horton’s recent path to Chicago for an example of how it could come to fruition. A year ago, Horton’s Minor League season was cut short (34 1/3 innings between nine outings) due to injury setbacks. That did not get in the way of an impressive return that saw the Cubs’ former No. 1 prospect log 147 combined innings between Triple-A and MLB in 2025. When injuries hit the Cubs’ starting staff, Horton got the call in May and never looked back, vaulting himself into the Rookie of the Year conversation. Like Horton, Wiggins is 24 years old. The righty was picked in the second round of the ‘23 Draft out of the University of Arkansas and returned from Tommy John surgery in ‘24. This year, Wiggins soared through High-A South Bend (1.71 ERA in six games), Double-A Knoxville (1.93 ERA in 10 games) and Triple-A Iowa (4.66 ERA in three games). With an athletic 6-foot-6 frame, Wiggins sits around 96-97 mph with his fastball and can reach triple digits, while also featuring a plus slider and developing changeup. Overall this year, Wiggins turned in a 2.19 ERA with 97 strikeouts against 36 walks in 78 innings, in which he gave up just 44 hits (four homers). |
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