MLB,com The Cubs have seven Top 100 prospects, tied with the Mariners for the most in baseball, which is obviously desirable. But it also presents something of a dilemma. Their six best prospects — third baseman Matt Shaw, right-hander Cade Horton, corner outfielder Owen Caissie, catcher Moises Ballesteros, second baseman James Triantos, center fielder Kevin Alcántara — all reached Triple-A last year and will be pushing for callups in 2025 to a big league club that doesn’t have many openings.
This is actually insane because not long ago we were dead last in baseball and it was only getting worse.
So for all the shit I talk about Jed, which is extremely limited, let me be the first to say that it’s really impressive given all the constraints put in by Tom Ricketts.
Specifically, 6 of the 7 guys are at least in AAA to start the season, and most of them are sourced within the same 18-month window from when the original fire sale began.
Here’s a common man’s scouting guide to all of them
- Matt Shaw – Infielder – I love that he went to Maryland because it’s just shitty enough to put a chip on his shoulder. He’s undersized with big power, which hopefully means he doesn’t strikeout a lot. He’s also known to be a regular guy and not a huge tool-bag pussy like most first round infielders. So that’s probably the best thing about him – he’s not a complete fuckface.
- Cade Horton – Pitcher – Absolute hillbilly but not the good kind that listens to Alan Jackson and can fix shit with his hands. More of the kind that gets a shitty tattoo and listens to too much Luke Bryan in a leased pick up truck, so take that for what it is. Nice thing is he has a good fastball/slider combination and should be the big leagues some time this summer. Bad thing is he’s always hurt and impossible to project.
- Owen Caissie – Outfielder – Good enough for everyone know but not really spectacular at anything in particular. Strong arm. Good hitter. Nice body. Probably has an average career at worst and kinda reminds me of a softer Paul O’Neil. But does he have a place in the modern game? Steroid use would help a lot but have major questions about his mental makeup. They could also make things drastically worse. For those reasons I’m out until he pulls me back in.
- Moises Ballesteros – Designated Hitter – Not a catcher guys so just forget about it. More importantly though – he’s my favorite guy on the list. Just an absolute meatball savage in the batters box with elite plate discipline and an insatiable appetite for pulling anything over the middle of the plate. He’s like a more compact Kyle Schwarber crossed with Anthony Rizzo and even that might be underselling his approach. It’s delicious and I think he hits 5th in this lineup for the next decade with 300 career homers as a Cub. I love this guy. He’s awesome.
- James Triantos – Infielder – Hopefully trade bait this summer for a pitcher Tom Ricketts is too cheap to sign. And then Triantos goes on to be an All Star somewhere else and Jed can rub it in his face. That’s my ideal situation with James Triantos because there’s absolutely no shot he cracks regular time in the big league lineup without significant injury to …. guys already injured. Damn. Nevermind. Triantos stays.
- Kevin Alcatnara – Outfielder – I think he’s too tall and whatever if there’s taller players. Personally I don’t like players that tall. Just look at Aaron Judge in the World Series dropping fly balls because he’s – you guessed it – too fuckin tall. And whether that’s a bad take, my point is that I don’t love a lengthy outfielder is for two reasons: the body breaks down easily and strikeout rates are too high. So even if he’s awesome, the injury risk is through the roof. But the reality is he won’t be awesome because he’ll strikeout 30% of the time. And I say all of this knowing it could very well be the dumbest thing anyone has ever said about a baseball player. So be it.
- Jefferson Rojas – Infielder – So far away that it would be insane for me to really give a shit about this kid. I like that he’s the youngest one on the list and cracking the top 100 is a big accomplishment, but this is a player you bookmark for June and take everything with a grain of salt. It’s nice that he’s getting acclaim but you’d have to be insane to truly give a shit.
These are your common man scouting reports on the top 7.
I want to reiterate that it’s incredibly impressive Jed was able to put this together under such awful circumstances and weak ownership.
That may never be said enough.
PS – I’m not joking when I say Moises Ballesteros could be the most important bat in an NLDS lineup. That’s not even close to being the craziest thing I’ll say this week. If you don’t know this guy, please start paying attention
PPS – Yes I have 9 minutes of highlights. I’m glad you asked.