Baseball America announced their preseason Top 100 prospects for 2026 and two Cubs prospects were named to the list. Catcher Moisés Ballesteros was named the 36th-ranked prospect and right-handed pitcher Jaxon Wiggins was named the 78th-best prospect.
Recently-traded outfielder Owen Caissie, now of the Marlins, was named the 43rd-best prospect in the game.
Additionally. two Cubs outfield prospects, Ethan Conrad and Kane Kepley, were listed among the “20 MLB prospects who just missed.” Conrad and Kepley were the Cubs’
first- and second-round picks in the 2025 draft.
In their comments on Ballesteros, they reiterated that he’s a special hitter with defensive questions. On Wiggins, they said that he is one of the hardest-throwing starters in the minors but with durability issues.
Clearly the Cubs system is down a bit from the same time last year. Cade Horton and Matt Shaw graduated. Owen Caissie was traded to Miami. Kevin Alcántara, who was in the preseason Top 100 last year, had a rough season and dropped out.
However, Ballesteros jumped from 62 to 36 and Wiggins went from unranked last year to 78th this year. Conrad hasn’t made his professional debut yet because of injury, but Baseball America is very excited to see him play this year. Kepley made a big splash in Low-A Myrtle Beach which was enough for a second-round pick to get some consideration for the top 100. So the cupboard isn’t completely empty.
