Baseball Prospectus released its list of the top 10 prospects in the Cubs system. And as the case with the other major publications, Baseball Prospectus ranked a 19-year old shortstop as the best prospect in the organization.
Gleyber Torres is the consensus top prospect in the Cubs’ system. Baseball Prospectus is higher on Eddy Julio Martinez than other publications. And as will be the case with the CCO’s top prospect list, Baseball Prospectus thinks Dylan Cease is the top pitching prospect in the system.
Baseball Prospectus values Carl Edwards Jr. more than Pierce Johnson even though they admit the days of Edwards Jr. pitching in a big league rotation are over. Edwards Jr. has the stuff to be a closer but not the control at this point and questions remain about his durability.
The five prospects who “are just interesting” according to Baseball Prospectus are 1B Dan Vogelbach, RHP Oscar De La Cruz, LHP Bryan Hudson, OF Donnie Dewees and LHP Justin Steele.
The Top 10 Talents 25 and Under in the Cubs system: Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, Kyle Schwarber, Jorge Soler, Javier Baez, Gleyber Torres, Willson Contreras, Ian Happ, Billy McKinney and Eddy Julio Martinez. Baseball Prospectus ranked Addison Russell as the top prospect in the Cubs’ system last year.
Baseball Prospectus said the Cubs’ system “is now more of a quantity than quality system, but the player development departs is playing with house money now, anyway.”
Baseball Prospectus’ Top 10 Cubs Prospects for 2016
2015 Ranking in Parenthesis (NA – Not Available, NR – Not Ranked)
- Gleyber Torres, SS (8)
- Willson Contreras, C (NR)
- Ian Happ, 2B/OF (NA)
- Billy McKinney, OF (6)
- Eddy Julio Martinez, OF (NA)
- Dylan Cease, RHP (NR)
- Albert Almora Jr., OF (4)
- Duane Underwood Jr., RHP (NR)
- Eloy Jimenez, OF (NR)
- Carl Edwards Jr., RHP (NR)
• Baseball Prospectus’ Top 10 Cubs Prospect List
• Gleyber Torres Photo – @CubsDen
The Cubs system is considered to be one of the deepest in baseball. By this time next year it would not be a stretch to think a majority of the top 10 prospects in the system will be pitchers. There are several young arms that project as starting pitchers in the majors primed to take big steps in their development this season.
2016 Cubs Prospect Rankings and Reports
- Baseball America’s Top 10 Cubs Prospects for 2016 [includes scouting reports]
- FanGraphs Top Cubs Prospects List for 2016
- Minor League Ball’s Top Cubs Prospects for 2016
- Baseball Prospectus’ Top 101 Includes Six Cubs Prospects
- Six Cubs Prospects Land in MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 List for 2016
- Baseball America’s Top 31 Cubs Prospects for 2016
- Cubs System Ranked No. 20 in Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook
- Cubs System Lands at No. 4 on Keith Law’s Organizational Rankings
- Keith Law’s Top 100 Prospects Includes Six Cubs, Gleyber Torres Checks in at No. 15
- Three Cubs Prospects Ranked in Baseball America’s Top 100
- Cubs Eddy Julio Martinez Just Missed Keith Law’s Top 100 Prospect List
- Keith Law’s Top 10 Cubs Prospects for 2016
- Baseball America Considers Willson Contreras Second Best Catching Prospect in the Game
- Cubs Prospects Place High on Keith Law’s Positional Rankings
- Cubs Have Seventh Best Group of Position Player Prospects
- MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 Cubs Prospects for 2016